What type of content performs best for your audience on LinkedIn, and how do you tailor your content to resonate with them? Share an example of a well-performing LinkedIn post and why you think it resonated.

Back-end company milestone content does very well on LinkedIn as it humanizes our agency and gives proof of growth that a potential client can take comfort in. Our audience is interested in working with companies that are successful, and celebrating wins is a measure of stability and expertise that helps to make them more confident in ours. Our highest performing post commemorating our 5th anniversary by calling out some of the milestones:"Five years ago, Thrive Local was 3 people in shared office space. Today, we're 18 staff members strong and have assisted 240+ local businesses improve their online presence. Our clients added over $4.2M in revenue this year just from better digital marketing." We used pictures from our beginning combined with our staff photos now and success stats of our clients. This post performed well because it was a story that entrepreneurs could easily empathize with, while also demonstrating proof that we were successful in what we were doing. Growth stories resonate with business owners because they build trust that we "get" their problems and can deliver solutions. Because you're sharing authentic milestones, specifically including client results, LinkedIn users are comfortable getting involved: They're participating in real business outcomes, not content that feels like an ad instead of community celebration.

Here's a post I did recently to drive traffic to a masterclass I was putting on: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/lulu-godfrey_two-and-a-half-years-ago-i-was-posting-daily-ugcPost-7354395672734806017-IYJ-?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAADq76FwBvmcWmiLVBM-hHU0so6RIcsgUxDM So far, it's had 412 reactions - and led to around 150 signups. There are a few reasons I'd attribute this to: 1. Storytelling-focused Everyone talks about storytelling posts, but it's for good reason. I picked out a part of my story that my current target audience is also experiencing. I thought about the actions I was taking and the situation I was in to show that I understand who I'm talking to. 2. Format Photo-based posts aren't suitable for every type of post and goal, but when the goal involves generating visibility, they are a great way to go. They take up a lot of room on the screen and helps your audience pick you out super quickly (and remember you too!). 3. Simplicity for viewer I included all the information upfront: date, timezones and information about the replay. Then the only thing my audience needed to do was comment or DM me "masterclass". From there I was able to message each person individually to grab their email to send the invite to. This saved them from accessing a landing page and having to leave LinkedIn to be part of the webinar.

I've found that topical but relatable content is what consistently performs best for my audience on LinkedIn. I focus on timely themes within B2B marketing but always try to ground them in real, everyday experiences that marketers can genuinely relate to. Recently, one of my best-performing posts started with a real interaction where a prospect told me ChatGPT had recommended me. I turned that into a short narrative-style post that imagined a conversation between me and ChatGPT, highlighting how AI is becoming part of the buyer journey in unexpected ways. It sparked curiosity and felt timely, but also tapped into a wider conversation marketers are already having about AI's evolving role. I think it resonated because it was both thought-provoking and familiar - it played with a relatable format while raising deeper questions about brand visibility and reputation in the age of AI. I find combining storytelling, relevance, and a hint of humour is often what drives the most engagement amongst my audience. (The post I'm referring to is this one: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7335633833263886336/)

I'm Jeff Mains, a five time founder and CEO of Champion Leadership Group, where I help SaaS and professional service leaders scale with purpose and precision. And the post that resonated most with my audience was when I opened up about a leadership mistake, I made during a scaling phase. There I shared how I had delayed replacing a key executive out of loyalty, even though the business had outgrown their role. How that decision caused a six month stall and created internal friction. In the post, I walked through how I handled the transition, what I learned, and why trying to protect people from hard truths can sometimes do more harm than good. That post took off because it was real. I wasn't offering a framework or a listicle. I was saying, here's where I messed up and what it taught me about leadership. And it invited other founders to share their own hard pivots, and it turned my mere post into a conversation. I've found that on LinkedIn, vulnerability paired with insight performs best. If you can articulate a lesson that others feel but haven't put into words yet, you build trust and engagement fast. That's how I tailor what I share (I start with the real tension I've lived through, and then I zoom out to show what others can take away from it).

Over the years, I've tested everything on LinkedIn from long-form storytelling to punchy one-liners to carousels and memes. But the content that consistently performs best? Posts that teach, challenge assumptions, or pull back the curtain on what's really happening in the industry. My audience is a mix of founders, marketers, consultants, and content professionals. They're smart, busy, and allergic to fluff. So, I don't try to impress them, I aim to equip them. Every post I write answers a question, solves a problem, or reframes something they thought they already knew. Here's one example that landed well: I said personal branding isn't some performance. It's just clarity. Clarity about who you are, and not leaving that up to guesswork. It wasn't viral in the traditional sense, but it had unusually high saves, DMs, and shares. Why? Because it spoke to something people feel but rarely hear said that directly. It created a mirror moment. And it gave people a framework to rethink how they show up online without sounding preachy or trying too hard. That's what I aim for in every post: relevance without gimmicks, clarity without oversimplifying, and enough honesty to start a real conversation. Because when the message actually hits? You don't need a hook. The reader finishes your post and feels understood.

When creating content for my audience on LinkedIn, I think it's most important to look at topics that are currently generating a lot of interest and questions on the platform. From there, I think about a unique angle that my community would be interested in and give them the answers they are looking for. As a recent example, we were seeing a lot of old posts on LinkedIn which was frustrating people. I did the research and discovered that the LinkedIn algorithm had changed in a very significant way. The best way for me to address this was long-form content. My LinkedIn newsletter is perfect for expanding thoughts and reaching a wider audience. In the newsletter, I break down what happened, why they should care and most importantly, give them a way forward. Linking back to some other fun content I created around this in short-form video format. https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/linkedins-changed-again-heres-what-im-doing-michelle-j-raymond-59q9c I think the true key to success is creating content that serves your audience. Help them get closer to achieving their goals, and that builds attention loyalty, something that can't be bought!

After building 17,000+ LinkedIn followers, I've found that my highest-performing content always falls into one category: practical SEO education that challenges conventional wisdom. My audience includes: SEO professionals and agency owners Small business owners frustrated with cookie-cutter marketing Conference organizers looking for informed, no-fluff speakers Tool companies that want expert-led product exposure The Content Formula That Works: 1. Friday SEO Tips These posts generate the most engagement by consistently following this structure: Hook: Bold claim that challenges the status quo Proof: Real example, often with data or screenshots Process: A repeatable step-by-step method CTA: A link to a webinar or resource that expands on the topic Example That Crushed Engagement: "This SEO 'Hack' Still Works—And Google Loves It." This post on building LinkedIn backlinks gained strong traction because: Contrarian take: I pushed back on the "backlinks are dead" narrative Concrete proof: Shared how I earned 2 backlinks in 10 minutes after DigiMarCon Replicable strategy: Step-by-step instructions, not vague tips Real data: Screenshots from my actual Search Console, not just theory Why It Resonated: It challenged assumptions most SEOs hold Delivered value most agencies would gate behind a paywall Solved real problems—visibility and link building—quickly Showed proof from real campaigns, not hypothetical scenarios My "Human Voice + AI Enhancement" System: I start by recording my thoughts naturally, then use AI to: Structure posts for better engagement and readability Spin one idea into multiple post formats (carousels, video, email) Draft CTAs, headlines, and visual prompts quickly Keep content flowing daily without sounding robotic What I Avoid on LinkedIn: Vague motivational fluff Self-promotion without actionable value Theoretical SEO that lacks field-tested results One-size-fits-all marketing advice The Secret Sauce: I combine 30 years of SEO experience with near-perfect weekly consistency. People know that every Friday, they'll get an insight they won't find in mainstream SEO blogs. It's not about chasing virality—it's about becoming a trusted signal in a noisy feed. Results: This strategy has led to high-quality leads, speaking gigs, product collaborations, and has made me a trusted voice in AI + SEO. It also perfectly aligns with our Micro SEO business model.

After running marketing and revenue at LA Times and building Nota, I've found that data-driven storytelling about industry change performs best on LinkedIn. My audience of media executives and content creators responds to posts that combine hard metrics with actionable insights about AI's impact on their workflows. My highest-performing post showcased how one of our media partners achieved a 92% reduction in newsletter creation time using Nota's tools. I included the specific workflow changes they made and the revenue impact within 60 days. The post generated 340% more engagement than my typical content because it addressed the exact pain point every publisher faces: scaling content without burning out their teams. The key is leading with the problem, not the solution. I always start posts with industry challenges like "Why are local newsrooms struggling with audience growth?" then provide concrete examples of what's working. Posts with specific percentages and timeframes consistently outperform generic advice by 3-4x. What works best is being transparent about both successes and failures. When I shared how we initially struggled to integrate AI tools into traditional newsroom workflows at the Union-Tribune, that vulnerability created genuine conversations with other media leaders facing similar challenges.

Leading marketing at Fluig has taught me that visual content consistently outperforms text-only posts on LinkedIn. Our audience of product managers, designers, and teams responds best to content that shows rather than tells. One of our highest-performing posts featured a before/after comparison showing how Fluig transformed a messy 20-page project document into a clean flowchart in seconds. The post got 3x our usual engagement because people could immediately visualize the value proposition. I've learned to frontload the visual punch--the diagram or screenshot needs to grab attention in the first millisecond of scrolling. Then I keep the copy conversational and problem-focused, usually starting with something like "Ever spend hours trying to make sense of a complex document?" The key insight is that our audience deals with information overload daily. Content that demonstrates instant clarity and simplification always wins over abstract feature descriptions or industry jargon.

For Featured, the content that really takes off on LinkedIn is simple: cheatsheets and infographics. These work because they give professionals what they want, quick, useful takeaways they can apply right away. People on LinkedIn don't want fluff or long reads. They want insights they can act on, and visuals that make scanning easy. That's why well-designed, info-packed posts get saved, shared, and commented on far more than plain text updates. A great example is our PR Cheatsheet post. It racked up solid engagement because it solved a clear problem, how to simplify your PR approach, at a glance. Add to that a clean graphic, a benefit-driven caption, and relevant hashtags, and the post hit the sweet spot: instantly helpful, easy to share, and totally aligned with what our LinkedIn audience is looking for. https://www.linkedin.com/posts/matias-rodsevich-12964043_pr-prcheatsheet-publicrelations-activity-7219309873350537218-IEWp

Tactically broken-down local SEO victories will always beat out thought leadership posts or other general updates. They are mostly small agency owners, service-based business operators and marketing consultants, who want demonstration rather than theory. A single post that went exceptionally viral was that of how one of their plumbing customers had tripled their map pack viewability in 60 days through a single-page GMB landing play. It had a 3 step playbook anyone could follow, keyword movement and before and after screenshots. It was effective since it was precise, graphic, and applicable. We do not get fluff since we begin every post with the solution to the problem and end it with a question that seeks the advice of peers. That utility and engagement has meant that our average post reach has been 4x that of industry averages.

What works best for us on LinkedIn is sharing real situations from our daily work, especially around hiring, project delivery, or how we manage communication in remote teams. One post that performed better than expected was about how we replaced "culture fit" with "collaboration style" in our hiring process. I shared how we used to hire based on personality match, but found that it didn't always translate into better teamwork. We now focus on how someone handles feedback, conflict, and async communication. The post was short, specific, and didn't try to teach or sell. It just explained a shift we made and why it worked better for us. It led to strong engagement and direct messages from people in similar roles. We avoid posting too often. Instead, we wait until there's something worth sharing, usually pulled from a real project or internal conversation. That keeps it relatable and makes people trust what we say.

I'm Cody Jensen, and I run a SEM agency called Searchbloom. The post that really took off was about how SEO, PPC, and CRO aren't separate plays. They're the same game viewed from different seats. I shared a moment where chasing SEO wins without paid data was like driving with one eye closed, and doing PPC without CRO was like pouring water into a leaky bucket. That hit home, because it's easy to silo these functions and forget they're supposed to work together. The post worked because it wasn't preaching. It revealed how great results happen when teams stop protecting their turf and start aligning around the outcome.

As a B2B SaaS company in a pretty niche industry, our LinkedIn posts don't generate a ton of engagement. That said, we have found two formats that perform a lot better than others: 1) Short-form video interviews I conduct interviews with experts in the creative industry for our marketing newsletter, The Fine Line. We then repurpose them as shorts for LinkedIn. Our best-performing post came from this initiative. I believe it resonated because of: - The content format - shorts seem to drive more engagement on LinkedIn - The strong hook - "smoking a cigar with Michael Jordan" is a pretty hard hook to ignore - The content matches the ICP - our target audience is creatives and marketers Link to the post: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7328339538991312897 2) Repurposed customer stories I have recently put together a proper redistribution strategy for our customer stories, and those consistently get more engagement than our other post types (it's not massive at the moment, but it's growing steadily). Here's my process: - Analyze the story and pull out 2-3 core angles eg. time saved, adoption - Create a post for each angle and add a quote as an image (we have a series of templates to speed this process up) - Schedule one post a month over a quarter to avoid overdoing it - Tag our customers in the post - At the end of the quarter, I measure the success by calculating the content multiplier. Here's how I calculate it: 1) Track views of the baseline content - in this case it's the original customer story 2) Track views across all the repurposed social posts over the quarter 3) Total the reach 4) Divide by the original baseline = your multiplier Here's the post: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7345726612920807426

After presenting SHIELD's cooling technology to everyone from Spartans to professional ice climbers around the country, I've learned that hands-on demonstration content absolutely crushes everything else on LinkedIn. People scroll past product shots, but they stop dead when they see actual athletes using our gear in real scenarios. My best-performing post showed a Ninja Warrior applying our SHIELD POLAR cooling wrap mid-training session. The video got 3x our normal engagement because viewers could literally see the immediate cooling effect and watch how the athlete's performance changed. Baltimore's fitness community especially ate it up since they could relate to needing that kind of recovery support. What made it work was showing the "before and after" rather than just talking features. Instead of listing that POLAR contains menthol and camphor, I filmed the athlete's reaction when that cooling sensation hit. The comments were filled with people tagging their training partners and asking where to buy it. The key insight from years of product testing with key opinion leaders: LinkedIn users want proof, not promises. Show your product solving a real problem for a real person, and include their genuine reaction. Skip the corporate polish and let the results speak for themselves.

After driving 3233% growth in UMR's social media following, I've found that storytelling with human impact data performs exceptionally well on LinkedIn. Our nonprofit audience responds strongest to posts that combine compelling beneficiary stories with concrete metrics showing how donations translate into real change. Our best-performing LinkedIn post shared the story of a water well project that served 847 families in rural Yemen, but I structured it around the journey of one 12-year-old girl who could finally attend school instead of walking 6 miles daily for water. I included specific numbers: $12,000 raised, 3.2 hours saved per family daily, and 89% school attendance increase in that village. This post generated over 2,400 engagements and drove $47,000 in donations within the first week. The secret is leading with emotion but backing it with data that donors can trust. When I post about our seasonal campaigns generating over $500,000, I always anchor those numbers to individual stories that show exactly where that money goes. Our audience of 120,000 stakeholders includes many analytical thinkers who need both heart and hard evidence before they engage or donate. What consistently works is the "zoom in, zoom out" approach - start with one person's change, then reveal the broader impact across communities. This storytelling method has helped our seasonal marketing initiatives consistently exceed revenue targets while building genuine emotional connections with our supporter base.

Having built the demand engine at Sumo Logic that generated 20% of total ARR before their IPO, I've learned that tactical finance breakdowns absolutely dominate on LinkedIn. Founders are desperate for real numbers and specific processes they can implement immediately. My highest-performing post broke down exactly how we structured our board deck financials during fundraising at one of my portfolio companies. I showed the actual slide progression—from high-level ARR metrics to detailed cohort analysis—and explained why we led with retention data instead of growth rates. That post got saved 400+ times because I included the specific template structure and explained our logic for each section. The magic happens when you share the messy reality behind polished outcomes. I posted about a time our burn rate calculations were wrong by $40K/month because we weren't properly accounting for deferred revenue. Instead of hiding the mistake, I walked through exactly how we caught it, fixed our cash flow forecasting model, and presented the correction to our board. CFOs and founders went crazy for it because everyone makes these errors but nobody talks about them. What converts best is giving away the exact frameworks I use with OpStart clients. When I shared our "4-criteria ARR quality assessment" (retention rates, contract terms, customer size, and mission-criticality), dozens of founders commented with their own scoring results and asked follow-up questions about improving weak areas.

As COO at Underground Marketing, I've found that process-focused content consistently outperforms everything else on LinkedIn. Posts about streamlining workflows, team alignment strategies, and turning "big ideas into actionable plans" get the most engagement from agency owners and marketing directors. One of my best-performing posts was about our 3-step white-label content process: "You sell the service, we perform the work, your client receives quality content." It got shared 47 times and generated 12 direct inquiries. People loved the simplicity and how it solved their scaling problem without extra hiring overhead. The post worked because it addressed a real pain point with concrete steps. Most agencies want to offer content services but lack the specialist skills or bandwidth. I showed them exactly how we handle the behind-the-scenes work while they maintain client relationships and grow revenue. LinkedIn audiences respond to operational insights that save time and reduce complexity. They don't want theory—they want proven systems they can implement immediately.

Content that sparks conversations around workforce transformation and emerging skills consistently performs best. The audience is largely composed of HR leaders, L&D heads, and decision-makers looking for insights, not pitches. Posts that blend personal observation with industry data tend to gain traction—especially when they spotlight a shift that's already underway but not yet mainstream. One post that resonated exceptionally well highlighted how traditional training models are failing mid-level managers in rapidly digitizing industries. It opened with a simple question—"Why do managers struggle more than fresh hires when companies go digital?"—and backed it up with brief insights from actual upskilling results across industries. The engagement came not just from likes, but from detailed comments by professionals who shared similar challenges. That post worked because it didn't just inform—it provoked reflection.

As Marketing Manager for FLATS® overseeing properties across Chicago, San Diego, Minneapolis, and Vancouver, I've found that behind-the-scenes strategy breakdowns perform incredibly well on LinkedIn. Real estate professionals are tired of polished property shots - they want to see the marketing machinery that drives results. My best-performing post broke down our Ori expandable apartment marketing approach at The Heron in Edgewater. I explained how we positioned these transformable units (pocket studios, cloud beds, pocket offices) not as "small spaces" but as "adaptive luxury." The post detailed our messaging strategy: focusing on flexibility for urban professionals rather than compensating for size limitations. The engagement was insane because I shared our actual creative brief and explained why we emphasized the technology angle over traditional square footage marketing. Property marketers dealing with micro-units and studio apartments were hungry for this repositioning strategy. I included specific language we used: "transform your home into whatever space it needs to be" instead of "maximize your small space." What resonated most was showing the strategic thinking process, not just the final campaign. I broke down how we leveraged the lakefront Edgewater location and proximity to Loyola University to target different personas with the same adaptable unit concept - young professionals wanting home offices and students needing study spaces.