How to Be a Thought Leader on LinkedIn

By now, you've heard the term "thought leadership."

You likely know its purpose is more than just brand awareness. It's about building your business or personal brand to be seen as an authentic resource and developing deeper relationships with the people you want to reach. What you might not know is how to be a thought leader or how to use LinkedIn in your thought leadership efforts. Social media platforms (specifically LinkedIn) should be a primary place for your efforts to become a thought leader.

LinkedIn is a crucial personal branding tool with over 760 million users. It's an efficient place to grow and maintain your network as well as to learn. Content on the LinkedIn feed receives 9 billion impressions  a week! It's the ideal place to share and grow your insights to become a thought leader.

Here's how.

LinkedIn Thought Leadership Best Practices

1. Develop and Boost Your LinkedIn Profile

This one is pretty straight forward. You won’t be a thought leader on LinkedIn with a weak or incomplete profile. Take the time to set up your profile and check it twice for optimization.   

2. Use Visuals in Posts

Post pictures, graphs, memes, and other images. Allowing a visual element for others to connect with on a primarily verbal platform is key to standing out and getting attention. 

3. Create Videos

Sharing your tone and inflection with your face goes a long way for creating trust. Take your message a step farther and stand out by recording a video and posting it to LinkedIn regularly. 

4. Participate in LinkedIn Groups

Don’t go at it alone. Collaborate with other thought leaders by joining groups on LinkedIn. You can post, respond and get involved in bigger conversations in LinkedIn groups. Communicating with and supporting other thought leaders in your industry via LinkedIn groups is essential.

5. Toot Your Own Horn

Post about your achievements! Post about your business's growth! Ask for recommendations and endorsements from your friends and colleagues so they can be seen on your profile. 

6. Share Your Insights

This might sound like the most obvious tips, but it’s also perhaps the most important. To be a thought leader you must share your thoughts! Dig deep, write longform, and share your expertise. Give detail to your industry and answer questions you predict in your business community. 

This all sounds simple — because it is!

The actions noted above are probably things you are already doing, but adding some structure and intentionality to them can make a big difference. Becoming a thought leader takes time and consistency. Building trust doesn’t happen overnight! There are so many benefits to being a thought leader and LinkedIn is a great place to start. Start today!