LinkedIn remains one of the best social media platforms for connecting with potential clients. And recently, the company rolled out a number of new features that can help you connect even more.
One of these new features is LinkedIn’s Creator mode, which enables you to launch a newsletter inside LinkedIn. When I first heard about this, I rolled my eyes. I mean … newsletters? Really?
But when my guest today, Chrissie Zavicar, explained the potential of this feature for writers, consultants and independent professionals, I saw the light—and got really excited!
Chrissie is a LinkedIn strategist and consultant. We had her on the show a few years ago to discuss LinkedIn outreach strategies.
I suspect you’ll get as excited as me once you hear Chrissie talk about the different ways you can use this and other new LinkedIn features … and why now is the time to give them a try.
The notes that follow are a very basic, unedited summary of the show. There’s a lot more detail in the audio version. You can listen to the show using the audio player below. Or you can subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music or wherever you listen to podcasts.
Tell us about yourself and your business
Chrissie started her own business in 2015. She’s good at amplifying voices, and LinkedIn is the perfect platform for that because they reward good content.
She started by working with small businesses and influencers. More recently, she’s been teaching marketing and sales teams of enterprise-level clients how to leverage LinkedIn.
How can we leverage our content on LinkedIn?
LinkedIn has been building out its business pages. Now, you can create a company page and post articles natively there.
It also a good idea to pay attention to LinkedIn wants you to do and build your strategy with that in mind.
For example, LinkedIn recently rolled out a polls feature. If you post a poll, you get a lot of visibility. So if you have genuine questions you’d like to ask, this is a great place to do it.
Recently, LinkedIn released a newsletter feature. Could you describe it for us?
LinkedIn rolled out LinkedIn Creator Mode, which contains the newsletter tool. You have to turn it on to use it. Even then, you may not get access to LinkedIn newsletter and LinkedIn Live right away.
You can create a LinkedIn newsletter that’s associated with your personal profile. When you publish your first newsletter, you can opt to send it to everyone who’s in your network. They are then given the option of opting in to your newsletter and receiving a notification
every time you publish a new newsletter.
With the rollout of LinkedIn newsletters, people are clicking through to articles more, as opposed to engaging with long content that shows up in their feed.
What if we already have an existing newsletter? Do we do both?
You need to look at your overarching strategy.
For example, Chrissie’s LinkedIn newsletter is called “First and Sober.” She specifically wanted to launch it on LinkedIn because she has influence there and her target audience is there.
She also has plans to start an email newsletter. So, she’ll be posting the same content both through her email newsletter and the LinkedIn newsletter.
Another way to look at it: because your LinkedIn newsletter is coming from your personal profile (and not your company page), you have the opportunity to create a newsletter that’s more geared to you as an individual and not you as a business.
For example, she has a client who’s using their LinkedIn newsletter as an influencer piece. It’s more focused on her passions. At the same time, she has a separate consumer email newsletter that focuses on the target audience for her business.
In short, you can push different content to your newsletter and LinkedIn newsletter or the same content. It depends on what you’re trying to do.
Another option is to start your LinkedIn newsletter with older, evergreen content that you’ve already published to your email newsletter.
The most important question to ask yourself is what do you want to accomplish.
If I’ve been meaning to launch an email newsletter but haven’t yet, should I reconsider that approach?
Are you active on LinkedIn right now? If not, you’re better to go the email newsletter route, especially if you already have active website that’s getting visitors.
If you’re already active on LinkedIn, then consider the LinkedIn newsletter option, especially if you’re already getting engagement and your audience is there.
Should we try to divert some of our LinkedIn newsletter subscribers to our websites to opt in—so that the relationship doesn’t just live on LinkedIn?
You have the option of choosing a CTA button for your LinkedIn company pages, such as contact us, register, etc. This button always leads to your external site.
The featured section on your personal profile has also been upgraded so you can link to your external site. (If you don’t already have this section, you can add it.)
Anything else we should now before getting into LinkedIn newsletters?
Think outside the box. Make your LinkedIn newsletter a bit more human. Have a clear plan for your content—and make sure it’s specific to you and what you provide.
Where can listeners learn more about you?
Chrissie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrissiezavicar/
Chrissie’s website: https://e-linkconsulting.com or stackbrands.com
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If you’re a 6-figure writer who’s trying to earn more in less time, with less stress, I might be able to help you get there faster than you think. Just email me at [email protected] and put “Breakthrough” in the subject line, and I’ll get back to you with more details.
