Becoming a LinkedIn Top Voice

How the average Joe can leverage the power of consistent creation to grow your brand and business

Just yesterday I received a congratulatory email inviting me into the LinkedIn Top Voices program, it's still a bit surreal but I wanted to share with you what this is, what it means for me, and how you can leverage content creation to drive awareness for your brand and ultimately grow your business no matter how small your following may be.

First, a little background on the LinkedIn Top Voices program.

Top Voices is an invitation-only program featuring a global group of experts on LinkedIn covering a range of topics across the professional world, helping members uncover valuable knowledge relevant to them. Top Voices was previously known as the Influencer program prior to October 2022. 

What's also interesting to note is that LinkedIn only invites a select group into the program putting Top Voices in the top 1.0% of LinkedIn's 1 billion+ users world wide, pretty awesome!

How to become a LinkedIn Top Voice

I honestly didn't think I would ever achieve Top Voice status. I don't have a lot of followers and I don't represent a global brand or company. I also don't have a marketing background and for years didn't create any content at all. I'm about as average as they come so although I knew about the program it was a pipe dream at best.

From what I can tell the LinkedIn Top Voices program is run by a collective of LinkedIn editors who review potential top voices on an annual basis to see if they are worthy of being invited into the club. What's cool about this is that they are looking for people who are thought leaders that create content that provides professional insights to help LinkedIn's members grow, regardless of your followers or public status! That tells me the editorial team is focused on finding Voices that provide value and want to help others, that's meaningful.

So how do you become a LinkedIn Top Voice? Well, there's no clear path but here's what I did that I think helped me achieve the Top Voice status.

I consistently created content that helped others grow.

I've been consistently creating content for ~6 years on LinkedIn, posting anywhere from 2-6 times a week, every week, for years. My content has been seen over 4 million times and I've grown my network from just a few hundred to over 24k.

The majority of my content had the following characteristics:

• It challenged the status quo in a respectful manner
• It was fun
• It was educational, based upon something I learned that I wanted to share with others to help them grow
• Most of it was spur of the moment, not thought out weeks in advance
• When appropriate I would create content on timely topics, especially topics being highlighted in the LinkedIn News box.

Here are 5 tips I was given on content creation by LinkedIn directly.

I also made it a point to engage in other members' posts. And from time to time I would directly promote my own business as well.

In summary I would say that to give yourself a shot at becoming a LinkedIn Top Voice you should consistently create content that helps other people, listen to real time feedback, pivot, and continue on no matter how hard, boring, or frustrated you may become.

Growing your brand and business on LinkedIn

Yes, LinkedIn is a networking site and yes I have been talking about creating content, but ultimately a lot of us want to grow our brand and business. It's one of the main reasons we show up on LinkedIn on a regular basis.

What I've found is that growing my personal brand has led to a variety of business opportunities and growth. Your personal brand and your business are tied to each other, grow one grow the other. For me, growing my personal brand was the long game that is really starting to pay off.

Remember, people want to connect with people, especially the people behind a business and corporate brand. It's just part of being human. So if you consistently show up, create content, and let people get to know you the rest starts to take care of itself.

The thought process goes a bit like this. Hey, I like what Derek's saying so I'm going to continue to pay attention to his content. Then eventually people say to themselves "what does Derek do?" and then if you have the right funnel/journey set up people will start coming to you for a variety of reasons (spam, vendors, etc.) but also for real meaningful connections and business opportunities. In short, create a tribe with your vibe.

In the last year I've opened up new business opportunities for my company Couplr AI , sold my other company Conneqtor.org , found amazing guests for my Rethink. Financial Advice Podcast , found an amazing group of dadpreneurs to attend the first ever REBL Dads Gathering, and even was able to speak with my business idol Richard Branson .

It's a simple equation really...

Creating valuable content + being consistent = opportunities

It takes a village

I'll end by saying that I would not be a LinkedIn Top Voice if it were not for all of you. I'm grateful that people find value in what I have to say. I'm grateful for the opportunity to have a place where I can share content. I'm grateful for being part of such a warm community. Also, I must mention Jessica Oliveira Lee who has been a true supporter and positive force in helping me grow personally and professionally.

Sending positive vibes your way,

Derek Notman

What do you think about creating content on LinkedIn to grow your personal and business brands? Share your comments below.

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