Do you cringe at the thought of opening LinkedIn, even though you know your ideal clients are on there?
If you find yourself dreading LinkedIn, you're in good company. Many small business owners feel overwhelmed and irritated by the quantity of irrelevant content, self-promotional posts, and the platform’s ever-growing list of features. You may scroll through your feed, bombarded by boring updates from past colleagues and random connections, wondering how to navigate it all.
LinkedIn keeps rolling out new features like video, collaborative articles, Linkedain lives, and newsletters. Should you bother with them? It feels like there’s always something new, and figuring out which tools actually matter is daunting. When everything feels like “too much,” it’s easier to just put off taking any action at all.
You’ve seen others in your industry getting leads from it and you know you should be on there, but you dread it every time. At the same time, you know LinkedIn is the platform where your ideal clients are, especially compared to other platforms like Instagram, Threads, and Tik Tok.
There’s that endless mental to-do list ticking in the back of your mind: “I should be posting… maybe I should send that message… should I leave a comment on that post?” But despite the energy you spend thinking about LinkedIn, it’s tough to know which actions to take and not to spend time overthinking it.
The good news is that LinkedIn doesn’t have to be a headache; with the right strategies, it can become a powerful tool for generating leads and growing your business. In this blog post, we’ll explore how to make LinkedIn serve your needs while not feeling so overwhelming.
By the way, you don’t need to fall in love with LinkedIn – you just need to figure out how to use it in a way that serves your business and that feels good to you.
Once you have a plan and start implementing it, you will actually looking forward to opening LinkedIn. Your feed won’t be clogged with irrelevant posts or random updates from people you haven’t worked with in years. You won’t be staring at a blank page wondering what to post. You’ll know exactly who to message and start a conversation with. As a result, you’ll book sales calls and get the results you want.
(In this related article, I share how to get more replies to your LinkedIn messages.)
You’ll realize LinkedIn isn’t just “something others use to get leads”—it’s your lead generation tool, too. You’re connecting with people who resonate with your work, getting messages from prospects interested in learning more, and watching your pipeline fill up with new opportunities. All that time you used to spend thinking about LinkedIn—wondering if you should post or which features matter—is now spent seeing real engagement, knowing your content is reaching the right people.
LinkedIn becomes less about “keeping up” and more about building your own pipeline of leads. And with each win—each new conversation and lead—your confidence grows. You’re using LinkedIn to its potential, and it’s actually working for you.
Here are five practical strategies to make LinkedIn less irritating and more fruitful for your small business:
1) Stay focused on your goal for using LinkedIn
Since your main goal on LinkedIn is to generate leads, staying focused on that can save you time and reduce overwhelm. You don’t need to engage with every post, respond to every notification, or focus on increasing your follower count unless it’s supporting your goal of getting leads. Keeping lead generation as your top priority helps you stay strategic, directing your attention to only those actions that directly support your business. This way, you’re maximizing your LinkedIn time by connecting with prospects, sharing valuable content, and focusing on what will genuinely help you build your pipeline.
In this related article, I share exactly how I define a LinkedIn strategy and what’s included in a good one.
2) Add relevant connections for your current business
Start by connecting with people who are in your primary audience—those who could directly benefit from your services and potentially become clients. Then, add connections who are part of your secondary audience —
those who influence or reach your ideal audience, like peers, industry leaders, and thought leaders. By curating your network, your feed will become a source of valuable insights and you’ll be able to reach out to ideal clients and partners. Plus, when your network is filled with the right people, it’s easier to connect, engage, and show up authentically, knowing you’re speaking to the audience that cares about what you have to say.
3) Tell the LinkedIn algorithm which content you like - and which content you never want to see again
If you’re tired of seeing content in your feed that doesn’t resonate, unfollowing or muting that content will help you see better content in the future. LinkedIn lets you stay connected to people without “following” them, so you don’t have to feel bad for doing so. By refining your feed, you’ll start to see useful insights, relevant discussions, and industry news that help you engage meaningfully. When your feed is less cluttered, LinkedIn becomes less of a time-waster and more of a powerful tool that you’re happy to scroll through because the content is more relevant.
4) Prep your content in advance
Preparing your content in advance (also called “batching” content) makes LinkedIn so much easier to manage, especially because you’re busy. In my own business, for example, I prepare my content 3 months in advance so I don’t need to worry about it on a day to day basis. Batching your content frees you up to focus on other areas, and it helps you stay consistent with your messaging. Plus, when your content is ready to go, it’s easier to show up and engage without scrambling to think of what to say.
5) Focus on certain future, and ditch the rest: LinkedIn has a lot of features, but not all of them will serve your goals effectively. For most business owners, the best use of LinkedIn is sticking to simple, high-impact actions, like posting valuable content and sending direct messages. Instead of getting wrapped up in video posts, LinkedIn Lives, newsletters, or other advanced features, focus on the basics that drive results. A smart, simple strategy is better than a complicated one, especially if you have limited time. By putting your energy into consistent posting and meaningful messaging, you can get great results without spreading yourself too thin.
You might be wondering… “Ok, I want to start using LinkedIn to get clients. But where do I start?”
The best place to start finding clients on LinkedIn is by optimizing your LinkedIn profile. Before diving into posting or messaging, refining your profile messaging ensures that anyone who lands on your profile instantly understands what you do, who you help, and why you’re the best fit for their needs. When your profile is set up for conversions, it works hard for you in the background, even when you’re not actively talking with leads.
(In this related article, I dive deeper into how I define an “optimized profile” and walk through why it matters so much for a small business owner.)
If LinkedIn feels more like a chore than a tool for finding clients, you’re not alone. Many small business owners struggle with a cluttered feed, irrelevant connections, and an endless list of features that seem overwhelming. But by following the specific strategies above—like staying focused on your goal, curating your network, unfollowing irrelevant content, preparing content in advance, and focusing on high-impact actions like posting and messaging—you can turn LinkedIn into a lead-generating asset for your business.
With a clear strategy and plan, LinkedIn becomes less about keeping up with every update and more about building momentum in your business. This shift can make LinkedIn a powerful, enjoyable part of your marketing toolkit, helping you grow your business confidently.
The next steps you can take to get leads on LinkedIn (and how I can help you)
Step 1: When I start working with a small business owner, we always start with a Profile Optimization so that you clearly explain your credibility, who you serve, how you serve them, and what action the profile viewer should take.
This process takes about 3 weeks from start to finish, and provides you a profile that captures the attention of your ideal clients and gets them to take action.
Step 2: Once your profile is optimized, we then create your LinkedIn strategy. Through my program Leads on LinkedIn, you will become comfortable navigating LinkedIn to find right-fit clients for your business.
Inside Leads on LinkedIn, we focus on two main skills - LinkedIn posting and direct messaging. These skills bring the right clients into your orbit so you can consistently grow your business without relying on time-consuming strategies like video and expensive strategies like ads.
Within just a month, you'll have identified and contacted 30 prospects for your business. You'll have the skills and systems to do it again any time you want an influx of leads. And, this rinse and repeat process gets more effective every time you do it!
The Leads on LinkedIn program includes 2 months of support, during which you will have access to actionable video trainings, 1:1 calls, daily email support, critiques of your posts and DMs, and weekly accountability check-ins from me.
Learn more and get started here.
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