What one year on Linkedin taught me…

Even though I’ve been on Linkedin for more than 10 years, it’s now approximately one year that I started to post regularly on Linkedin….

And what a ride it has been!  When I started, I never thought I would be posting on a regular basis. I never thought I would get connected to so many people from so many different countries. And I never thought there is a ‘world out there’, a world with amazing individuals from all over the world.

Here is a quick summary of what happened, just to give you an idea:

• I published 268 posts, some in French but most of them in English
• I got more than 1. 2 million views
• A bit more than 3% engagement (likes + comments)
• 1 video reached more than 285000 views and was shared more than 1780 times!
• I’ve been tagged / mentioned a countless number of times
• Did 40 videos
• When I started to post on LI, I had approx. 1000 connections. 12 months later, I now have 7.5k!
• I was interviewed on 6 podcasts/video interviews and loved each of them (with Alison Moore, Bobby the Bear, Andrada, Kyle Juffs, #CreateTheEdge with Joy and Saheb, Engel Jones, Krista Mollion and one to come with Mario Porecca). Check them out on https://virginielemay.fyi.to/podcasts-interviews/view )
• I had many offline conversations with incredible people
• I became an Ambassador of the #WeforShe initiative as well as the #LinkedinForAWoman

In the process, I learned how to write concisely (Linkedin is forcing us to do so with the 1300 character limits!)

I learned to create/edit my videos and add some subtitles.

I learned that engagement is key. You cannot just ‘post’ and do nothing afterwards. You need to respond to the comments on your post and engage with other people’s posts if you want to build meaningful relationships and if you want people to see what you know/ how you add value.

Other lessons learned

• You sometimes need a little push from friends to ‘jump’ into social media and post on a regular basis. I will never thank Omozua and Karen enough for their help and support.
• I found out I love writing posts to help and/or inspire people. I always knew I love to help people, it never occured to me before I could do it via Linkedin / social media.

If you are considering posting on Linkedin, here are a few tips and tricks:

• Keep a copy of your posts/articles and keep the links of your posts: You sometimes need to refer back to them or one of your new connections may be interested in a topic you covered before he/she got connected to you.
• Make sure you keep track – and measure – what you do. Even if the number of likes/comments is not so important, it will help you see which topic works well, what people are interested in, the day and time you should post – different depending on the region you’re in -, whether it’s a post, an article or a video, etc.
• Have a goal in mind depending on whether you’re trying to increase your number of connections or followers, increase your visibility or get leads / clients. You may approach things in a different way.
• Use hashtags to increase views but also to find topics you’re interested in.
• When you do not feel inspired, do not get angry or disappointed. Creating content is like anything else; the more you do it, the easier it becomes. Take time to observe, listen, watch carefully. It’s often when you do not have any ideas that something will happen, or someone will say something, and it will trigger your inspiration and creativity!
• Don’t hesitate to ask for help. There is always someone who will give you some advice, tips to improve your content and help you focus.

I am not yet where I want to be however slowly but surely, I’m going in the right direction.

So to all of you out there: THANK YOU! MERCI! YOU all inspire me in one way or another, and keep me going! ??