LinkedIn is where many professionals go to waste time pretending they’re working. They scroll the feed, send spammy connection requests, and post content that sounds like it was written by a robot having a bad day. Then they wonder why nothing happens.
The platform rewards those who understand its hidden mechanics. While everyone else treats LinkedIn like a digital resume holder, the smart ones know that founders and executives get 3x more engagement on their content compared to average users. They understand that thought leadership posts get shared wider than generic updates.
Lara Acosta scaled her online business from zero to seven figures in three years using LinkedIn. She grew to 360k+ followers across platforms and has mastered the art of branding, writing, sales and storytelling. She founded e-learning platform Literally Academy to help business leaders turn their content into clients and authority, and marketing agency LA Digital that has worked with Fortune 500 and Forbes-featured brands, entrepreneurs and executives.
These seven laws are strategies that separate those who grow from those who stagnate. Master them and watch your business transform.
Strategies to grow on LinkedIn: the seven laws of the platform
Build connections that actually matter on LinkedIn
Most people connect randomly, accepting every request. They end up with a network full of people who don’t care about their content. “LinkedIn, unlike any other platform, works on a connection to connection basis,” Acosta explains. “Your post is initially shown to a pool of your first connections and followers only.” If they engage, it pushes your post to their connections.
Find active people in your target audience and connect intentionally. Acosta recommends “the sniper method”: “Go to an active creator or founder in your niche, look at their comments and find people that meet your connection criteria.” Send personalized requests that reference something specific about them. Build a network of people who actually want to hear from you.
Write posts people can’t ignore
Every LinkedIn post needs to grab attention in the first three seconds. “A good text hook will always start with outlining a problem,” says Acosta. “The hook should be fewer than 10 words and straight to the point.” Your second sentence agitates the problem. The third provides a direct solution along with a list or step-by-step someone can easily follow.
Write every line like it could stand alone. Vary your sentence lengths to create rhythm. “You should be able to read every single line on its own,” Acosta emphasizes. “The lines don’t just speak, they flow.” Make your posts scannable. End with an image that reinforces your message.
Comment your way to visibility
Posting once or twice a day limits your visibility. But commenting lets you be seen exponentially more. “With comments you can be seen 10, 20 and even hundreds of times,” Acosta notes. “Your comments get seen by the author and their audience.” Find accounts 2-10x the size of yours and keep a consistent commenting schedule going.
“Focus on the quality in your content and go for quantity in your comments,” Acosta advises. One comment got her “200 likes and two inbound leads without even having to post on my main profile.” Add to conversations. Share experiences. Ask thoughtful questions.
Turn DMs into conversations, not pitches
While everyone else sends “Let’s jump on a call” messages, you can stand out by being human. “Instead of sending the typical ‘hey let’s exchange synergies’,” Acosta suggests you, “find mutual ground.”
Ask easy questions. Make people smile. Acosta gives this example: “Hey Jim, I’m exhausted from a business growth event in London. I see you were there as well. Did you manage to grab some of the free snacks in the front?” She explains: “You lead with fun and end with value instead of a transaction.”
Make every photo count
One bad photo can destroy months of credibility building. Your LinkedIn followers don’t know you yet. They can only guess what you’re like, and your headshot and post photos are a big part of that. Acosta explains, “You need to show your reader that you are worth listening to. Do that in the way you present yourself.”
“If the person that I love following on LinkedIn wouldn’t post this then why would I?” Acosta asks herself. One great photo completely “repositioned” her on the platform. “Perception is one of the greatest forces when it comes to building your personal brand on LinkedIn,” she emphasizes.
Use comments on your own posts to drive action
Instead of cluttering posts with calls to action, drop them in the comments. “Here you have a golden opportunity to drive traffic to an offer, a new product or even an event that you’re hosting,” Acosta explains.
“This hack in fact made me $10,000 last year from plugging my LinkedIn playbook,” Acosta reveals. “I never posted about it, I only commented about it existing.” Write valuable posts that build trust, then convert through strategic pinned comments.
Post live or watch your reach shrink
Scheduling tools harm your momentum. “I can literally count with my hand the amount of times I’ve scheduled content this year,” Acosta admits. “My engagement would drop by 10%.” The first hour after posting determines your post’s success.
Acosta “religiously blocked my time on my calendar from 12 to 1:30 p.m.” She’d warm up by commenting for 30 minutes before posting. “During the 30 minutes before I’d warm up my feed by leaving comments on other people’s posts,” she explains. If you can’t spare 30 minutes, even five or 10 will make a difference. Reply to every comment. This routine separates those who grow from those who stagnate.
Apply these LinkedIn laws for business growth
These seven laws align with how people actually use LinkedIn. With over 33.2 million small businesses in the US alone, and 85.8% being one-person operations, the opportunity to stand out has never been bigger. “The devil is in the detail,” as Acosta says.
Pick one law and implement it this week. Then add another. Within six months, you’ll have built a presence that attracts opportunities instead of chasing them. The platform rewards those who show up consistently with value. Make that person you.
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