What works (and doesn’t) on LinkedIn, according to guardians of the feed 

The engineers behind LinkedIn have adjusted to prioritize fewer dopamine-chasing pile-ons and more “useful” professional exchanges. 

The result, according to LinkedIn’s own senior product team, is an algorithm that screens for relevance, authority, consistency and a personalized voice. The corporate “broetry” has lost its shine, and what endures are posts that sound like you, speak to your network and generate conversations that actually matter. 

We spoke with Rishi Jobanputra, LinkedIn’s senior director of product management for the platform’s feed, about how to make your presence pop in the new algorithmic environment.

Adjusting for emptiness 

Rishi Jobanputra, LinkedIn’s senior director of product management for feed, says the adjustments his team makes are all in service to the company’s mission: “Connecting the world’s professionals to help unlock economic opportunities.” To that end, and considering the continually troubled job market and troubled internet discussions, LinkedIn currently prioritizes content that can help users get jobs, stay up-to-date on their industry, and make the connections they need to succeed and grow. 

“That could be posts about news and insights, best practices and advice, or even a behind-the-scenes look at how the job gets done,” he said. “It’s also making sure you stay informed about what is happening in your professional network, people sharing job changes or professional updates.” 

And at this stage of the AI-powered internet, that means helping people wade through the bot-spew and reach real people. “To protect the integrity of conversations on LinkedIn, we actively detect and limit the reach of spammy or low-quality content, including bot-generated posts and comments,” Jobanputra said, adding, “We take this issue very seriously.” 

The video dial-down 

Jobanputra’s team confirmed that, after a push for video last year, they’re prioritizing variety so that users can choose the formats that they’re comfortable with and that fit their professional brand. 

“We encourage our members to play with all the different creation types available on LinkedIn to see what works best for them and their audience,” he said, and to use the types of content they prefer creating.  

It also pays to tailor your content to the format. A video showing a day-in-the-life at your job might perform well, but you might do better to post a case study about a project or an account of a personal experience as a text-based post, or using the platform’s Article feature. Recurring commentary on the news or thought leadership might work better as a LinkedIn Newsletter. 

“The most important thing when creating LinkedIn content is to be yourself,” he added. “Sharing your personal insights, your ‘been-there-done-that’ experience, that is what people continue to want to hear and learn from. Content that sparks genuine conversation on LinkedIn is where the magic happens.” 

Relevance over recency 

No, it’s not your imagination. LinkedIn did start serving more of your three-week-old posts to people’s feeds. “Earlier this summer, we made a small update to our feed algorithm as part of our ongoing efforts to strike the right content balance between timely and evergreen useful content,” Jobanputra said. “For a short time, a few members noticed a temporary influx of older posts showing up.” 

But not to worry, that’s “not the new normal,” he assured us. “We may sometimes share posts that are older and still relevant to your career, but for the most part you’ll get more in the moment timely news and insights.” 

The overarching goal is relevance, and sometimes that means an evergreen post with some great writing advice might be just the gem your followers need, even a month after you posted it. 

“One thing we focus a lot on is getting the right mix of content,” he said. “Posts that are timely and matter in the moment, and posts that offer valuable insights, like general best practices, advice or updates from your network.” 

“It’s a balancing act,” he continued. “Just because a post is a week or two old doesn’t mean it’s no longer relevant and can continue to spark conversations.” 

Evaluating your performance 

To figure out the right balance for you, Jobanputra suggested using the platform’s new analytics tools. One update in particular allows users to see how many people followed their account or viewed their profile from a post. 

In a recent LinkedIn post, he broke down a few tips for understanding and evaluating the success of a post. “Likes signify good direction, but authentic conversations and connection signify great engagement,” he wrote.  

He also noted that followup is a huge indicator that your content is doing the right thing: “One of the clearest signals your content is resonating is when it inspires others to reach out, connect, follow or continue the conversation with you.” 

For additional insights into the algorithm, he also recommended watching this video by Gyanda Sachdeva, LinkedIn’s VP of Product Management.  

In sum, ditch the templated botspeak, overplayed hooks and corporate cosplay. Examine the microclimate of your network, and post content that sounds, looks and acts like you while delivering tips and even entertainment that people need to survive the job market. And don’t underestimate the power of content that creates connections.