How three executives grew their LinkedIn followers to 30k+ and why it matters
By Mary E. Maloney
Niven Postma was on LinkedIn for more than a decade before she realized that “invisible contributions” didn’t have full impact. She realized she could do more with her executive personal brand, which focuses on strategy, empathy, and impact, if she talked about it.
And so she did.
In 2020, Postma started posting regularly to LinkedIn about some of her favorite topics in leadership and organizational politics, not only sharing her knowledge but also asking questions and responding to related posts others were making. Now she has more than 30,000 followers.
Postma, a leadership and organizational politics expert from Johannesburg, South Africa; Blake LeMoi, director of business development at Paid; and Joseph Polanin, CEO and fractional COO at Alaka’i Leadership Group, were panelists on a recent Revealing Genius live broadcast on YouTube and LinkedIn about how to amplify your brand by growing your LinkedIn followers to that level.
Interestingly, the panelists say that talking on LinkedIn about what they stand for helped them clarify not only what they stand for but also how they talk about it, just as the time-proven Excavate-Tell-Affirm™ executive personal branding process from Revealing Genius has done for many executives. (Read more in our past blog about how to use executive personal branding to help you build a superb LinkedIn profile.)
Here’s more advice from our esteemed panelists on how to achieve a 30,000-follower level of brand success on the LinkedIn platform.
Grow Your LinkedIn Followers Strategically
The panelists emphasize growing your list of followers on LinkedIn will come more readily from focusing more on relationships than transactions.
“Be desperate to serve, not sell,” LeMoi says in the event recording, explaining that sharing insights and helping your audience naturally leads to business opportunities.
Polanin stresses that meaningful relationships must be founded on mutual respect and trust, noting that he seeks connections with people—whether on LinkedIn or somewhere else—who demonstrate integrity across their personal and professional lives.
Niven said her approach evolved from viewing LinkedIn as a means to generate business to something she now values for connection, learning, community building, and paying it forward.
All three experts agreed that monetary value and business opportunities naturally stemmed from prioritizing authentic relationships.
Of course, the choice of social platform is also a strategic move.
LeMoi chose LinkedIn because his target audience is B2B professionals who often use the platform. Polanin similarly selected LinkedIn after determining his target clients—executives and CEOs—were most active there. Niven took a slightly different approach, preferring LinkedIn because it aligned with the professional aspect of herself she wanted to share publicly, while keeping her personal life private.
“I believe in life, in business, and in social media, you have to have a vision before you want to go and you have to have a strategy and a roadmap of how you’re going to get there,” Polanin says in the recording.
Terrific Tactics
Tune in to the event recording to hear the panelists discuss practical LinkedIn tactics that they believe helped them grow their followings so effectively.
For example, they recommend leveraging LinkedIn tools, such as Premium features for connecting and messaging. All three experts also place importance on posting content about topics they’re genuinely passionate about based on their unique experiences, perspectives and expertise. (“You are the niche,” Polanin points out.) In addition, Postma explains that she found positive, thoughtful content performs best even as she avoids “toxic positivity.”
“I like sharing the stuff that I’m thinking about. But then equally, I like hearing what people have to say about it,” she says. “So it’s almost like an R&D space, a container for what I know and what I didn’t know I know and what I’m learning.”
Postma explains that she also likes engaging with other people’s content. “That’s why for me, it feels like a conversation. … I’m giving, but I’m getting a whole bunch as well.”
Some additional tactics the panelists offer include:
- Learn LinkedIn’s algorithm rules and adapt as they change
- Post at consistent times to build audience expectation
- Avoid posting URLs directly in initial posts (add them in comments after 20 minutes)
- Like your own posts and add comments after posting to build momentum
- Achieve LinkedIn’s “Top Voice” designation to add significant credibility
The panelists also discussed the monetary payoff of their efforts.
For example, LeMoi has leveraged his LinkedIn presence to take advantage of recruiting opportunities and break through gatekeepers. Polanin can trace 100% of his current consulting clients to LinkedIn connections, often through indirect referrals. All three noted that authentic content offering valuable insights typically outperforms overly “salesy” content.
Game-Changing Advice
Throughout the discussion, the experts emphasize authenticity, relationship-building, audience understanding, and consistent action as key principles for LinkedIn success. They encouraged attendees to start taking action immediately rather than waiting for perfect strategies, saying that even understanding just 20% of what you’re doing on LinkedIn is enough to begin making meaningful progress.
The session concluded with fantastic big-picture advice from each of the panelists.
LeMoi: “Share your insights, help your audience. When your audience is ready, they’ll come to you because you’re the one that has nurtured them through the education, through the process.”
Polanin: “Build great relationships and you can’t go wrong. Life isn’t about what you can achieve. It’s about what you can become.”
Postma: “Have fun” and “Change your definition of success.” In other words, focus on creating consistent content about topics you love rather than focusing on follower counts.
A LinkedIn Follower Growth Checklist
Here’s an outline of the key takeaways from the roundtable that you might find useful in growing your number of LinkedIn followers:
☐ Be intentional and authentic
☐ Understand an act on platform mechanics
☐ Focus on your unique content niche
Doing executive personal branding using the time-proven Excavate-Tell-Affirm™ executive personal branding process from Revealing Genius will help you clarify your brand, believe in it with conviction, and learn to better tell others about it. All this makes it a great underpinning on which to build your LinkedIn follower growth efforts.
Check out our Brand Leadership Summit or sign up for our signature Brand Declaration offering. We’d be honored to support you in amplifying your brand.
