Yes. You should do personal posts on @linkedin as long as they are part of an overall strategy. If you are looking to create revenue from your time spent on this platform you absolutely should do personal posts, but, not randomly.
Ignore those 'professionals' that say you shouldn't do personal posting. I suspect that they aren't creating much revenue...and/or they are selling soulless automation crap. This is 'social' media my friends so let's be social.
Believe it or not, people out there are actually looking to find real human beings they can buy from. In fact, in many cases, being personal (ie letting people know you aren't a bot) is a unique selling proposition.
I will give you an example from my own strategy. Generally, I do 1 personal post per week on Saturday's. This is because (a) its on my content calendar for that day and (b) I am usually doing something with my family so it is easier and more rewarding personally. This past Saturday I did a post about my son's 18th birthday and why it was a miracle. In short, he was born extremely premature and has significant disabilities as a result. For 17 years we dreamed of being able to have a birthday party for him and that dream came true last week.
I am blown away at the results from one original content post about our families challenges.
Here are the current results: 37k+ views, 1200 reactions and 172 comments.
I have also added 50+ connections with over half of them being inbound. Over 200 people in my target market interacted (liked, loved, etc) with my post and I am in the process of adding them to my network because of our 'personal' engagement. Most importantly, I am having conversations with ideal prospects because they saw that I wasn't just a coach/consultant...I am a real human being who is willing to share my struggles as opposed to all my sales awards and certifications.
Does this mean that you have to have a life story with equal or more adversity than mine? Absolutely not. I believe, and our research at DLA Ignite shows emphatically, that nothing performs better than your personal content about your life. It might be singing songs on Saturday, sharing your mountain biking or RV'ing adventures, or, a trip to see loved ones for the first time after the pandemic.
It all matters because we know it's real and we know it makes you different.
Want to get little to no revenue from social media? All you have to do is what everyone else is doing: spew corporate branding and/or share articles without any explanation why we should care. Want to get massive growth in your network and create conversations that are welcome with your target market? Create original, personal posts that share your unique expression of humanity. Don't do them every day and don't every make them anything other than 100% authentic.
We know that half the 'game' of #socialselling is to be noticed, but, don't forget the other half is to have your ideal client notice AND want to engage with you.
If you are trying to find a unicorn (a client that wants to buy right now)...good luck.
I would rather build a network, create real relationships within it and be involved before the sale happens.
How do you get started?
Do a post, 1/week, that is personal. Start small with a picture that represents something that is important to you...maybe family, your favorite mountain bike, a great bottle of wine and/or a picture of a really pretty flower. Talk about it, just like you would with your friends sitting around your living room. Next, do it every week on the same day and you will get more comfortable telling us your story.
The people that want to work with someone like you will find you, over time with great strategy, and you will start finding out how effortless social can be when it comes to growing your business (in all facets). The rest of your posts during the week will get more engagement and be much more relevant once people feel connected to you personally.
Bonus round for #financialadvisors and #financialplanners: this kind of original content is compliance free. You aren't selling any products or services so you can share freely!
Now for the 'bad' news: this all has to happen within an overall strategy. Unless you are going to surrender to the dark side of #socialmedia (automation) you are going to be doing social personally and that means you need to make sure your time is being spent effectively and within a measurable system to allow you to adjust for the best result.
This strategy needs to be comprehensive and 'personalized' for you and your company. An 'off the shelf' seminar or keynote is going to be a massive waste of time and resources. If you want to have a conversation (not a presentation) about you and your company I am all ears. Comment below and/or send me a private message and we will start talking about what will work best for you.
Remember, social is about conversations...not confrontations. Strategy can and should be human focused and results driven. Be human, be social.
Related: How Financial Advisors Can Make Social Media An Effortless Foundation For Their Future Success