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19 Must-Follow Marketing Industry Experts on LinkedIn in 2023

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A header image of a busy cafe, with text that reads "Finding Your Marketing Community on LinkedIn"

If you’ve been having a hard time hitting your stride on LinkedIn, you’re not alone! 

We started hosting #ContentChat as a LinkedIn Live audio conversation this year, and in our first few months we’ve heard from many of our community members that it’s been harder to build meaningful connections on LinkedIn than it was on Twitter.

We hope this blog post can change that!

19 Marketing And Related Industry Experts to Follow on LinkedIn

To help you pack your LinkedIn feed with valuable marketing and business advice, we asked our #ContentChat community to recommend a potentially lesser-known—but truly exceptional and inspirational—marketing or related industry expert who is active on the platform.

Here is everyone they recommended, including their own words about why they love following that person and what they learn from them.

Kyle Akerman

Recommended by Dennis Shiao, founder of marketing agency Attention Retention

“Kyle is one of the leading experts in Google Analytics. If you’re using Universal Analytics, you know that you need to migrate to GA4 this year, right? Kyle shares Google Analytics and GA4 insights in an excellent email newsletter. Subscribe at his website, https://kyleakerman.com/.”

Kanaar Bell

Recommended by Melanie Deziel, author of “Prove It” and “The Content Fuel Framework” and founder of StoryFuel

“Kanaar is a must-follow not only because of the gems he drops and the content he shares about marketing but because of his infectious energy. His positivity, inspiration, and encouragement are present in everything he posts and it’s hard not to smile when you see his content pop up in your feed.” 

Jessica Best

Recommended by Nancy Harhut, chief creative officer of HBT Marketing

“Jess lives at the critical intersection of email and CRM, and she shares her ample knowledge freely. She’s also very plugged into the marketing world, and is quick to recommend a person, book, event, or resource, which her connections find invaluable.”

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March 6, 2023 Content Chat Recap: LinkedIn Profile Recommendations and Reviews for Content Marketers

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A Content Chat header image that says today’s topic is Live LinkedIn Profile Reviews and Recommendations for Content Marketers with guest Erika Heald, who is @SFerika on Twitter.

When was the last time you updated your LinkedIn profile? While many marketers let their LinkedIn collect virtual dust until it’s time for a job hunt, a well-maintained profile can be key for helping you find new collaboration opportunities and stay ahead of your competition.

In this #ContentChat recap, Erika shares her advice for how to optimize your LinkedIn profile, including a review of three profiles from marketers who joined our LinkedIn live audio conversation. Read through the key points below, and listen to the full audio recap here.

What are the essential elements to cover in a LinkedIn profile to stand out for content marketing or related roles?

“When we start thinking about our LinkedIn profiles, pretty much everybody puts in their name and the job title for their current job; maybe they upload a picture—but frequently, it stops there.”

Be sure to address these areas in your LinkedIn profile:

  • Updated profile image: Choose a photo that is appropriate for your work setting and includes only you (we love pets and families, but your LinkedIn photo should feature just you). Anything that you would wear to an in-person meeting is ideal for what to wear in your profile photo.
    • Ensure that people will recognize you based on your LinkedIn profile when they meet you for the first time or when you’re at an event. This means you should update your photo at least once every five years, if not more frequently.
  • Banner image: What do you want to have behind your photo? You can use a banner to promote something you’re working on or give a look at your personality.
  • Headline: This will default to your current job title, but you should write a headline that encompasses the roles, activities, and objectives that you have for using LinkedIn to connect with other people. For example, Erika’s headline reads “Marketing Consultancy Founder, Fractional Content Marketing Leader, Executive Ghostwriter, and Gluten-Free Blogger.”
  • URL: Create a unique URL for your profile. A short URL that has your name is a lot more memorable and approachable than having a generic URL with random numbers and letters.
  • Contact information: In addition to your email address, you can link to your blog and other social media channels. Regularly review these details and ensure you still have access to those accounts.
  • Recent activity: Anyone who visits your profile can see your recent activity, which gives an indication of how often you engage with other users and share content other than your own. Create a content curation strategy to help everyone get to know you better and show them how you think.
  • Summary: Create a summary that explains your elevator pitch: who are you, what do you do, who are you looking to connect with, and why do you want to connect with them? Include keywords relevant to your industry to help people find you through search.
  • Experience: Explain not only what you did in your role but what you accomplished. If you have information that you can publicly disclose about the dollar-value ROI that you had in the role is incredibly impactful and helps people understand what kind of experience you had at the company.

How can marketers best use LinkedIn’s native features to create and promote their content?

Enable the “Creator” profile element on LinkedIn to better showcase your content and provide examples right on your profile. LinkedIn also offers a newsletter tool, that enables you to publish (or republish) a newsletter

What mistakes do people often make when using LinkedIn for content marketing?

Erika discusses two big mistakes in the audio recap:

  • Too many people fail to give us a sense of their personality and any real context to what it is that they do and what they did in previous roles.
  • Don’t show up on LinkedIn only when you’re looking for a job. Regularly comment on people’s posts and reshare people’s requests for help to show you’re there to help—not just promote your content or sell your services.

Who is someone on LinkedIn that you admire? What do you like about their content or profile setup?

What is the best way to reach contacts you may not know on LinkedIn?

Per Erika, “the best way to reach somebody new that you don’t know is to see what content they are making public—what is actually available from them on LinkedIn—and comment on the things they’re creating.” You can ask them a question back or provide meaningful comments that show you care about what they posted. Continue to engage with their content over time to warm them up to your outreach.

Once you’re ready to reach out, send an InMail Message (not a connection request) explaining why you would love to connect with this person that you don’t know.

Is It Time For a LinkedIn Personal Brand Refresh?

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The potential value of social media for both personal and professional reasons is hard to deny given its ease of access and billions of global users. Through social media, people can connect easier than ever, share ideas and content at a massive scale, and build their professional brand to unlock new business opportunities.

But, all too often, content marketing professionals join a social network with the best intentions and eagerness tap into these benefits, are active for a week or maybe a few months, and then let the account sit for eternity (or until the site deletes it like Twitter does.)

You may never think twice about those inactive accounts, but they can actually hinder your personal brand. At their best, outdated profiles are confusing and potentially annoying for customers, clients, or colleagues that were hoping to reach you on that site. At their worst, these dormant profiles can lead to lost connections and business opportunities.

While it’s not necessary—and probably not recommended—for you to be on every social media channel, it is important for you to at least maintain your brand on the channels you are on. And many business professionals find LinkedIn to be most beneficial for personal branding, given its unique profile elements that are meant for showcasing professional roles and achievements.

With that in mind, let’s explore how to put your best foot forward on social media, the core elements of a LinkedIn profile, and how you can use each section to maximize your branding potential.

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February 25, 2019 Content Chat Recap: Time to Update Your LinkedIn Profile: Seven Areas to Revise to Better Market Yourself

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LinkedIn is the essential business social platform, but its value is only as great as the effort you put into structuring and maintaining your profile.

In this #ContentChat, we cover the basic areas you need to revise on your LinkedIn to better market yourself, as well as tips for managing your time on the site.

Q1: Let’s take a look at your LinkedIn profile photo. Is the photo of you, and taken within the last 3 years? Would someone who had never met you be able to recognize you from your photo if they were meeting you at a cafe?

Review your photo and ensure people can recognize you. It’s your visual identity across the site and should accurately reflect you.

Ensure the photo is clear, does not have other people or their miscellaneous appendages in it, is of you (not a child or pet) and is free of any questionable settings.

Your photo is how people will be able to recognize you and connect with you in the real world (like at conferences). Having a misleading photo could impact the trust that people have in you.

If you need a new photo, check if your work is planning on taking photos for the team. If they aren’t, then suggest that they do.

Once you’ve updated your picture, consider using it across channels to maintain consistency.

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April 9, 2018 Content Chat Recap: How Content Marketers Can Put Their Best Foot Forward on LinkedIn

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how content marketers can put their best foot forward on LinkedIn #ContentChat
This week #ContentChat was joined by J.T. O’Donnell (@jtodonnell) to talk about how to put your best foot forward on LinkedIn. As a content marketer, LinkedIn has the potential to be a valuable career resource, but not if you set it and forget it.

Q1: What is the biggest misconception people have about LinkedIn?

Myth #1: LinkedIn is Facebook for business.

Myth #2: LinkedIn is a social network for executive networking.

Myth #3: LinkedIn is just a career swap meet.

Myth #4: LinkedIn is just an online resume you can set and forget.

Myth #5: LinkedIn is for business, so the other social media rules don’t apply.

Myth #6: LinkedIn is dead.

Myth #7: LinkedIn is a relationship building shortcut.

Q2: As content marketers, our work involves strategic storytelling. How can we reflect those skills in our LinkedIn profiles?

Use LinkedIn’s native publishing platform to show off your storytelling skills.

Complete your LinkedIn profile by including links to relevant project examples.

Craft a compelling story in your summary.

Share content you’ve created by promoting it in status updates.

Get involved in conversations around the topics and with the people and organizations that matter to you.

Q3: Let’s talk about LinkedIn headlines. What are the key elements we should include? Is there a formula for them?

Your LinkedIn headline needs to go beyond your current job title.

Use the Buzzfeed formula.

Start with your “why”.

Your LinkedIn headline frames your professional story.

Use LinkedIn videos to answer your FAQs.

Q4: LinkedIn recently released video status updates. How should I use that (or not use that)?

Don’t do video for the sake of doing video. It needs to tie back to your overall branding strategy.

Use video as a TL&DR summary of longer-form content you’re sharing.

Q5: How can I grow my LinkedIn network without being a spammer?

Activate your employee brand advocates.

Make an effort to connect with your existing IRL network.

Be relentlessly helpful.

Take time to craft a compelling connection request note.

Q6: If I am looking for a new job or for new clients, what are some ways to use LinkedIn to help with that?

Make sure you’ve established a strong network before you come to them with an ask.

Consider using ProFinder.

Give away a taste of your services for free.

Let your network know when you need a new gig.

Follow the companies you want to work for/with and make an effort to network with them.

Make LinkedIn a core part of your thought leadership program.

Q7: Are LinkedIn groups worth the time investment?

Yes. LinkedIn groups are great.

No. LinkedIn groups are not worth it.

Q8: Any favorite tools or resources for improving my LinkedIn profile?

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