How to Win on LinkedIn — Even If the Algorithm Hates You

If you’ve spent time on LinkedIn lately, you’ve probably noticed the complaints. Engagement is down. The feed feels irrelevant. Posts that once took off now land with a thud.

Here’s the good news: you can still win on LinkedIn even if the algorithm seems stacked against you.

Success comes from what you control — not chasing vanity metrics. That was the focus of a recent panel discussion Proven Media Solutions founder Dustin Siggins hosted with Leah Dergachev, founder of Austley; Mollie Johnson, founder of Three Brooks Marketing; and Anjeanette Carter, founder of Stratus Media. Together, they outlined four essentials for LinkedIn success: create good posts, engage actively, take it off LinkedIn, and make sure your voice is unique.

In short: the post itself is only 20% of the equation. The other 80% comes from the strategy around it.

Create a Good Post

Every LinkedIn strategy begins with content worth reading. As Mollie explained, “Metrics are often driven by influencers, but most of us don’t need influencer numbers to see results.” Instead, strong posts balance clarity, relevance, and value for a target audience.

Anjeanette, for example, regularly gets hundreds of engagements on her post. That’s because she’s tightly dialed into what her audience wants.

And sometimes the most effective content isn’t polished at all. Leah’s viral post on LinkedIn’s algorithm — drafted casually from bed on a rainy morning — earned nearly 5,000 reactions and over 1,000 comments. Its power wasn’t formatting or perfect timing. It was relevance. People cared about the topic, and Leah surfaced it at the right moment.

Engagement Matters — On Your Own Posts and Others’

A post is only the beginning. “Twenty percent of success is the post,” Dustin noted. “The rest comes from what you do around it.”

Leah turned her viral moment into business opportunities by responding to every comment and nearly 100 DMs. Those conversations built trust and led to real connections across industries and continents – as well as multiple proposal requests.

Mollie emphasized that engagement is also proactive. Commenting thoughtfully on 15–20 other posts each day and following up directly with people in your target audience keeps your profile visible and builds a reputation as someone who contributes value.

And all of the panelists agreed that engagement can also be a powerful audience research tool – what are the people from whom you want to earn business saying to you? As Mollie called it, “free audience research.”

Leverage the Relationships

Going viral feels exciting — but it only matters if you do something with it. Leah is proof. Because she engaged deeply after her viral post, she turned casual comments into proposal calls, speaking engagements, and international connections.

“Most people go viral, celebrate, and move on,” Mollie observed. “The ones who succeed are the ones who leverage that attention into relationships and results.”

Anjeanette added that this requires preparation. When one of her posts went viral, she wasn’t ready with a lead magnet or a system to capture interest. The lesson? Be ready before the big moment arrives. Viral visibility without infrastructure is a wasted opportunity.

And Dustin? He pointed to modest engagement on his posts but a 7X return on the investment made on LinkedIn by proactively creating relationships with the right people.

Make Sure What You Say Is Unique

LinkedIn has more than a billion users. Standing out requires more than enthusiasm. It requires clarity about your comparative advantage — the perspective or expertise you offer that others don’t.

For Anjeanette, this means rejecting “fluffy” content that drives likes but not leads. For Mollie, it means helping nonprofit leaders and policy experts translate complex ideas into stories that shape communities. For Leah, it means anchoring posts in traditional marketing strategy — and then showing how AI can make those strategies more effective.

Uniqueness doesn’t mean reinventing the wheel. It means positioning yourself so the right people see value in what you share.

The Takeaway – Become Algorithm-Proof

LinkedIn success starts with a unique voice, engaging with your target audience using that unique voice, and building relationships that move off-platform.

The algorithm may shift, but strategy never goes out of style.

Watch the full discussion below.