Have you noticed that social media doesn’t seem to work the way it used to? Posts that once sparked engagement now disappear into the void, and overly generic content isn’t getting much traction.

Wanting to better understand what does work today, I attended a webinar presented by Chelsea Lockwood, Social Strategist, and Ryan Bast, Senior Product Marketing Manager, both from LinkedIn.

My main takeaway from the session was to share useful insights that reflect your own experiences and thoughts instead of offering generic advice. The more specific you are, the easier it is to form meaningful connections. These insights may come from many places, including:

• mistakes you’ve made and lessons you’ve learned
• how you’ve responded to unexpected events
• approaches you rely on
• patterns you notice in your work
• ideas you’re currently exploring
• why you made certain decisions
• shifts you’ve made over time

As someone who’s been blogging and participating in online communities for years, this resonated with me. The posts I remember most, and the ones people tend to respond to, are usually rooted in real experiences rather than broad advice.

Here’s a great example from a recent post by Virtual Home Organizer Pam Holland:

“As a recovering perfectionist, I can say with confidence that perfectionism doesn’t usually make things better. It makes things later.”

Your posts will be most engaging when they are authentically you, so don’t worry about waiting until you have all the answers. Content grounded in actual experience tends to be more memorable and reveals more of your personality more clearly than generic advice ever could. Sharing what you’re learning can often be more engaging than sounding certain about everything.

I’ve noticed this with my own posts. In the past, I’d have avoided sharing anything remotely personal, focusing instead on business tips or links to blog posts, whether my own or others. Over the last few months, I’ve stepped outside my comfort zone and started sharing my own photos and thoughts. After enjoying others’ posts of that nature and noticing the level of engagement they received, I decided to try it myself, and it really works!

This is equally important when you comment on others’ posts. Try not to sound overly polished or too broad in scope. Instead, share your point of view and explain why it matters.

It’s essential to focus on what your audience wants to hear about. Are you familiar with the acronym WII-FM? It stands for “What’s in it for me?” and is what people are most interested in when deciding whether something is worth their attention.

This requires a good understanding of your target audience as well as what you’re uniquely qualified to talk about.

Want to connect with others who are sharing ideas, building businesses, and creating content?

POPS Circle is a great place to continue the conversation!

Although this was a LinkedIn event, many of the ideas apply just as well to other social platforms, and even to blogging. Whether you’re writing a post, sharing an update, or commenting on someone else’s content, your own experiences and perspective are often what make people pay attention.

If you’re interested in learning more, watch the recording of Turning Your Expertise into Content.