How to Master LinkedIn in 2025 with Richard Bliss

Are you using LinkedIn to grow your business or build your brand? You might be missing some key ingredients for success (or even sabotaging your efforts) – and today’s guest is here to tell all. In this episode of Adventures in Business, we’re chatting with LinkedIn expert Richard Bliss, CEO of BlissPoint. According to Richard, LinkedIn is the "upside-down world of social media," where the strategies that work on other platforms can hurt your engagement here.

So, what should you be doing in 2025 to make the most of LinkedIn? Read on to find out!

Meet Richard Bliss

Richard Bliss is the CEO of BlissPoint. He’s a top social selling trainer, author of DigitalFirst Leadership, and an international public speaker. BlissPoint works to transform teams into sales powerhouses with LinkedIn training. 

The Upside-Down World of LinkedIn

Richard Bliss calls LinkedIn the "upside-down world of social media" because the strategies that work on other platforms can actually hurt your performance on LinkedIn. For example, while platforms like Instagram and TikTok thrive on quantity – posting multiple times a day – LinkedIn is all about starting conversations over quantity.

If you post more than once a day, LinkedIn will suppress your additional content, keeping it off your audience’s feed. Instead, you should focus on creating content that generates comments and conversations.

Why Video Isn’t the King on LinkedIn

Video dominates on many platforms, but Richard argues that it’s not as effective on LinkedIn when it comes to converting business. He says to consider: Did you buy your last car because of a TV ad? Probably not. You likely did research, read reviews, and talked to people who owned the car. Similarly, while video might grab attention, text-based content sparks the conversations that actually create leads and new gigs.

The 60-Minute Rule: How the Algorithm Works

The LinkedIn algorithm gives your post about 60 to 90 minutes to prove its worth. When you hit publish, LinkedIn first shows it to a small test group – about 10% of your audience. If that group engages by commenting and reacting, the post gets pushed to a wider audience. If engagement is low, LinkedIn stops promoting it.

One Post a Day, but Make It Count

If you post a second time in a day, LinkedIn will effectively shut down the visibility of your first post. However, if your first post wasn’t performing well, a second post eight hours later might get picked up instead.

When you leave a comment on someone’s post, that comment gets shown to 30% of your audience. This makes strategic commenting one of the most powerful ways to increase visibility and build relationships on LinkedIn.

The "currency is in the comments." Engaging with other posts – by adding thoughtful insights and sparking discussions – can do more for your visibility than posting content alone.

Engagement Pods: A Word of Caution

Many LinkedIn users participate in "digital flash mobs" or engagement pods, where they agree to comment on each other’s posts to boost visibility. While this can work, Richard warns that large engagement pods violate LinkedIn’s terms of service. If LinkedIn detects unnatural engagement patterns, your account could be penalized.

Three Key Metrics to Track on LinkedIn

Richard suggests tracking three key metrics in LinkedIn:

Impressions: Are people seeing your content? If no one is seeing it, engagement won’t happen.

Comments: Engagement drives visibility. If people are commenting, LinkedIn will push your content to more users.

Profile Views: If your content is effective, people will check out your profile to learn more about you. A steady increase in profile views indicates growing interest in your business.

By monitoring these metrics together, you can assess whether your content strategy is working and if you’re attracting the right audience.

Boosting Your LinkedIn Strategy: Text and Comments Matter

One major mistake many people make is relying solely on video or images without accompanying text. Richard emphasizes that people typically read the text before watching a video. That’s why providing 100-150 words of context can significantly boost engagement.

Another powerful strategy? Using comments strategically. Instead of just tagging people in your post (which can backfire if they don’t respond), engage them in the comments. For example, if you post about the music industry, mention specific people in a comment and ask for their thoughts. When they respond, their audience also sees your content, expanding its reach organically.

Should You Like and Comment on Your Own Posts?

Some users try to boost engagement by liking or commenting on their own posts, but on LinkedIn, this tactic is ineffective. Unlike Instagram or Facebook, where likes contribute to visibility, LinkedIn prioritizes meaningful conversations. Instead of self-liking, focus on commenting on other people’s posts to drive engagement back to your profile.

Using Personal Photos Over Stock Images

Many professionals, especially in the hospitality industry, share images of events, beautiful locations, or behind-the-scenes moments. But does it make a difference if you take the photo yourself versus using a stock image? According to Richard, absolutely.

Posting your own photos sparks curiosity and conversation. People will ask things like, Did you take that picture? Where were you? What was the experience like?

This kind of organic engagement doesn’t happen with stock images. A stunning hotel lobby photo might look nice, but if you didn't take it, it lacks the personal connection that drives conversation. When you capture a moment yourself, you’re creating an opportunity for engagement and storytelling.

Are LinkedIn Collaborative Articles Worth Your Time?

Richard explained why LinkedIn’s collaborative articles are more powerful than most people realize, especially now that LinkedIn has removed the "Top Contributor" badges.

Collaborative articles allow professionals to share expertise in a way that directly influences LinkedIn’s algorithm. These AI-generated topics invite users to contribute their insights, and when you participate, you:

• Train the algorithm to recognize you as an expert in your field

• Gain visibility among people searching for information on that topic

• Get your profile in front of a wider audience beyond your direct network

For example, if you’re in the music industry and LinkedIn asks for input on protecting intellectual property, contributing to that article could position you as a go-to expert. Richard shared that one of his contributions received 2,600 views within an hour, all from people outside his network.

Connect with Richard Bliss

🔗Connect with Richard Bliss on LinkedIn and check out BlissPoint