About the Episode‍

Tommy Clark is the founder of Compound Content Studio, an agency that helps B2B companies scale their content engines, especially on LinkedIn.

Tommy has a background in fitness coaching and B2B social media, and now specializes in helping founders and marketers effectively use LinkedIn to reach their target audiences. He also writes a newsletter called "Social Files," which provides deeper tactical insights into B2 content creation and strategy.

In this episode of Uploading, Tommy shares key strategies for B2B founders to effectively harness LinkedIn as a powerful content marketing platform. These include how to create a strong hook, what types of content to double down on, and why it’s important to engage with other users.

We also explore the power of polarization in content and the significance of defining your "why" when building a personal brand on LinkedIn.

Today, we'll cover:
- How to create a successful LinkedIn content strategy for your business or personal brand
- Practical tips and strategies you can immediately implement to improve your LinkedIn presence and engage your ideal customers
- Key actions to build momentum on LinkedIn, including consistency and engagement

3 Strategies for Success from Tommy Clark

1. Don’t Try to Be Everything to Everyone

If you're trying to create content that appeals to everyone, you'll end up resonating with no one.

The key to LinkedIn domination is to get crystal clear on your ideal customer profile (ICP) and craft every single post with them in mind.

What are the pressing challenges that consume your ICP's thoughts and keep them from reaching their full potential? What are the ambitious goals they're working towards, day in and day out? Your content should position you as the ultimate guide to overcoming those obstacles and achieving those dreams.

When your ICP comes across a LinkedIn post that speaks directly to their deepest frustrations and desires, they can't help but stop in their tracks and engage.

2. Live and Die by the Hook

Your post's opening lines are the gatekeepers to all the valuable insights you have to share—and if they don't pack a punch, even the most game-changing content will go unread.

Crafting an irresistible hook is both an art and a science. The key is to give your audience a taste of the value to come and leave them wanting to click "see more."

In Tommy’s experience, hooks that contain any of the following tend to perform best:

• Stories
• Specific numbers
• Social proof
• Open loops

Here’s an extra tip: Don't be afraid to ruffle a few feathers and take a stand—polarizing content sparks conversations.

3. Prioritize Middle-of-Funnel Content

Not all LinkedIn posts are created equal.

While there's undoubtedly a time and place for high-level thought leadership and bottom-of-funnel product pitches, the real gold lies in the middle of the funnel.

Middle-of-funnel content is all about speaking the language of your ICP and giving them a behind-the-scenes look at how you drive results. It's the in-depth case studies, the step-by-step breakdowns of your signature frameworks, the contrarian hot takes on industry best practices.

The goal is to demonstrate your expertise and paint a vivid picture of the outcomes your ICP could achieve by partnering with you—without veering into overt self-promotion.

Tommy says that a balanced LinkedIn content mix is:

• 60-70% middle-of-funnel
• 10-20% top-of-funnel
• 10-20% bottom-of-funnel

This right amount of content for every stage of the content funnel will allow you to build trust, nurture relationships, and guide your audience closer to a buying decision over time.‍

Episode Timestamps

‍00:00 Tommy Clark’s background, how he found his way to the B2B content landscape
03:28 Why LinkedIn is ideal for B2B marketing
06:28 How founders can get started on creating content for LinkedIn
10:38 Figuring your why in content creation and how you should position your brand
15:19 What kind of content should be your first post as a founder
17:25 LinkedIn post types that perform well
20:21 Text on LinkedIn, how to create effective LinkedIn hooks
26:42 LinkedIn algorithm, strategies to get more traction on LinkedIn

Why B2B Companies Should Focus on LinkedIn: “For a lot of B2B SaaS companies or just B2B companies in general, the effort that it would take to win on TikTok or another social platform is so much higher than the effort that it would take to do LinkedIn well because your audience is just hanging out there all day and they want to consume business-related content." — Tommy Clark, [00:04:07 → 00:04:23]

Building a Content Marketing Funnel: “If you're a founder, it's like, what type of content do you want to be known for? And then once you have that idea figured out, then what I like to do is break it up into what I call a content funnel. So top-of-funnel, middle-of-funnel, bottom-of-funnel content. It's a good way to organize the way you think about the types of posts that you're making." — Tommy Clark, [00:07:41 → 00:07:58]

How to Get Started on LinkedIn Content Creation: “If there's a client that we work with that has been totally dark on LinkedIn, or maybe they've posted like twice in the past two years, but they're going to start posting again because they've seen this podcast or they've seen someone else's content around how posting as a founder is super beneficial, what I would do is just make an intro post, like a quick context, or give some quick context on your backstory. Say why you're going to start posting, and then give your audience an idea of what to expect."— Tommy Clark, [00:15:17 → 00:15:43]