Why Your LinkedIn Strategy Needs a Refresh

LinkedIn isn’t the quiet professional network it used to be. It’s now a battleground for attention, and the rules have changed. AI-generated posts are flooding every feed, making it harder than ever to stand out. But here’s the thing: LinkedIn has also rolled out a suite of new features that can help your brand break through the noise.

From collaborative posts to the creator marketplace, and a new analytics metric that shows whether your content reaches beyond your existing network, there’s a lot to unpack. Let’s dig in.

Collaborative Posts: The New Way to Amplify Reach

Collaborative articles are one of LinkedIn’s most intriguing recent additions. These are AI-generated prompts that invite experts to contribute their insights. When you add your perspective, your network sees it, but so does the audience of the original poster and anyone else who engages.

This is a low-effort, high-reward play. You don’t need to create a full post from scratch. You just add your expertise to an existing conversation. The result? Your name gets in front of people who wouldn’t normally see your content.

How to Make Collaborative Posts Work for You

Don’t just drop a one-liner. Treat it like a mini-article. Share a specific example, a lesson learned, or a contrarian take. The more value you add, the more likely others are to engage, which pushes your contribution higher in the feed.

Also, monitor the topics that align with your niche. Set aside 10 minutes a day to respond to relevant collaborative posts. Consistency matters more than volume.

The Creator Marketplace: Your Ticket to Paid Opportunities

LinkedIn’s creator marketplace is a game-changer for freelancers and consultants. It’s a space where brands can find creators to collaborate on sponsored content, product launches, and thought leadership campaigns. If you’ve built a following and have consistent engagement, you might already be eligible.

To get the most out of it, optimize your profile. Make sure your headline clearly states what you help with, and that your featured section showcases your best work. LinkedIn’s algorithm matches you with brands based on your niche and activity, so stay active and relevant.

What to Expect from the Creator Marketplace

The marketplace is still evolving, but early adopters are already landing paid partnerships. You’ll get access to campaign briefs, direct messages from brands, and the ability to pitch your own ideas. It’s like a freelancing platform, but built into LinkedIn.

If you’re not seeing the marketplace tab yet, don’t panic. It’s being rolled out gradually. Focus on building your authority in the meantime.

Out-of-Network Reach: The Metric That Matters

Here’s a metric you probably haven’t been tracking: out-of-network reach. This shows you how many people outside your direct connections saw your content. It’s a crucial number because it tells you whether your content is breaking beyond your echo chamber.

Previously, you could only see total impressions. Now, LinkedIn breaks it down. If your out-of-network reach is low, it means your content is only resonating with people who already follow you. That’s not growth. That’s just maintenance.

How to Boost Your Out-of-Network Reach

Start by analyzing which posts perform best outside your network. Look for patterns in topics, formats, and posting times. Then, double down on what works.

Engage with content from people outside your industry. Comment thoughtfully on posts from adjacent niches. This exposes your profile to their audiences, which can drive new followers and engagement.

Standing Out in an AI-Flooded Feed

AI-generated content is everywhere on LinkedIn now. Some of it is good, but most of it is generic. That’s your opportunity. If you can be authentic, specific, and human, you’ll stand out.

Here are a few tips to keep your content from blending in:

• Share personal stories. AI can’t fake lived experience. A specific anecdote about a client win or a failure teaches more than any generic tip.
• Use data and screenshots. Show your results. A screenshot of a campaign’s performance or a chart of your growth adds credibility.
• Ask real questions. End your posts with a question that invites discussion. The more comments, the more reach.
• Be consistent. Posting once a week won’t cut it. Aim for 3-4 times a week if you can.

Putting It All Together: Your New LinkedIn Playbook

So, what’s the takeaway? LinkedIn is no longer a place to just post your resume and hope for the best. It’s a platform where collaboration, paid opportunities, and data-driven growth are all within reach.

Start by experimenting with collaborative posts. They’re the easiest way to get in front of new eyes without creating content from scratch. Then, check your out-of-network reach metric. If it’s low, adjust your strategy. And if you’re a freelancer or consultant, don’t sleep on the creator marketplace.

The professionals who adapt to these changes will be the ones who thrive. The ones who don’t will keep shouting into the void. Your move.

For more insights on social media strategy, check out our guide on social media marketing tips and how to measure social media ROI.

Investors wanted numbers. They got a vision.

Snap CEO Evan Spiegel spent Monday’s Q2 earnings call talking about the future of Specs, the company’s long-awaited smart glasses. What he didn’t do? Give investors any concrete details about preorder demand.

That’s notable, given the device’s September launch event is just weeks away.

When pressed on how early orders are tracking, Spiegel deflected. “What we’re hearing from folks is really that they want to try Specs,” he told investors. “It’s obviously a high consideration purchase at $2,195.”

That price point is the elephant in the room. It’s more than six times the cost of most Meta Ray-Ban smart glasses, which start around $350. It’s cheaper than Apple‘s Vision Pro at $3,500, but that’s a low bar. The real question is whether consumers will pay premium-device money for a first-generation wearable from a company better known for filters than hardware.

The “try before you buy” problem

Spiegel’s core argument is that Specs is a product people need to experience in person. “Developers and folks who are familiar with the platform really understand it and understand the technical leaps we’ve made with this generation,” he said. “I think for the broader public and consumers, it’s going to be really important for folks to go hands-on.”

That’s a reasonable stance for a $2,195 gadget. But it also means Snap is betting heavily on its launch event to generate the kind of buzz that translates into orders. A demo can win people over. A spec sheet, apparently, cannot.

Spiegel acknowledged as much: “Our upcoming launch event will be an important sort of starting point for that consumer-oriented journey.”

Why go it alone?

Investors didn’t just want preorder numbers. They also pushed Spiegel on the broader strategy. Why is Snap, a company with a market cap dwarfed by its rivals, trying to build the next computing platform on its own? Why not partner with someone bigger?

Spiegel’s answer was part confidence, part history lesson. He reminded investors that Snap was a late entrant in social media, competing against established players like Facebook and Instagram. “We had to really innovate to continue to grow,” he said. “What’s so unique about this opportunity for us is really that we’re a first mover, and that really plays to our strengths as an innovator.”

The implication is clear: in social, Snap was the underdog. In smart glasses, it’s the pioneer. And being first, Spiegel argues, is where the company shines.

The technical hurdle is real

He also pushed back on the idea that building Specs is just another hardware project. “I think what some folks maybe don’t understand yet, especially because Specs are so new and we’re really the first mover in this category, is how difficult the product is to execute from a technical perspective,” Spiegel said.

That’s a fair point. Snap has spent more than a decade developing this device, unveiling the current generation in June. The engineering challenges — optics, battery life, weight, processing power — are substantial. But investors are less interested in the difficulty than in the payoff.

Mass-market adoption is years away

When asked about product-market fit, Spiegel offered a sobering timeline: don’t expect Specs to hit the mainstream until closer to the end of the decade. “I think things, for example, like weight and cost are going to have to come down to see unit volumes really meaningfully pick up,” he said.

Translation: this is a long game. Snap is positioning Specs as a platform play, not a quick-hit product. The company’s bet is that developers will build the ecosystem that makes the glasses indispensable — and that Snap’s head start will matter once the market matures.

“We do have, I think, a real advantage here in that developers have been building on the Specs platform now for several years,” Spiegel added.

What to watch at the September launch

Spiegel’s non-answers may frustrate investors, but they also set the stage for the launch event. Here’s what matters:

• Preorder numbers: If Snap shares any early demand figures, that will move the stock. If it stays quiet, expect more questions.
• Developer momentum: The quality of third-party apps will signal whether the platform has legs.
• Pricing strategy: Any hints of a cheaper model or carrier subsidies could change the conversation.
• Competitive response: Meta and Apple aren’t standing still. Their next moves will shape the market.

For now, Snap is asking the market to trust its vision. That’s a harder sell than a spec sheet — but it’s the only one Spiegel is offering. If you’re tracking the broader smart glasses market trends, this launch is the one to watch. And for context on how Snap’s strategy compares to rivals, check out our breakdown of Meta Ray-Ban vs. Apple Vision Pro.

Reddit wants to be seen — and heard

Reddit is quietly building a new video experience that would let users watch — or simply listen to — its most viral posts. The move borrows a page from the TikTok playbook, where narrated Reddit stories play over gameplay footage or other visuals.

CEO Steve Huffman confirmed the feature is already in development. Speaking at a recent company event, he said testing could begin later this year. That’s a notable shift for a platform long known for text-first discussions.

Why Reddit is chasing TikTok-style videos

The inspiration is hard to miss. TikTok is flooded with accounts that read Reddit threads aloud while showing Minecraft or Subway Surfers clips. Some of these videos rack up millions of views. Reddit sees that traffic and wants a piece of it.

Huffman didn’t share many specifics — no timeline beyond “later this year,” no details on how the interface might look. But the direction is clear: Reddit wants to make its content more consumable for people who prefer video over text.

What “listen to posts” could mean

The audio component is interesting. It suggests Reddit might let users play posts like a podcast, with text-to-speech or human narration. That could appeal to commuters, gym-goers, or anyone who’d rather hear a story than read it on a screen.

It’s a clever angle. Reddit’s strength has always been its communities — r/AskReddit, r/AmItheAsshole, r/relationship_advice — and those threads are already story-driven. Turning them into audio or video content is a natural extension.

A crowded field of competitors

Reddit isn’t the first to try this. YouTube has long hosted Reddit-story channels. Spotify has experimented with podcast-style adaptations. And TikTok’s algorithm has made Reddit content a staple of its “For You” page.

What Reddit has that others don’t: the original source material and the community context. If the company can build a native experience that feels authentic — not just a repackaged feed — it could carve out a unique niche.

What this means for creators and users

For creators, this could open new revenue or discovery opportunities. Reddit already pays some users through its Contributor Program, and a video feature might expand that. For everyday users, it’s simply a new way to engage with content they already love.

There’s also a potential downside. Reddit’s charm is its rawness — the messy, text-heavy, community-driven discussions. Over-polishing that into slick video formats could alienate longtime users. Huffman seems aware of the balance, though he didn’t offer details on how Reddit plans to strike it.

What’s next

Testing later this year is just the beginning. If the feature rolls out widely, expect to see it integrated into the main feed, possibly alongside existing video tools. Reddit has been investing heavily in video — from its Reddit video upload tools to partnerships with creators — and this feels like the next logical step.

For now, the announcement is light on specifics. But the signal is loud: Reddit sees video and audio as the future of how people consume its content. Whether that’s a good thing depends on how well the company executes.

One thing’s certain — the internet’s favorite storytelling platform is getting ready to tell its stories in a whole new way.