It's knowing how to turn the right engagement into the right conversation.

(Note: scroll below to download the FREE 23-page strategic playbook “The LinkedIn Sequence for Coaches: Contribute. Connect. Message. Invite.” Created specifically for coaches, this system shows you exactly who to focus on, how to demonstrate your judgment, what to say in messages, and when to invite a coaching conversation.)

Most coaches don’t have a LinkedIn activity problem…

• You’re posting

• Commenting

• Sending connection requests

• Every so often, you send a polite direct message that goes nowhere

The problem is that none of it works as a system. A good post earns attention but starts no conversation. A new connection never becomes a relationship. A message introduces your services before the other person has seen a reason to trust you.

More activity won’t fix that. The right actions, in the right order, will:

Contribute. Connect. Message. Invite.

1. Contribute before you try to convert

Potential clients should see how you think before you ask them to consider working with you. That doesn’t mean “Great insight!” and it doesn’t mean asking AI to write a comment for you. LinkedIn has said it’s acting against engagement pods and automated comments, and your buyers can spot a script anyway.

Add something. Introduce a distinction the author missed. Share a relevant experience. Explain where a sound idea breaks down in practice. Fifteen minutes a day, by hand, is enough.

Your goal isn’t to become visible. It’s to become relevant to the people who could hire you, sponsor your work, or refer you.

2. Build a more intentional network

More connections don’t create more opportunities. Relevant ones do.

Start with a Pool of 50: prospective clients, corporate sponsors, former clients, and referral partners who meet your buyer before you do. Keep peer coaches to a handful. They’ll cheer you on, and they rarely hire you.

The point isn’t to pitch 50 people. It’s to stop spreading your attention across thousands of unrelated connections and start building familiarity inside a commercially relevant community.

3. Let the conversation determine the message

Most LinkedIn messages fail because the sender decides where the conversation goes before the other person has given a reason.

Build on what already happened. Reference the exchange in the comments. Ask a thoughtful follow-up question. Share a resource that fits. Continue the subject instead of introducing your package.

If they engage, continue. If they name a problem you can help with, explore it. If they go quiet, send one useful follow-up after a week or two, then pause.

Good outreach should feel like the next step in a conversation, not the first step in a campaign.

LinkedIn is one part of the system

One executive coach client we support grew her monthly recurring revenue from approximately $8,000 to $47,000. LinkedIn contributed, but not because of a clever posting formula or automated messages. It worked because it sat inside a connected system built around her expertise: ideas for senior leaders, thoughtful commenting, strategic connections, and personal messages, reinforced by email, webinars, speaking engagements, conference training sessions, and podcasts.

LinkedIn rarely deserves all the credit for a new client. It creates familiarity, reinforces authority, and keeps you visible until a real need emerges.

4. Invite when there’s a reason

Invite after someone reveals a need, not because your outreach calendar says it’s time. When a person describes a meaningful problem within your scope, suggest a 20-minute conversation with a clear purpose. You’re not trying to get on their calendar. You’re deciding whether the situation, timing, and fit justify a next step for both of you.

That’s also how you measure LinkedIn. Not impressions, reactions, or connection counts. Count completed qualified conversations: you met with an appropriate buyer or sponsor, confirmed a problem within your scope, discussed a realistic decision path, and agreed on a next step or a clear no.

Run it for 90 days and change one thing at a time. If the wrong people respond, fix your targeting. If the right people respond but rarely reply, fix your openings.

New FREE 23-Page Playbook “The LinkedIn Sequence for Coaches: Contribute. Connect. Message. Invite.”

I’ve put the full system into a 23-page strategic playbook that includes a structured 35-minute daily engagement routine, 4 practical worksheets, specialty-specific comment and message examples across 6 coaching specialties, and a 90-day implementation plan.

Download The LinkedIn Sequence for Coaches >> 

Enjoy!

 

P.s. Get practical help with your coaching business growth and marketing. Leverage our free library of 34 self-assessments, guides, playbooks, blueprints, and systems specifically for coaches: www.thecoachscmo.com/resources