🟨 Plot Twist - The Secret To Doing Well On LinkedIn

One of my favorite memories of 2024 was spending time IRL with Michelle Benson. Julie and I met her for dinner in London… and wrapped the night with ice cream cones. 💃🍦

Before that, Todd and I had a great interview with Michelle on the Breakthru Podcast.  And I always look forward to reading her regular posts on LinkedIn… So it’s probably no surprise that I’ve asked her to write a guest post for this week’s Breakthru Guide!  You’re in for a treat. Michelle is thoughtful and practical when it comes to understanding how charities can leverage LinkedIn to build relationships and spark new connections.

So… without further ado, and deep appreciation, I give you Michelle Benson!

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Hello friends of J.Paul!

It’s fun to ‘break in’ on this weekly issue of The Breakthru Guide.🙂 Lovely to be with you all!

So I’ll just get right to it. You’ve probably heard this advice: Post a selfie to get noticed on social media.

‍It makes sense - people connect with faces, and selfies stop the scroll. That’s still true.

But here’s the PLOT TWIST…

Every social platform has a key metric, and on LinkedIn, that metric is REPOSTS.

If you (or your charity) want more people to see and engage with your content, focus on creating posts that people want to share - because:

✅Reposts drive distribution.
✅The more reposts you get, the more people see your content.

‍BUT… here’s the catch - people don’t repost selfies.

Sure, selfies get likes. Maybe even some comments. But likes don’t spread ideas.

Reposts do.

So, what do people repost?Content that:

✔️Teaches them something valuable
✔️Gives them an action they can take
✔️Shares a powerful idea worth spreading
✔️Presents something new or surprising
✔️Triggers a strong emotional reaction

‍{Quick addition from J.Paul here: Your posts don’t have to be long or polished. Even a short reflection, a helpful tip, or a surprising stat can be repost-worthy}

Want more reach?

‍Forget the selfies.  Create something worth sharing.😀

‍Here’s to your success.🥂

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Thanks so much Michelle!

Now, dear readers, you might wonder (understandably) why I’m spending time talking about LinkedIn… that’s not where major gift fundraisers should be spending their time… right?

Au contraire… I believe it is exactly one of the places you ought to spend your time. Why? Here are five key reasons for major gift fundraisers to spend time on LinkedIn - and not just have a profile, but actually use it:

‍1. It’s Where the Givers (and Connectors) Are Already Hanging Out
‍The people you're hoping to connect with - business leaders, legacy givers, and wealth stewards - are already active on LinkedIn. They’re sharing insights, reading posts, and getting a feel for who’s doing meaningful work. Showing up in this space regularly means you’re part of their daily scroll. It’s presence without pressure.

I was speaking recently with one of my high net worth friends who said, “Hey, I love your posts on LinkedIn”... I was curious, so I looked back and found they had not engaged with any of my posts - no ‘likes’ , no comments. In fact, their own LinkedIn profile looked like a barren desert. No posts, very little about their work, etc. You would have every reason to believe they are never on LinkedIn. But guess what? They are. They’re watching. Quietly. Consistently. And they’re noticing more than you think.

2. It’s the Best Way to Practice “Invite, Don’t Interrupt”
Cold outreach can feel like knocking on someone’s door at dinner. But consistent LinkedIn posts - stories, questions, reflections - are more like leaving the door open. No pressure. Just presence.

3. It Builds Trust at Scale
We can only do so many in-person coffees. But on LinkedIn, our ideas, values, and heart all show up in a hundred inboxes, with just one post. It’s not about performance. It’s about showing up consistently with your voice and care.

4. Stay in the Game Between the Meetings
Relationships move forward in the in-between moments - not just the donor dinners or the big asks. When we show up on LinkedIn, we stay top of mind, becoming the person people associate with wise generosity and meaningful causes. And sometimes, someone reaches out because of a post they’ve been quietly tracking.

LinkedIn gives people a preview - before you ever sit down face to face. What kind of preview are you offering?

5. It’s a Living Portfolio of Your Voice and Values
When someone looks up your profile (and they will), they’ll scroll through your posts. What will they see? A resume? Or a real human who cares deeply about transformation, giving, and the sacred work of connecting people to vision? What you say, over time, becomes your track record.

Got a favorite example of a great LinkedIn post you've seen or written? Drop me a note. I might feature a few in an upcoming issue.

If you’re still trying to figure out how LinkedIn fits into your rhythm as a major gift fundraiser, let’s talk! Initial calls are always free and no-strings-attached.

Thanks again to Michelle Benson! We are both pulling for you all to have great favor in your fundraising efforts.

P.S. That ice cream in London? It only happened because of LinkedIn. Just sayin’.

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If you haven't taken advantage of some of the resources I've created to help major gift fundraisers, take a look now!  Initial calls with me are free and "no strings attached".  Sometimes folks feel like they need to wait and not 'bother' me until they have a pressing issue.  No need for that...just make the call. 🕺

‍Here's where you can access a lot of content for free:

‍* Follow me on LinkedIn - You'll get short pro-tips and reflections on major gift fundraising every day between 5-7am pacific.

* Breakthru Newsletter - As you've seen here, these are longer weekly posts (audio and written) sent directly to your email.

* Breakthru Blog - the newsletter from the previous week gets posted here each week for everyone (so email subscribers get it a week early).

* Breakthru Podcast - Interviews with high net worth givers about how we as fundraisers can get better at inviting them to the party.  And audio readings of Breakthru Blog posts.

‍Before getting to the PAID stuff: My opinion is that no small ministry with a tight budget should be spending more than $3-5k (total) for major gift coaching/consulting.  Most of you will be good-to-go spending far less than that.  This was a major issue for me when I was a frontline fundraiser - major gift consultants were an expensive 'black-box-of-confusion' for me.  That stops now.

‍Here's the PAID stuff:

‍* Online Catalyst Course - This is a full brain dump of my 28+ years of experience - good, bad, ugly.  It's built around the fundamentals, the sacredness, and the fun, of major gift fundraising.  It's infused with Henri Nouwen reflections.  Many people can take this course and they will be 'cooking-with-gas' and not need any additional coaching from me on the core systems.  I'm grateful that this course has gotten *great* reviews.

* Live coaching with me - I refer to this as "brain rental".  The ROI on live coaching, as you might imagine, is extraordinary.

Finally, be sure to connect with my colleague Ivana Salloum.  She's super awesome and can help with scheduling and access to resources, etc.

I look forward to hearing about your good work!

Blessings,