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May 5, 2025 18 mins

Want to stand out on LinkedIn without resorting to gimmicks? In this episode, Michelle J Raymond shares a simple, practical framework to help B2B marketers discover what makes them different and why it matters.

Key moments in this episode - 

00:00 - Why being different matters on LinkedIn

01:30 - The mistake most brands make

03:00 – Why blending in costs you opportunities

05:00 – 5 questions to find your different

13:30 – Updating your LinkedIn profile

16:00 – Final tips to own your difference

CONNECT WITH MICHELLE J RAYMOND


Today's episode is sponsored by Metricool. Make sure to register for a FREE Metricool account today. Use Code MICHELLE30 to try any Premium Plan FREE for 30 days.  https://i.mtr.cool/NEDXVZ

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Transcript

Episode Transcript

Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Most of us were taught that beingdifferent was a bad thing, but on LinkedIn
it's a secret to winning business.
So in today's episode, let's talkabout finding your different.

(00:28):
G'Day everyone.
I'm Coach Michelle J Raymond, yourtrusted advisor for building your
brand and your business on LinkedIn.
In this week's episode, we'regonna be talking about standing
out on LinkedIn, and for some ofyou that is gonna make you cringe.
For others, you might betempted to switch podcasts.
Please don't do that.
Stick around because I promise you thisis the secret to success on LinkedIn.

(00:53):
This is how we grow our businesses.
And the thing is, this hasbeen playing around on my mind.
I've been grappling with this myself,and it all started when I was getting
my presentation ready for Uplift Liveand Social Media Marketing World.
And there's a slide in there where Ichallenged the audience to dare to be
different and I didn't realise thatwould be the slide that would really

(01:19):
capture the attention of people.
That pretty much most of the feedbackthat's been coming through, it's all been
about that slide, which is really crazy.
I challenge them to dare to bedifferent with their company pages.
I've been doing the same with myself, likestruggling with what makes me different.

(01:39):
Why am I any different to any of theother thousands of LinkedIn trainers are
out there, and why should you pick me?
Why would anyone wanna work withme over some of my competitors?
And it's a really important questionand one that I have answered in
the past, but I'm looking at itagain through a fresh set of eyes.
Before we go into how you can figure outwhat makes you stand out, I don't wanna

(02:04):
skip over the part where I appreciate thatthis is really difficult for some people.
We are taught don't rockthe boat, don't stand out.
It can be cultural.
I was working with my Swedish clientsand telling them, yeah, we're gonna
rewrite your LinkedIn profile andshow the industry how you stand out.
And then I learned that culturallythat's not what they do.

(02:26):
Which was a really interestingthing for me to learn.
Here in Australia, we callit the Tall Poppy Syndrome.
If I look back to me growing up as a younggirl who had a short haircut, always,
then I often got the, you look like a boy.
And it's something that has, plaguedme throughout my life, having

(02:49):
these types of conversations.
Being different doesn't alwaysequate to being special,
unique, and positive things.
You may have your own version of this.
In fact, I would go as far as sayingthat everybody has their own version
of why they don't wanna be different.
But the problem is when we play itsafe and blend in on LinkedIn, then

(03:11):
we miss out on opportunities, andthat is why it's really important.
A special distinction here is I'mnot asking you to be the loudest.
I'm not asking you to be the craziest.
I'm not even asking youto go full extrovert.
There are many other ways that we cando it, and in today's episode, I'm gonna
step you through this and I'm gonna giveyou a simple and practical framework to

(03:35):
follow so you can discover your different.
So if that sounds goodto you, let's dive in.
Why does being differenteven matter at all?
The fact is on LinkedIn withover a billion members, there
are lots of good experts.

(03:56):
There are lots of peoplewith lots of experience.
We are spoiled for choice.
When people are on the platform,remember they are scrolling
that home feed super fast.
And if we are trying to get theattention of B2B buyers, we have
to give them a reason to notice us.
Otherwise people keep onscrolling and that's a bad thing.

(04:20):
That is how opportunities disappear.
For those of you who create contentfor brands through the company
page, it is no different for you.
I know that when I go and do companypage audits with page admins, the first
thing that I do is have a look at theindustry, go to the key competitors,
and nine times outta ten I'm gonna saythe content looks exactly the same.

(04:45):
It might have different brandingcolours, but at the end of the day,
you all talk about the same stuff inthe same way, using the same tone,
and everybody is on the same level.
Standing out is not justpay attention to me.
Standing out is about how can youhave a place in that viewer's brain

(05:07):
for the next time when they wantto recall you, they can recall the
right person or the right business.
That is why we are doing this.
For those of you who aregoing, you know what?
I don't really knowwhat makes me different.
I get it.
I think it's hard for us todiscover these things ourselves.
After this quick word from our podcastsponsors Metricool, I'm gonna share

(05:28):
the five questions that you can useto discover what makes you different.

(06:34):
Let's start with question number one,and question number one is, what do
people consistently compliment me on?
Think about it.
What do you often receive complimentson when you are working with clients.
What are the words that peoplecome back to you and say,?
One of the cheats way to discoverwhat this is go to your LinkedIn

(06:54):
profile and have a look at therecommendations and see is there
a common theme that comes through?
When I look at mine, there arewords like energy, high energy.
Michelle always deliverswith lots of excitement and
enthusiasm, and that's contagious.
That comes up in a lotof my recommendations.

(07:16):
There's also a theme where people say,I break down complex ideas into easy to
understand and practical applications.
That came across multiple differentrecommendations that I've received.
If you don't have any recommendations onLinkedIn, send out requests and ask people
that you've worked with to leave you one.

(07:36):
Or if you've got testimonials on yourwebsite, exactly the same process.
Go and have a look and seeis there a recurring theme.
If you download these fromLinkedIn, you can get your archive
and all of your recommendations.
You could put that into ChatGPT andask it to look for these common themes.
Let it do the work for you.

(07:57):
This is one of the cool waysthat we can use ChatGPT.
Understanding what people constantlycompliment you on also allows you
to get insights into what part ofyour job you're really good at.
And quite often it's gonnaline up with the part of your
job that you love the most.
So go back, take a look and seeif you can answer question one.

(08:19):
What do people consistentlycompliment me on?
Let's move to question two.
Where do I break the rules in myindustry without even thinking about it?
I'll say it again.
Where do I break the rules in myindustry without even thinking about it?

(08:44):
Oh, this is probably my favorite one.
'cause I think this is a big partof what makes me different and this
is how I stood out originally wheneverybody else said, don't worry about
company pages and I was like, whoa,you can't cut off 50% of LinkedIn.
And so this is a big piece ofgoing against what most people
would teach through their training.

(09:06):
I talk about the Power of Two.
How do you get your company brand andpersonal brands of either yourself
or your employees working together?
And that's despite most people out onthe platform saying it's a waste of time.
Now, it's absolutely not.
You as a listener to thispodcast, know how passionate I am.
But in your industry, you willhave your version of this as well.

(09:30):
And so I want you to think where is itthat you break the so-called rules that
are out there in your industry withouteven thinking about it, because you just
believe in this so strongly that it isa part of your makeup, it's a part of
what you do, and you're not out therejust to break a rule for the sake of it.

(09:50):
It's just who you are.
So a really powerful question to ask.
Question number three is.
What do I believe deeply that others inmy field often ignore or disagree with?
When I was answering these questionsfor myself and thinking about what do
I disagree with others in the industrywho offer potentially similar services.

(10:14):
The big one that stands out is Iabsolutely disagree with anyone that
promotes automation, engagement podsor solutions that are similar to that.
Like I am here and I will die on thathill to really make sure that people
know that I don't stand for cheating,trying to get around things, growth

(10:36):
hacks, anything along those lines.
That's been coming up for me.
In fact, it drives me so much that mytagline that I discovered, my new tagline,
which is been something I've been workingon, I reckon 18 months, trying to find the
right words, is now B2B Growth, No Hacks.

(10:57):
And it was amazing to discover thishow I could succinctly talk about what
I do and what makes me different injust four words like that is crazy.
So what else do you disagreewith with those in your industry?

(11:17):
Let's have a look at question four.
If my ideal client was choosingbetween me and five others, what
reason would they have to pick me?
I'll say it again.
If my ideal client was choosingbetween me and five others, what
reason would they have to pick me?

(11:39):
Avoid the generic.
It's time to really do the work.
Sit down and make time and spacefor this to figure out what
really makes you different.
And this is harder than you think.
This is one that took some time tosit there and think, what is it?
Coming back to my unique approach toLinkedIn, the Power of Two business

(12:03):
brands and personal brands together.
That is something thatnobody else talks about.
That makes me uniquely me.
Having Company Pages andpersonal brands together.
Coming back again to some of thatexperience in B2B sales and now B2B
marketing and joining those two together.
Most people you'll discover comefrom one side or the other, or maybe

(12:26):
they come from a HR background.
A lot of LinkedIn trainers camefrom the career development space.
Now, that's not me.
My entire focus is about how doyou use LinkedIn to grow your B2B.
It is my piece of thepuzzle that I just love.
What is it that really would giveother people a reason to pick you?

(12:50):
We're gonna go onto number five.
What's one personal trait that you bringinto your work that most others don't?
I'll say it again.
What's one personal trait that you bringinto your work that most others don't?
I would have to say Ibring my heart and empathy.

(13:12):
That is my personal traits thatI think I bring into this more
than anyone else in my industry.
I genuinely care that other peopleare growing their businesses.
I am here to have a real impact becauseit's like this for me listeners.
The more people that grow their business.

(13:34):
The more people that they employ.
When you are employed, you have money.
When you have money, you have choices,and hopefully you make better choices
and people are happier, healthier.
I wanna live in the bestcommunity that I possibly can.
And by community, I don'tmean just here locally.
To me, I'm mean the whole world.

(13:55):
Money brings people choices.
So if you wanna know why I care abouthelping other people grow their business.
That's what it is for me, andthat's why I show up on LinkedIn.
I do what I do.
I'm generous with my time.
I'm generous with the things that Igive away to others to help them grow.
My YouTube channel, my podcasts, books,like all of these kinds of things are a

(14:18):
reflection of the way my personal traitof empathy and care for others shows
up and makes me better at what I do.
So what is the one personal trait that youbring to your work that most others don't?
They are the five questions listenersthat I use to help me get clarity

(14:40):
around what makes me different.
Notice how, as you answer those fivequestions, none of them said, what
crazy stuff are you gonna do to makepeople pay attention to you on LinkedIn?
On the flip side, all of those answersare what makes you unique and different.
Once we have the gold, it's time togo across to your LinkedIn profile

(15:04):
and update it with these insights, andwe'll do that after this short break.

(15:33):
It's one thing to get all of these goldnuggets and understand what makes us
unique and different to our competitors.
But now it's time to take a lookat your LinkedIn profile, or
for those of you doing it for acompany page, the same will apply.
What kinds of places can youupdate with these amazing insights?
Your LinkedIn banner is one of them.
Absolutely.

(15:53):
Take the insights and think, how canI use this as my billboard to share
these insights with my audience?
So if you had to pick fivewords to describe what makes you
different and unique compared toyour competitors, what five would
you use based on these insights?
If you run out of room there, goodnews is you should come down and

(16:14):
update your LinkedIn headline.
That's the part that'sjust underneath your photo.
Add some of these words that othershave used or you have discovered you
would like to use about yourself.
Make sure that they're in that headlinebecause it follows you everywhere.
When we're offering insights aboutwhat makes us unique, we've got
other areas like our Featuredsection and our About section.

(16:36):
It is worth spending time on yourLinkedIn profile to update these areas.
So again, cover image, headline,Featured section About section.
They're a good place to start.
And for those of you who don't haverecommendations on your LinkedIn profile.
You've got some homework.
I want you to get two to five currentrecommendations on your profile.

(16:59):
You might wanna do this first, so you'vegot the insights from those people writing
recommendations along with the work thatyou've done to answer the five questions,
and that will just level up your insights.
As promised, I've given you a simple andpractical way to get to the bottom of

(17:20):
what makes you uniquely different, howyou can stand out on LinkedIn and notice
none of it was about doing crazy stuff.
Oversharing your personal life,pointless selfies, algorithm
hacks, nothing along those lines.
You don't have to go crazy to get noticed.
But you also need to findout a way to distinguish

(17:42):
yourself from your competitors.
This work often isn't easy work.
If you are somebody that discoverswhile you go through this, Hey,
actually I need some help, then makesure you reach out and talk to me.
I have services like Power Hours orrewriting your LinkedIn profile that I
can help you with this kind of thing.
I work with all kinds of businessesthat are in the B2B space, especially if

(18:08):
you are trying to grow using LinkedIn.
So if you're getting stuck,don't just stay stuck.
Reach out and get help.
As we wrap up today's episode, this isa reminder that I love hearing from you
listeners, if you are doing this workand having a breakthrough, reach out
make sure we're connected on LinkedIn.
Let me know that you're a listenerto this podcast and how it's impacted

(18:30):
you and your business growth.
Until next week, cheers.
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