Times are a’ changin!
If you’ve spent any time on LinkedIn recently, you might have noticed a shift from what was once a corporate and (dare we say it) slightly stuffy professional networking platform. Now, it’s evolved into more of a social media platform, and (gasp!) people are even having fun on there!
Injecting a little humor into your posts is one of the best ways to get noticed, strike up conversations and even potentially make your LinkedIn articles go viral. But, there is definitely an art to it. Because at the end of the day, LinkedIn is still a platform for work — and you don’t want to build up a reputation for the wrong reasons.
Keep reading for out guide on how to tactfully use humor on LinkedIn, and wow your audience with your hilarious posts.
Use irony appropriately
Social media in general is a place where everyone wants to put their best foot forward. This is especially true of LinkedIn. Users on this platform want to impress prospective employers and clients with their intelligence, people skills, and experience. The result of this? Sometimes, you end up with people posting long-winded monologues that attempt to position themselves as some kind of modern-day Gandhi.
We’ve all seen these types of posts: They usually involve someone telling a self-congratulatory story about how an employee asked them for a day off, so they told them to take the whole year instead. Or, about how they once went to a job interview and told the CEO to hire the next person in the waiting room instead. The thing about these excessively earnest LinkedIn posts is that everyone has seen them before!
So, naturally, some clever people on LinkedIn started poking fun of them! These posts start off just like any other, but progressively get more and more ridiculous — as you can see in the example below.
When used well, this type of self-referential humor can really stand out on LinkedIn and skyrocket your post to viral levels. Plus, if you’re looking for a job in a creative industry, it can show off your writing skills and out-of-the-box thinking (think, someone looking for a job at an agency)
Keep it professional
While it’s great to show off your sense of humor on LinkedIn, remember — this is still a professional platform. Puns, relatable posts, and clever observations about your industry are all great ways to inject some levity into your posts.
However, this certainly isn’t the place to resort to low-brow jokes, potty humor, or swearing. Yes, even if you’re a personal brand and swear on your Instagram or website! Remember, your LinkedIn profile is often people’s first port of call when hiring, or recommending you for a job. So, it’s safer to just keep it clean and PG-13. A good rule of thumb is — if you wouldn’t say it in a job interview, or in front of your grandmother, don’t say it on LinkedIn!
Remember to still give value
Yes, the point of your post is to break the scroll and give people some much-needed respite from the usual humdrum of their workday. But, your post needs to go a step further and add value. This isn’t about being funny and silly for the sake of it. Your content still needs to teach the reader something new, or prompt them to think about things in a different way.
So, start with the value you want to give your audience you want to make some first. Then, add a humorous anecdote, some puns, or a hint of irony to further elevate your post and make it stand out.
Be self-referential
Everyone knows that people can take themselves a little too seriously on Linkedin sometimes. So, why not poke some fun at that? Perhaps it’s a video about how managing to post on LinkedIn one day makes you feel like you’ve got your life together. Or, a meme comparing how tame everyone behaves on LinkedIn, vs. how they act on TikTok or Instagram. This kind of humor is relatable, and makes people think ‘Oh, that’s so true!’ As a result, they’re more likely to share it with others or comment on it.
Consider using multimedia
You don’t have to stick to text to tell your hilarious story. Often, adding in different media types can make your LinkedIn post more engaging and dynamic. For example, video is one of the fastest-growing content types on LinkedIn. You could consider making a funny TikTok or Reel, then posting a link to it alongside your post.
Another great media type to experiment with? LinkedIn Carousels. These are multi-frame graphic posts that are excellent for sharing tips. You can use this as an opportunity to share some lighthearted insights on a topic in your industry.
Polls are another great media type to experiment with on LinkedIn — and as you can see in the example above, they can be a great way to throw in lightheartedness and generate engagement.
Include a call to action
The purpose of your post is to make people think ‘wow, that person is hilarious — I must hire them/book them/follow them!’ But, how do they go about doing that? It’s important to tell them the next step to take after reading your post. This is known as your CTA or call-to-action.
Every post on every platform should have one, and LinkedIn is no exception. Make sure you end your post with a sentence of what your reader should do next — whether it’s contacting them via email, DMing you, or sharing/responding to your post with their own opinions on the topic. This is a great way to get more engagement on your post, too!
Ready to start injecting some more humor into your social media strategy — whether it’s on LinkedIn, Instagram, or another platform? Our new entertainment strategy prompt is the perfect way to dip your toe in the water. Just drag it onto your grid when you’re planning, as a placeholder to remember to add in some more playful, fun, and relatable content.
Start your free trial of Plann to start dazzling your audience with your hilarious witticisms today!
