LinkedIn Content Strategy for Executive Coaches and Speakers | Netwarm
LinkedIn playbook · Case study
LinkedIn content strategy for executive coaches: how a Denver keynote speaker and author reached 421 executives in 3 weeks
We read the reactions on 25 posts from a Denver executive coach, author and keynote speaker. 2,036 people, 421 executives. Here is what brings buyers, what brings peers, and the 5 posts we'd publish next.
Max Sawyer · Netwarm··11 min read
The creator in this case studyA Denver executive coach, author and keynote speaker
Followers42,764
PostsDaily, ~8 a week
SellsKeynotes, executive coaching and advisory work on trust and influence, plus two books
These numbers are from 6 November. Your audience has already moved.
New executives turn Hot every week and others go quiet. Run your free scan to see today’s version, with the names.
Ideal client: senior leaders and the executives who book speakers and coaching for their teams: CEOs, founders, C-level, VPs, directors and HR leaders.The challenge: The coach posts every single day, and wrote about letting the likes keep score: a good day felt like proof, a quiet one like doubt. Reactions count everyone. Which posts reach the leaders who book a keynote or hire a coach?
Key takeaways
1 in 5 readers is an executive.421 founders, CEOs, C-level leaders, VPs and directors reacted in 3 weeks: 20.7% of everyone we read.
The topic matters less than the post.Every topic brought 19 to 23% executives. Single posts ranged from 13% to 33%.
18 executives keep coming back.They reacted to 3 posts or more. One of them reacted to 9 of the 25.
01
Who actually reads you, and what the LinkedIn algorithm changed
The coach posts every morning about trust, being heard, and how leaders treat the people around them, mostly in two short lines. 25 posts between 14 October and 6 November, almost all at 6 a.m. Mountain.
The LinkedIn algorithm shows a post to the people who reacted to the last ones, then to people like them. A two-line truth travels far: leaders share it, and so do other coaches, speakers and everyone who nodded along. Reach can't tell them apart. Who reacted can. We looked at the people who reacted to each post and sorted them by role.
25posts in 3 weeks
2,036people reacted
421executives
18came back 3+ times
Audience by roleThe 2,036 people who reacted, by roleFree
Executives and peers come in almost equal numbers: 421 leaders, 410 coaches, consultants, speakers and authors. Peers push reach, and they rarely book a keynote.
The largest group is everyone else: managers, nurses, engineers, analysts. Many of them are the capable people the coach writes for, and some will become the leaders who hire a coach. But the people who sign the contract sit in the first group.
SeniorityAll people who reactedFree
Founder, owner, C-level17.3%
Director, VP7.2%
Manager13.6%
Independent9.4%
Other52.5%
IndustriesExecutives onlyNetwarm
Tech, IT, data & AI20.2%
Hidden in preview00%
Hidden in preview00%
Hidden in preview00%
See all industries and company sizes in your free scan.
These rules come from what worked on the coach's own profile, and from the best-performing posts by executive coaches and leadership speakers on LinkedIn over the last 3 months.
1
Open on a moment a leader has lived. “Nobody sets out to be hard to work with” names something a leader recognises in themselves. Executives react to the line they could say about their own week.On this profile: 31% of the reactions read on that post came from executives, the highest share of any full post.
Write to the person who leads others. A post addressed to the leader (“Most people who learn from you will never tell you”) speaks to the person who books the keynote or hires the coach, not only to the person trying to be heard.On this profile: 27.3% executives on the “learn from you” post, 13% on “The room stops trusting the person who has to be right”.
Tell one client moment, not only the maxim. The coach's two-line truths travel. A client's own words, quoted, then the lesson, shows the coaching itself, and brings comments, not only likes.Across the niche: Meera Remani's client story drew 206 comments on 149 likes.
Give the move they can use on Monday. Three concrete moves (“ask about something specific”, “thank them before you respond”, “go first”) turn a belief into something a leader tries this week.Across the niche: Mostyn Wilson's three moves drew 329 likes and 175 comments.
Decode the vague feedback capable people get. “Be more executive”, “more presence”, “more strategic”: the feedback the coach's readers hear and can't act on. Decoding it is the Unignorable promise in one post.Across the niche: Ling Abson's “be more executive” decoder drew 545 likes and 185 comments.
Point to the deeper piece. The newsletter post had the fewest reactions, and the highest share of executives. Leaders who click through to read more are the serious ones.On this profile: 10 of the 30 people who reacted to the 27 October newsletter post were executives (33%).
When executives read: the best time to post on LinkedIn for executive coaches
We compared the share of executives by the day each post was published. 24 of the 25 posts went out between 6 and 8 a.m. Mountain, so there is no hour to compare.
Share of executives by posting dayAmong the people who reacted to each postFree
21.7%
Mon
22.0%
Tue
21.6%
Wed
19.4%
Thu
21.4%
Fri
16.0%
Sat
26.8%
Sun
Sunday brought the highest share of executives (26.8%, 80 across 3 posts), Saturday the lowest (16%). Weekdays sit close together, from 19.4% on Thursday to 22% on Tuesday.
Keep the early-morning slot: 6 a.m. Mountain lands at 8 a.m. on the East Coast. Put the posts that sell the work (the client moment, the decoder with the Trust Gap Check) on Sunday or early in the week, and keep Saturday for lighter posts.
05
5 posts ready to publish to target executives
Each post follows the rules above, in the coach's voice. Swap in your own details before posting: the real client moment is what makes it land.
1Ready to postTwo-line truth + scene
Nobody tells you when you became the reason the room went quietRules 1 and 2: open on a moment a leader has lived, written to the person who leads others. Modelled on the “Nobody sets out to be hard to work with” post (31% executives).
Hook
Nobody tells you when you became the reason the room went quiet.It doesn't happen in one meeting.It happens in small moments.
The idea you finished for someone.
The question you answered before it was asked.
The sigh you didn't notice.Each one teaches people
that speaking up costs more than it gives.So they stop.Not because they have nothing to say.
Because they've learned how it will land.The quiet looks like agreement.
It rarely is.The leaders people trust most
aren't the ones with the best answers.
They're the ones who make it safe
to bring the half-finished thought.Silence isn't always alignment.
Sometimes it's a verdict.
Visual · Text onlyNo image. Short lines, one thought per line, like the two-line posts that bring the most executives.Check before postingRead it as a leader of a team, not as the person who was silenced: that is who reacts most.
“I said it first.”Rule 3: one client moment, quoted, then the lesson. Modelled on Meera Remani's “99% of my clients are introverts” post.
Hook
“I said it first. Ten minutes later my VP said it again, and the whole room nodded.”A director told me that in our first coaching session.She wasn't angry.
She was tired.She had the idea.
She had the data.
She had 15 years of doing the work.And it still didn't land until someone else said it.Her first instinct was to get louder.
Speak earlier. Push harder. Repeat it twice.That almost never works.Because it wasn't a volume problem.
It was a trust gap.Competence gets you considered.
Trust gets you chosen.So we worked on three things:→ Who in that room already trusted her, and who didn't yet
→ What each of them needed to hear before the idea, not after
→ One conversation a week, before the meeting, not in itSix weeks later, her VP started asking for her view first.Same director.
Same ideas.
Different trust.If your ideas keep getting overlooked, it's rarely about how good they are.
It's about who trusts you when you say them.
Visual · Text onlyNo image. The opening quote carries the post.Check before postingUse a real client story, with their permission and no identifying details. Change the timings and numbers to what really happened.
3 ways to get your idea heard the first timeRule 4: give the move, not only the maxim. Modelled on Mostyn Wilson's “the feedback is drying up” post.
Hook
Your idea didn't fail in the meeting.
It failed before it.Most smart people prepare the idea.
Very few prepare the room.Three things that change what happens next:1/ Lead with their problem, not your idea“I have an idea” asks people to make room.
“You mentioned churn is up 4%. I think I see why” gives them a reason to listen.2/ Talk to one person before the meetingPick the person whose nod the room waits for.
Ask what would make the idea a yes for them.
You'll walk in with an ally, not an audience.3/ Say it once, then stopThe urge is to explain it again, in more detail.
Don't. Ask a question instead:
“What would you need to see to try this?”Being heard isn't about getting louder.
It's about getting unmistakably clear,
and being trusted before you open your mouth.Which of the three do you skip most often?
Visual · Single imageA simple card: “Prepare the room, not just the idea” with the three moves as three short lines.Check before postingThe churn example is illustrative: swap in a problem your readers know from their own leadership meetings.
“You need more presence.” What they might actually meanRule 5: decode the vague feedback capable people keep getting. Modelled on Ling Abson's “be more executive” post. Offers the Trust Gap Check in the P.S.
Hook
“You need more presence.”It's the most common feedback
that tells you nothing.Capable people hear it and assume
they need a new personality.They don't.In my experience it usually means one of four things:→ “I don't hear your point until the end.”
Lead with the conclusion. Then the why.→ “You talk about your team's work, not the business.”
Name the number your idea moves.→ “I don't know where you stand.”
Say what you'd decide, not just the options.→ “I haven't seen you outside your lane.”
This one isn't about you in the room. It's about who knows you outside it.Only one of these is about how you speak.
The other three are about trust.So before you change anything, ask one question:
“What would you need to see me do differently?”
Then ask for an example.Vague feedback isn't a verdict.
It's an invitation to ask a better question.P.S. I turned this into a one-page Trust Gap Check: 12 questions that show whether you're being overlooked for competence or for trust. Want it? Comment “TRUST” and I'll send it.
Visual · Single imageA one-page decoder: “You need more presence” in the middle, the four real meanings around it, each with its one fix.Check before postingBuild the Trust Gap Check before you post, and put your Netwarm Reveal link in the reply so you can see which executives download it.
Why the smartest person in the room gets ignoredRule 6: point to the deeper piece. Modelled on the 27 October newsletter post, the highest share of executives on the profile (33%).
Hook
The smartest person in the room
is often the one nobody follows.Not because they're wrong.
Because being right was never the thing people were judging.This week's edition of the newsletter is about the moment trust gets decided, usually long before anyone weighs the idea.Inside:
→ Why people with less experience keep getting chosen
→ The three signals a room reads before it listens
→ One thing to try in your next meetingThe link is in the comments.
Visual · Single imageThe newsletter cover with the two-line headline, as in the 27 October post.Check before postingMatch the three bullet points to what this week's edition really covers. Put the newsletter link in the first comment.
Free forever: unlimited scheduling through LinkedIn’s official API, with images, video and PDF carousels.
06
LinkedIn lead generation: lead magnets that work to target executives
Reactions show interest. A download shows intent. The fastest way to find out which leaders are serious is to give them something useful and see who takes it.
Among executive coaches and leadership speakers, these formats get the most requests:
Format 1The playbook with a self-assessmentThe signals senior leaders read, a 3-minute score, and what to do about each gap.
Format 2The template libraryThe tools clients already use, given away and sorted by the moment they need them.
Format 3The one-page decoderOne vague piece of feedback, and what it can really mean, on a single visual.
Format 4The weekly newsletterA deeper piece each week, pointed to from a short post. The readers who click are the serious ones.
Our pick for you: “The Trust Gap Check”Built from the line in the coach's About section (“Competence gets you considered. Trust gets you chosen.”) and the Personal Influence Roadmap already on the profile: 12 questions that show whether someone is being overlooked for competence or for trust. Offer it in the P.S. of post 4, the feedback decoder.With a Reveal link, every person who downloads it is shown by name, with their role and how warm they are. Your first Reveal link is free.Create your free Reveal link
07
From reactions to clients
Content brings executives to the profile. It doesn't say when to reach out. Most never comment, so they stay invisible, and a leader reading every post in October may have booked another speaker by January.
On LinkedIn, the right moment to start a conversation is when someone keeps coming back. We call that Hot: 5 or more points over 90 days, where a reaction counts 1, a repost 2, a download or a reply 4.
Hot right now6 executives · not contacted yetNetwarm
6 executives are Hot. See who to message first.See who’s Hot
First messageAn opener for each Hot person, based on the posts they readNetwarm
Hi Jordan, you've been reading my posts on trust for a few weeks. Is being heard something your leadership team is working on this year?Hi Sam, I saw you reacted to the post about the quiet room. Is that something you see in your own team?
A first line for each of them, ready to send.See the openers
Netwarm sends nothing for you. It tells you who and when, and you write the message. It also works inside Claude and ChatGPT: ask “Who's Hot today?” and get the list.
08
FAQ
Every topic brought about the same share of executives here, so build the post, not the topic: a moment a leader has lived, written to the person who leads others, one client moment, a move to try on Monday, and a pointer to the deeper piece.
For this coach, Sunday brought the highest share of executives (26.8%) and Saturday the lowest (16%). Weekdays sat between 19.4% and 22%. How a post opens matters more than the day.
This coach posts every day, and 18 executives came back 3 times or more in 3 weeks. Daily works when each post gives a leader something to recognise or try. Put the posts that sell the work early in the week.
Look at who reacts, not how many. Group reactions by role, measure the share of your ideal clients per post, and follow the people who keep coming back. A free Netwarm scan does this for you.
Yes. Netwarm only reads public reactions to your own posts. It never logs in as you, never asks for your password, and never messages anyone for you.
How we made this playbook
We read the public reactions on 25 posts published between 14 October and 6 November 2026, up to the first 100 people per post, and sorted the 2,036 people by role. Comments were not counted, and on the most popular posts we read a sample of the reactions, so the figures are a floor. Three posts with no readable reactions and two duplicates were left out.
Niche rules come from top posts by executive coaches and leadership speakers over the last 3 months. Role groups are approximate, and some executives sell to the same audience; a Netwarm scan matches people to your own ideal client.
