📘 5-3-1: Preachy content, viral ideas, and Jake Ward

Welcome to the 1st issue of Content Playbook by Kleo (previously The LinkedIn Creator newsletter) - we’re BACK!

This week you’ll get:

This newsletter is brought to you by Kleo, the #1 AI personal brand tool.

So let’s dive in.

A constant sense of mystery.

The goal is to tactically withhold information – like Nick does below. He doesn’t share who “this massive creator” is. He doesn’t need to. He keeps the focus on the feeling of the situation rather than the facts. 

When writing stories, leave some questions unanswered. Don’t over-explain and share every last detail.

Leave room for the reader’s imagination to fill in the gaps.

Here’s a template to get you started:

[Timeframe] ago, I walked away from a career-making opportunity.

And I’ve never felt more at peace with a decision.

[Briefly set the scene & describe why it was such a great opportunity].

When it first came up, I couldn’t believe it was even an option.

[Initial action(s) you took].

Then I hesitated.

Not because [reason A].
Not because [reason B].
But because [real reason].

It would’ve been easy to say, “This is too good to pass up. I’ll figure it out.”

But it didn’t feel right.

And I realised [share what you realised at the time].

[State the decision you made].

Because deep down, I knew [reason for making decision].

Instead, I chose to focus on [another direction / priority / area of commitment].

Past me would’ve said yes immediately.
But this version didn’t.

[Final takeaway(s)].

Reminding people of what you do. 

Because you can’t rely on people guessing. Or visiting your profile to find out. Most people won’t.

Content done right, acts like free advertising for your business. It’s a chance to:

Notice how Diandra achieves this below. First, she hooks people with a recent milestone, before opening a curiosity loop with her second line. Then she sums up what she does “for clients” in 2 sentences.

Share your business value prop in your content. Weave it into posts organically. Or in a CTA (or PS) when signing off.

Here’s a template to get you started:

My brand new [project / channel / initiative] just hit [early milestone].

But [metric] isn’t the interesting part…

[I/We’ve] been [sum up what your service does] for clients for years. It’s what [I/we] do at [Company Name] - [expand on company value prop].

But doing it for yourself is a different ball game.

When you’re both the [role] and the [role], you [list common struggles].

So we stopped planning and just… started.

Brand new [project]. Starting from [zero / starting point].

And now we’re watching the system work on our own terms.

[Briefly share some early wins / metrics].

[Break down your strategy, your thinking behind it, and the benefits].

[My old system] used to feel like a heavy lift. Now everything is easier because the system is compounding.

We do this for clients all the time. Now we’re proving it works for ourselves.

[Key takeaway(s)].

I’ll keep you updated with how things progress.

[Image that matches the post]

Here, Nick uses an extremely effective (yet underused) writing device:

“You know that feeling when you've been off your routine and suddenly simple tasks feel like climbing a mountain?”

Notice how he doesn’t say: “You know that feeling when you’re unproductive.” No. That’s too abstract. Instead, “...simple tasks feel like climbing a mountain” is a physical metaphor. One you can feel in your bones. 

For your next post, try brainstorming ways to describe your reader’s problem state with: 

“You know that feeling when…” – and pepper in sensory details for bonus points.

Here’s a template to get you started:

I stepped away from [activity / project / responsibility] for [time period].

No [related task A], [related task B], or [related task C].

It felt great… until [pivotal moment].

You know that feeling when [describe relatable feeling]?

Here’s what I did instead of [doing what most people do]:

[List steps or actions you took].

By [time period], I had [unlocked desirable outcome].

Because I [reason for choosing this approach].

If you’re struggling with [relevant pain point], try it.

I call it the [Name & Claim the framework/rule]: [sum up core idea].

This applies to almost anything.

Want to [achieve specific goal] but [obstacle that stands in your way]?

[List steps or actions you could take].

Within [short time period], you’re [operating at or achieving a desirable output].

Most people try to [common mistake(s) people make].

[Key takeaway(s)]

[Image that matches the post]

Bold claims get attention. 

Problem is, they can also make you sound like you’re standing behind an altar, talking down to a crowd of lesser mortals. Not ideal.

So take a leaf out of Ryan’s book. Use ‘The Qualification Sandwich’ technique:

“It's ok to take a break from the selfies.

(Not against them; I post them too)"

Make a bold claim (don’t hedge). Then immediately qualify with a line that demonstrates self-awareness, but doesn’t detract from your original claim. This approach signals honesty and feels less judgy.

Here’s a template to get you started:

I’m seeing [platform / craft / industry shift].

(and [share quick opinion])

It’s okay to [take a break from / stop common practice].

I have nothing against it. I’ve done it too.

But there’s real value in [alternative approach].

[Expand on why this alternative approach is effective and/or beneficial].

[Briefly share how it’s helped you].

So [reinforce key directive – eg. take a break from common practice]

[Key takeaway(s)].

“A few years ago, the goal was to be seen. 
In 2026, the goal is to be remembered and understood correctly.”

Most creators still over-optimise for game one (visibility) while the world has moved on to game two (memorability).

LinkedIn’s reach is dying as the barrier for creating content is getting lower. 

So how do you stand out? 

Try this:

Here’s a template to get you started:

[Target audience/peer group] never [challenge common belief].

It was just easier to believe we did when [explain old dynamic].

Today, [describe how things have changed].

Recently, I’ve been reflecting on one core shift:

[long time period] ago, the goal was [surface-level objective].
[shorter time period] ago, the goal was [surface-level objective].
Now, the goal is [deeper, more strategic objective].

Here’s what most people will take away from this: [common but ineffective practices].

Please don’t do that.

Instead, [list alternative, effective practices].

[Key takeaway(s)].

[Image that matches the post]

We almost never find viral ideas on LinkedIn.

Our two main idea sources are X and Reddit. 

In general, LinkedIn has a slower content cycle than other platforms. You can tweet 20x a day on X if you like. Whereas posting more than once a day on LinkedIn can throttle your reach. Plus, far fewer people post on LinkedIn than on platforms like X. 

So that mix of more creators and more activity tends to give way to fresher ideas elsewhere.

(BTW - You can save content ideas from anywhere on the web in just 2 clicks with Kleo’s Swipe File feature).

The more concrete you can make your customer’s pain points, the more they’ll assume you have a solution.

Let’s take how Alex framed Leila’s fitness journey. Before she lost 100lbs, Leila was:

Pain is felt in moments. They’re relatable, specific, and powerful. That’s what you should aim to share in your content. Strike a chord. Leave prospects thinking, “I never want to feel that way again.”

If you want a proven way to build authority and attract attention from prospects, then this is it: 

Pitch In Public posts.

Here’s how they work:

While your dream customer may not reach out, others facing a similar problem may well do. Which is why these posts are so valuable.

(h/t to Nicolas Cole who turned me on to this killer strategy)

3 years ago, Jake Ward had zero social media presence. 

Today, he has 190,000 LinkedIn followers, and has built four 7-figure businesses using LinkedIn as the main driver.

Here’s how fast things moved:

"I actually started to hire people because I couldn't keep up with the demand."

In the 1st episode of Creator Spotlight, our host Lara Acosta sits down with Jake to unpack how he thinks about content, virality, and converting attention into revenue.

Here are 5 highlights worth bookmarking:

(Btw - We only scratch the surface below. Click here to watch the full 48-min episode on YouTube)

95% of Jake’s content is educational. Jasmin Alić calls him “The best technical writer on LinkedIn.” Why? Because that’s the content Jake likes to consume.

Jake sees too many creators filling carousels with walls of text. This rarely works. Carousels are a visual format, they’re not mini-blogs. Show people what you did visually. Pair screenshots, graphics, or photos with brief explanations.

Jake mastered SEO by reverse engineering what works. His approach to creating LinkedIn content is no different. No matter the platform, he’s always hunting for proven ideas, hooks, trends, and patterns he can apply to his own content.

However, he no longer does this manually. He uses Kleo to capture and create content, cutting his post creation time from 1-2 hours down to just 5-10 minutes.

Jake repeats the same ideas constantly. Sometimes every other day. He also reposts winners from 3 months ago. “Once you find stuff that works, stuff that resonates, stuff that converts – double down on those things.”

Jake spends one month building an in-depth webinar deck on a single topic (e.g. “How to rank on ChatGPT”). After the event, he uploads the deck and transcript into Kleo and chats with it to create content. He recently used this method to create 5 weeks worth of LinkedIn posts in one evening. 

Note: you could apply this system to any long-form asset (newsletter, blog, YouTube video, podcast, etc.)

In the full episode, Jake also covers:

Watch the full Creator Spotlight episode with Jake Ward here.

Thank you, Jake!

Make sure to follow Jake Ward on LinkedIn and X.

Thanks for reading, and until next week!

PS. Know someone who’ll enjoy this newsletter? Please forward it to them. It only takes 10 seconds. Writing it takes days.

PPS. If there are any creators, topics, issues, etc, you’d like us to cover in future, please REPLY with your ideas and suggestions.

BTW – Ever struggle to ideate and write consistently on LinkedIn? 

If so, try Kleo - the #1 AI personal brand tool used by 1,000+ entrepreneurs, business owners, and LinkedIn creators to write faster, stay consistent, and sound like yourself.

And more…