59: The Secret Behind My 1M+ View Video on LinkedIn — What You Can Learn (Part 3)
Welcome to Part 3 of the Viral Videos for Business Series. This week, I’m revealing the strategy behind a LinkedIn video that skyrocketed to 1 million+ views. Unlike Instagram Reels or TikToks, this post had no trending sounds, just powerful messaging and the right timing.
I’m covering:
Why LinkedIn is underrated for organic reach and how to leverage it
The exact messaging structure that made this post explode
The power of talking head content to build trust and convert your warmest followers
The simple but crucial timing factor that made all the difference
If you’ve been sleeping on LinkedIn, this episode is your wake-up call.
What You’ll Learn in This Episode:
[00:00] How This Video Hit 1M+ Views on LinkedIn
[02:43] Why LinkedIn’s Algorithm Works Differently Than Instagram & TikTok
[05:12] The Messaging Structure That Triggered Virality
[08:07] The Psychology of Shareability & Engagement
[10:15] The Role of Timing & How to Spot Viral Moments
[12:40] Why You Don’t Need Fancy Edits or Trending Audio for Reach
[15:21] How to Reverse-Engineer This Strategy for Your Brand
Key Takeaways:
LinkedIn’s organic reach is wildly underrated. This is your sign to start posting.
Viral content isn’t just about what you say but when you say it.
You don’t need fancy editing—just a strong hook, a compelling message, and a clear call to action.
Shareability leads to virality. If your content makes people feel something, they’ll share it.
Links Mentioned in This Episode:
A Truth You Need to Hear:
"Viral content isn’t about luck—it’s about strategy. The right message, at the right time, in the right format."
S3 Ep59 Transcript: The Secret Behind My 1M+ View Video on LinkedIn — What You Can Learn (Part 3)
00:00
In the last month, I've had three videos cross the one million mark for my business. And today you've landed on part three of my four part series where I'm breaking down exactly how each one went viral. I'm sharing the formulas, the strategies and how you can reverse engineer them for your business. Today's episode is a little different. This viral moment didn't happen on Instagram, but the structure behind it, you can
00:29
absolutely use to create your own viral content. Are you ready? Let's do it. Welcome to Strut It, a podcast about creating bold visibility on social media with zero apologies. I'm Elizabeth Marberry, your host and Instagram marketing coach. I help small business owners get seen on Instagram and monetize their offers so they can make more money doing their sole lead work.
00:59
If you're tired of spinning your wheels on Instagram and you're seeking simple, proven Instagram marketing strategies that actually work, you're in the right place. Let's dive in.
01:17
Welcome back to the show. As always, thank you for taking the time to hang out with me today and learn about how you can leverage Instagram and social media to grow your business. You've landed on part three of this four part series on viral videos for business. In part one, we really talked about what is going viral even mean? Should it be a goal? Spoiler alert, going viral should not be your goal. You really wanna focus on creating
01:47
that content that is going to resonate with your target audience. It doesn't need to resonate with everyone, right? You're here because you're wanting to drive more leads and sales to your business. You're wanting to forge deeper connections and build a community. You don't have to go viral to do that. But I wanted to create this series to really pull back the curtain on the different elements of viral video content. Because if you can replicate this in your business, in your content,
02:15
Your videos are gonna get more reach, more engagement. They're gonna get seen by your ideal clients and customers, and that of course is our goal. In part two of the series, I broke down a reel that is at over eight million views, brought over 8,000 followers to my dance studio business, and it was a real remix. That is when you take someone else's content and remix it and add your own twist. You add your own content.
02:42
You add text on the screen, you add your own captions, hashtags, all of that. You make it your own. So I broke down that strategy last week. I love that strategy. It's so simple and easy to use. You don't have to get on camera. Someone else already created a compelling piece of content and then you get to be creative and align it for your niche. So if you miss that episode, definitely go back and check it out. So today in part three, I'm breaking down a different kind of viral moment. One that happened off of Instagram.
03:12
This video hit over 1 million impressions on LinkedIn. It was direct, emotional, timely, and it resonated like wildfire. And the best part is that you can 100 % replicate this structure for your own business, no matter your niche. So today we're gonna go over what that video was, why it blew up. I'm gonna highlight the strategic elements that drove the virality.
03:38
And then we're gonna talk about how to apply this to your content strategy. Sound good? What was this video? This was a direct to camera video. I call them direct to camera videos where you're speaking directly to the camera. A lot of other creators and mentors call these talking head reels. I'm sure you've heard that term. So this was a direct to camera video I recorded for International Women's Day. It was raw, it was real, and honestly it was kind of a
04:07
tall to arms to female entrepreneurs. Okay. I want you to know, I just want you to picture this and we'll link the video in the show notes so you can check it out. But I actually filmed this video in my bedroom. I like filming content at home because it just feels very approachable, right? Versus being in this like fancy studio and it's more just like I'm speaking to you woman to woman here, right? And
04:35
I also strategically am facing a window in my bedroom, so the light is on my face, so I'm always really aware of lighting and angles and all of that. So the message in this video, what I was speaking about is so many women, especially female entrepreneurs, have been conditioned to make themselves smaller, right? As little girls, we were taught to be quiet, to not take up too much space, to not...
05:01
share your wins, to not share what's working because if you did, you would be considered boastful or bragging, right? And so my video was a bold push against that narrative and I spoke directly to the camera with emotion and urgency. The message of the video was, ladies, it is time for us to rise up and free our voices. Allow yourself to be seen. Allow yourself.
05:27
to be bold, to claim your bold vision for your business, for your life, and do it imperfectly. Because so many women have been conditioned to, I'm only gonna do the thing when I feel like it's perfect and buttoned up and ready to go. And unfortunately, when you're stuck in that perfectionist mindset, you go nowhere fast, right? Or it takes you 10 times as long. And so this video was really that call to arms on International Women's Day.
05:56
So that was the meat of the video. Now let's talk about the strategic elements that drove the virality and why this works because it wasn't an accident. The first point is timeliness and relevance. So posting on International Women's Day wasn't just about the date, it was about tapping into a conversation that was already happening online. So timing really matters. If you can connect your branding message
06:25
to something topical or trending that aligns with your brand values, it's more likely to land. Number two, it was a bold emotional message. I mean, you can hear as I'm speaking to you about this, how passionate I am about this, right? This video wasn't polished or salesy, it was real. The emotional charge in my delivery and my voice is what made people stop and listen and share and.
06:53
What I have discovered is that the more I can just be myself, show up really authentically, it empowers others to do the same. And that is part of my mission. That's part of my bigger, bigger mission of serving my purpose on this planet is to invite you, no matter your gender, no matter your identity, to show up fully as you, to embrace your uniqueness. You are the it factor, right? Like everyone's like, well, you know, there's hundreds of other people that do what I do.
07:23
Who cares? You are one of a kind, my love. You get to take up space. You get to use your voice. You can hear how passionate I am about this topic, right? So when you have that passion, that boldness, that emotion that is conveyed in a video, it's gonna do really well. And this is a nuanced part of the strategy is the video was broad enough to speak to women everywhere.
07:54
yet also very niched down because in the video I literally call out female entrepreneurs which is part of my target market, right? So I was intentional at calling them out with my voice, with the text on the screen. So it was really aligned with the audience I'm calling in because remember when people are scrolling through Instagram or they're looking at your content, they don't know who you are. They don't know who you're speaking to.
08:21
You need to be obvious. It should not be subtle, okay? But the message in the video wasn't too specific, right? Like you didn't need to be in marketing or Instagram to feel seen. So that's key if your goal is reach. Like if you wanna reach the masses, then you make your message bigger than just your exact offer, just your exact promotional offer or product or service. You think about,
08:51
how your brand values and mission can resonate with the broader public, while also being aware of using some keywords that are calling out your ideal client. Do you hear the nuance there? Number four, there was a long form caption with keywords. So especially on LinkedIn, I lean into longer form content because they give you more space to write.
09:18
and the caption really extended the message. You know, this is a mistake I see a lot where your caption essentially is just saying the exact same thing that your video says. No, your caption needs to be an extension of your messaging in your video. So with this particular video, I really extended the message and I am strategic about using keywords for discoverability. So that really reinforced the value of the video and it helped the algorithm on LinkedIn to push that content out to more people.
09:48
Number five, I also use strategic hashtags. So specific and relevant hashtags help to boost visibility and searchability without feeling spammy or overdone. So it's not like I put on like hundreds of hashtags on LinkedIn. I think I had one to five, I can't remember. I'm not looking at the post as I'm recording this, but they were just very specific to the content, right? Like hashtag international women's day 2025 was probably one of them.
10:18
And that is a key with hashtags is making them very niche specific to the content that you're posting. Let's move into how to apply this to your content strategy. If you're thinking, but I don't wanna get too political or emotional or you don't have to, okay? Here's what I want you to take away from this example. Number one, show up with purpose. Talking head videos, those direct to camera videos.
10:46
can be insanely powerful when focused and bold because that's how you're gonna stand out. I'm gonna see your face, I'm gonna hear your voice. And I know for a lot of you talking, because if you're listening to this, you're like so many of my clients, you might cringe at the sound of your voice. You might hate to see your face on camera. And I want you to know, and you might not believe me, but this is so true. When I first started recording videos about six years ago,
11:16
took me forever. I stumbled over my words. I cringed at the sound of my voice. I did not speak with the bold confidence that I speak to you now in this podcast. I didn't. You can go back on my feet and see all the things I did in the past, okay? This is a skill. This is a practice. Okay, I wasn't even planning on talking about this, but it's coming up, so I wanna share it with you. You're here to grow your business, right? You're here to create content that boosts your following.
11:44
nurtures your ideal clients and drives conversions. But you know what else you're going to learn? If you really go all in on this, you're going to learn how to be a better speaker. You're going to learn how to be a better communicator. You're going to refine your messaging. So when you go to that in-person networking event and someone says, hey, Amanda, what do you do? You have the most solid 30 second response where they're just like, wow, you make an impression, you drive connections.
12:13
Endless. This can even come up, of course, out of work. You go to a parent teacher conference and you are such a clear communicator. You ask great questions. I'm totally geeking out and sidetracking right now, but these skills are life skills, my friend. So I know you're like, oh, it's so hard. It's going to take some time. To me, if you are running a business, if you are CEO, if you are a solopreneur, if you are a leader, these are non-negotiable skills.
12:41
And Instagram is such an easy way to practice this. Like it's such an easy way to practice it. That was my tangent, but I want you to number one, show up with purpose. Number two, tap into the moment. Tie your content to something topical. So whether that's a holiday, a news story, a theme that your audience is thinking about, if you are able to tap into something that is really
13:08
top of mind for people and newsworthy, it's going to do well. Number three, speak from your heart. Direct-to-camera videos convert because they build connection and trust fast. So if you look at my feed, honestly, the views on my direct-to-camera reels on Instagram are pretty low, but I don't mind because a couple things. One, I grew my audience using a lot of short form content.
13:37
So I'm still in this place of pivoting and teaching my audience, hey, my content is shifting, so come along with me. That's one thing is if you're going through a pivot, you might have, your views might be down or whatever, but these direct-to-camera videos are so great at nurturing and driving conversions for those warm prospects, for those warm to hot prospects who are already watching your stuff, they know who you are.
14:04
and they're really great at keeping your brand and your business top of mind. So don't stress about views. Like it's so funny when I'm recording this, of course about this video, I got over 1 million impressions on LinkedIn, which is bananas. I posted the same video on Instagram and I think it got like 500 views. Moving on, it's totally fine. The people who are meant to see it saw it and I move on very quickly. do not.
14:31
get overly hooked into those views. Okay, that's a mindset hack right there. The fourth and final tip is don't skip the caption. Even short form content needs thoughtful context, keywords, and a clear point of view. And it's not that you have to spend a ton of time on this, you really shouldn't. It should just be an extension of whatever is in your video. But if you add value in your captions, people are gonna take time.
14:57
I always say only your biggest fans are really gonna read your caption. Most people are just kind of scrolling through. So if someone's reading your caption, that means they're really interested in you. They're interested in your opinion, your thought, your tip, your strategy, your product, whatever it is. So don't skip the caption and of course use those hashtags strategically in terms of being really specific to the type of content that you're putting out there. So if you've been avoiding talking head content, those direct to camera reels,
15:25
or wondering how to go viral without trending audio or dancing, this is your sign to start trying out this form of content. That video didn't just go viral, it started conversations and it built trust and it brought more aligned people into my audience. I got a bunch of new followers on LinkedIn from that video. So in next week's final episode of the series, I'm gonna break down a totally different kind of viral video.
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This was a father daughter dance that blew up on our Instagram for my wedding dance coach studio brand. It was sweet, emotional, packed with strategy. And I can't wait to break it down for you. So until then, if you're ready to get consistent with your content and learn how to create videos that actually grow your business, make sure you are on the wait list for Hot Reels. We are about to close down that wait list.
16:20
You definitely wanna be on the wait list when the door is open because you first look, you get exclusive bonuses not available to the public. You definitely wanna get on there. Hot Reels is my 12 month Instagram content lab where you're gonna learn how to become masterful at creating content for your business. So to join the wait list, go to Elizabeth Marberry, M-A-R-B-E-R-R-Y.com slash hot.
16:47
or you can DM me hot, H-O-T on Instagram for details. Make sure you're already following me at Elizabeth Marbury. We'll also link how to join the wait list in the show notes. Thank you so much for being here with me today. I hope you learned a thing or two. And if you did, do me a favor, share this episode with another business bestie or colleague who is trying to figure out the mystery that is Instagram. I so appreciate your support.
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and I can't wait to strut it with you next week. Thank you for listening to strut it. If you're ready to start leveraging Instagram to grow your business, then you're gonna wanna grab my free monetize your IG guide, where you'll learn seven simple and proven ways to finally make money on Instagram. You can grab your guide at elizabethmarberry.com slash freebies. That's elizabethmarberry.com.
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If you got some incredible value from today's episode, be sure to leave a review and subscribe on your favorite podcast platform. And I cannot wait to start it with you again next week.