Account Manager @ Kurogo | Sharing lessons from a life in Marketing

Hey, I'm Joe 👋

I post about: 

- Careers
- Marketing 
- Leadership 

Sound good?

Hit the follow button and come say hi.

Joseph Rudd

Co-Founder at Unyfy | Use us as your shortcut to success. We focus on optimising your LinkedIn strategy, discovering what sets you apart from your competitors, and converting followers into opportunities. ⚡️

Your competitor just signed your dream client.  
  
Not because they're better.  

Because they showed up. You didn't.  
  
Here's what happened:  
  
While you perfected your service, they perfected their story.  

Now they own the conversation in your market.  

Their LinkedIn posts? Building relationships with prospects you don't even know exist yet.  
  
By the time someone needs what you offer?  

Your competitor is already the trusted voice in their head.  
You never got a chance to compete.  
  
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━  
  
THE PROBLEM NO ONE TALKS ABOUT:  
  
Your competitors aren't winning today's deals.  
They're locking in next year's revenue. Right now.  
  
Every post they write = a relationship you'll never have.  
Every story they tell = a future client choosing them over you.  
  
Every day you wait, the gap widens.  
Your future clients are forming relationships right now.  
  
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━  
  
WHO I AM:  
  
I'm Matt Wheeler-Barrett.  
LinkedIn Strategic Coach.  
Co-founder @ Unyfy—a B2B personal branding agency.  
  
I've coached 500+ business people through Matt Lakajev's Seven Figure Creators cohort, where I run my own content coaching room.  
  
I help founders build tomorrow's pipeline through today's stories.  
  
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━  
  
WHAT WE DO:  
  
▪LinkedIn Strategic Coaching
  
1:1 coaching to turn your expertise into content that converts.  
  
▪Personal Branding Strategy 
 
Position yourself as the obvious choice before prospects even start looking.  
  
▪Content Strategy & Coaching  

Learn to tell stories that build trust and drive inbound leads.  
  
▪Profile Optimisation  

Turn your LinkedIn profile into a lead generation machine.  
  
▪Team Workshops (EGC Content) 
 
Train your executives, sales, and marketing teams to leverage LinkedIn.  
  
▪B2B Agency Services (Unyfy)  

Done-for-you ghostwriting and full-service personal branding.  
  
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━  
  
THE APPROACH:  
  
No templates.  
No growth hacks.  
No vanity metrics.  
  
Just strategic storytelling that makes you the obvious choice.  
  
You stop chasing deals.  
You start attracting them.  
  
Your competitors start copying you.  
Not the other way around.  
  
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━  
  
📩 DM me "STORY" to take back your market.  
  
Because your competitors aren't smarter than you.  
They just started their story six months sooner.

Matt Wheeler-Barrett

This is how you kill your credibility forever in 5 seconds by using automation and listening to AI gurus' BS.

Pitching me on my own service is probably the most embarrassing thing someone could do on here.

It shows you didn't do your research and couldn't care less about a real human relationship.

P.S. Share your worst DM pitch slap below.

I started posting on LinkedIn 34 months ago.

The irony? I was building a LinkedIn ghostwriting agency and couldn't get anyone to read my own posts.

For the first 4 months we had 1 or 2 clients, my content wasn't getting any traction, and I wasn't getting any leads.

Then I stumbled upon Julius Bieliauskas on LinkedIn and joined his cohort, and that's when I got obsessed with what was possible. Off the back of that, we acquired more clients, gained team members, and started getting real traction.

Julius introduced me to Matt Lakajev , and that's when things really shifted because I started coaching on Matt's cohort for nearly 2 years, every Monday night from midnight to 2 AM, and that properly built my grit and willingness to keep pushing no matter what.

650+ conversations and every single one made me sharper because you think you know your craft until you have the same conversation 650 times and realise you're still only scratching the surface.

Those Monday nights built the foundation for Unyfy because it wasn't about polished frameworks or AI content plans; it was the real messy work of helping people figure out who they are and what they stand for.

Fast forward to today, and LinkedIn is our number one acquisition channel. We've signed over $420K in contracts from content I've published here, went from 2 clients to 24, and just crossed 20,000 followers.

Here's what actually worked.

1. Defining a content enemy, mine is AI slop and LinkedIn gurus stripping out personality.

2. Being honest about the hard parts because my most engaged posts are where I admitted we lost clients and made mistakes.

3. Posting 3 times per week minimum and commenting genuinely with real thoughts, that's where half my inbound comes from.

4. Doubling down on my tone of voice because the best content is when you write genuinely as yourself.

5. Tracking what converts, which posts led to DMs, and discovery calls.

Everyone's moaning about LinkedIn whilst pumping out AI slop. 

Mate, come on. The bar is on the floor.

The entrepreneurs who'll win are the ones who can genuinely make people feel something through their energy and real experiences.

The Monday coaching taught me that people don't just need content, they need clarity on who they are and what they stand for, and that's what we do at Unyfy now.

I'm reinvesting my profits back into more coaching to get sharper at what I'm teaching because the only way to ensure what I preach is grounded in real thinking is to keep doing the work myself.

It's also led me to start working on a separate entity in the background (more coming soon!) 

If you're wondering if LinkedIn is worth it, it is, but it takes longer than you want and it's harder than it looks.

Start anyway.

Thanks for being part of this ride, here's to the next 20K.

I've had people screw me over.
I've been accused of "j*erking myself off on LinkedIn."
I've been told I'm "too intense" and "need to tone it down."
I've been underestimated by people who now ask me for advice.
I've had friends quietly unfollow me because I wouldn't play small.

Proper mental, that last one.

Before you start posting consistently, you need to accept this: not everyone's going to cheer you on.

Some will mock you. Some will question your intentions. Some will project their own insecurities onto you because deep down they wish they had the courage to show up too.

You've got to be okay with that.

Because if you let the fear of judgement stop you, you'll stay stuck playing it safe and staying invisible.

Last night, I read this from Bukowski and it hit different:

"Isolation is the gift.

All the others are a test of your endurance, of how much you really want to do it.

And you'll do it, despite rejection and the worst odds.

And it will be better than anything else you can imagine.

You will ride life straight to perfect laughter.

It's the only good fight there is."

LinkedIn requires you to go all in and stay consistent as hell if you want consistent results out of it.

Not everyone will get it, and that's fine.

The right people will.

If you're too cool for LinkedIn, you're probably too cool for money...


But if you're a regular person running a business who wants to win, it's:

1. One of the best platforms where stories build real influence + trust
2. One of the best platforms packed with actual decision makers
3. One of the best platforms to win business in the DMs

Good thing the 'cool kids' stay away.

While they protect their image, we're protecting our income.

Don't get me wrong - some people take it too far. There's a whole Reddit dedicated to mocking them.

But the ones actually winning?

They're building real relationships and real businesses by tapping into who they really are. Being human. Showing how they help other humans do great things.

I'm watching founders close deals every week because they stopped caring about looking cool.

Critics stay stuck judging. Users are out here closing deals.

Most people mock LinkedIn so they can feel sophisticated.

Smart people just use it.

The rest? Excuses.

You already know which side pays better.

"If you're going to try, go all the way. Otherwise, don't even start."

That's Bukowski.

And it's the truest thing I know about building a business.

Most people think entrepreneurship looks like freedom. Flexibility. Passive income.

Bollocks.

"This could mean losing girlfriends, wives, relatives, jobs and maybe even your mind."

It could mean not knowing how you'll make payroll.

It could mean 3am anxiety attacks.

"It could mean derision, mockery, isolation."

Here's the thing:

"Isolation is the gift."

All the rest? The sleepless nights, the cashflow panic, the constant bloody doubt?

"All the others are a test of your endurance, of how much you really want to do it."

I've been kicked in the teeth more times than I can count.

Lost clients. Burnt out. Questioned everything.

And honestly?

I wouldn't trade it.

Because "you'll do it, despite rejection and the worst odds."

"And it will be better than anything else you can imagine."

There's no other feeling like that.

"You will be alone with the gods, and the nights will flame with fire."

Entrepreneurship isn't for everyone. And that's fine.

But if you're in it?

"You will ride life straight to perfect laughter."

"It's the only good fight there is."

What keeps you going when everything's falling apart?

Nobody remembers your content because you're not standing for anything.

Stop that.

Here's what actually makes content land:

Work out what you stand against and own that stance.

For me, it's LinkedIn gurus recycling the same tired advice, people letting AI strip away their voice, and this obsession with hacks over actual effort.

When you're against something, people feel it. That's what makes them pay attention.

Show how you've actually helped people.

Don't just share your opinions and hope people believe you. Show how you've helped others. What problem did they have before working with you? What were they struggling with? What did you solve for them?

That's the difference between sounding like you know what you're talking about and proving you do.

Work out what makes you sound like you.

What do you say when you're explaining something over a coffee? What words do other people use that make you roll your eyes?

That's your voice. Lean into it hard.

The content that works isn't about being the most polished or the most clever. It's about teaching something you actually believe matters, taking a stance on it, sounding like yourself the entire time, and giving actual evidence.

If nobody disagrees with you, you're playing it too safe.

Nothing quite like getting pitched your own services back to you.

I had to read it twice.

Lmao.

Did you read a single post? Look at my profile for 30 seconds? Google the agency name?

Clearly not.

Because what you're really telling me with that message is that you couldn't be bothered to take the time to get to know me.

But here's the part that really got me. He had the nerve to say he's not a fan of fake interaction.

Let me stop you right there.

Because there are actual people on LinkedIn having genuinely real conversations every single day. Building real trust. Real relationships. Wanting to help each other grow with zero agenda.

That's not fake. That's the whole bloody point of the platform.

In fact, I did exactly this with a few people I connected with back in January and we ended up doing business together. No pitch, no agenda, just two people genuinely getting to know each other.

And with the approach he took? We will never do business together. Not maybe. Not unlikely. Never.

You've dressed up laziness as authenticity. And people can smell it.

Here's what one message did:

• I never replied
• I will never work with him. Ever.

You cannot fake research, and you cannot shortcut trust. 

And here's something people forget entirely. People don't just buy from businesses. 

They buy from people they genuinely like, people they can have a laugh with, people they actually trust. And the fastest way to build that trust isn't a slick pitch or a clever opener. 

It's taking the time to get to know someone as a human being first. What they care about, what they're working through, what gets them fired up outside of work. When you genuinely invest in that, the business side of things tends to take care of itself.

Here's what actually works:

1. Actually take the time to get to know them

Digest their content, understand what they're about, what they stand for and what they're trying to build. Not as a tactic, but because you're genuinely interested in them as a person.

2. Show up before you show up

Get into their world first. Be present, comment on their posts and engage with their thinking for long enough that your name actually becomes familiar to them.

3. Reach out when it feels earned

When you do finally reach out, reference something specific and real that shows you've actually been paying attention. At that point it stops feeling like a pitch entirely because it isn't one.

4. Have a real conversation

Ask questions, be genuinely curious about what they're building, and let the relationship develop at its own pace without forcing it towards a sale.

The DM that converts isn't the cleverest pitch. It's the one where the person on the other end thinks: "Finally. Someone who actually gets me."

No hard feelings to the guy in my inbox. But sort the approach out, mate.

I back you. 🤝

53% of LinkedIn posts in 2025 were AI-generated, and human posts are still getting 3.7x more engagement.

Think about that for a second.

Everyone's rushing to automate their voice, and the data is sitting there telling them it isn't working. 

A KPMG study of 48,000 people across 47 countries (I promise it is 47; the link to the article is in the comments) found that global trust in AI is actually going down, not up. 

Your audience can feel it even when they can't explain why. They just scroll past and move on.

And the gurus selling you these tools? They're not going to tell you this because it kills their business model.

Now look, I'm not saying AI posts don't get traction. Some of them go viral. But here's what nobody's talking about: when you're selling something high ticket in B2B, trust is everything. 

And if you sound like a generated robot, nobody's sliding into your DMs for that conversation. They're going straight to the person who sounds like an actual human being.

That's where you lose the deal. Not on the post. In the trust gap between your content and your DMs.

The bar on LinkedIn right now is embarrassingly low. Everyone sounds the same, posts the same, and wonders why nobody's buying from them.

So if you just show up sounding like yourself, sharing what you've genuinely learned from working with your clients, the real stuff, the messy bits, the honest experiences, you've already got a leg up on most people on here.

That's not some big strategy. That's just being yourself and doing it consistently.

In 3 generations nobody will remember you unless you're Elon Musk.

So you might as well stop playing it safe.

I almost didn't post this.
 
Tonight two entrepreneurs from London were sitting in my study.
 
Brainstorming their business on my whiteboard.
 
Three years ago that wouldn't have happened.
 
Here's why it did:
 
I fell forward when others stayed still.
 
I studied on weekends when others were out.
 
I learned from every failure instead of quitting.
 
Everyone wants to win.
 
Nobody wants to do what it actually takes.
 
That's the difference.
 
Building a business is brutal. It's not easy by a long shot.
 
But I'm not done yet.
 
And neither should you be.
 
Stop waiting for the perfect moment.
 
Stop fearing what others think.
 
Go all in or don't go in at all.
 
The people you're meant to help are waiting.

"Matty, no word of a lie, every single meeting we sit in, someone brings up our LinkedIn."

Matthew Grobler is a friend, close to me, and I'm constantly getting feedback from him about how well this is working for them.

ACEPAK came to us with two goals: build brand awareness and attract top-tier talent.

Here's what happened:

They spent $3,000 on LinkedIn job ads. Zero hires.

Then they worked with us to build their founders' personal brands on LinkedIn. Last year alone, they made 11 key hires directly from content Matt and Nick have been sharing.

They've also arguably sold machines through LinkedIn (though with their complex sales process, it's hard to pin down).

But what stood out most? Matt told me his personal brand isn't just building awareness. It's building trust. It's changing the tone of every meeting they walk into.

People buy from people. Not company logos.

We're now targeting US manufacturing, logistics, and renewables companies.

So many American businesses are already investing in South African talent. They know the quality, the work ethic, the resilience.

We've proven we can help founder-led brands replace expensive job ads and trade shows with authentic content that generates real business.

Chris Kleyweg is going to be the driving force behind this push into the American market. He's based in NYC and understands what founders in manufacturing, logistics, and renewables are dealing with.

If you're a US founder looking to build a pipeline of talent and customers through your personal brand, let's talk.

We're ready to bring what we've built for Acepak to America.

You're outsourcing your thinking to a tool.

And it shows.

Everyone's following the same prompts, consuming the same outputs, and wondering why their content sounds like everyone else's.

Here's why. The best storytellers aren't built by tools. They're built by what they read, what they experience, and who they learn from.

When you let AI create your voice, you set yourself up for a problem. The second you hop on a call with someone who's been reading your content, they'll notice the disconnect.

The way you speak doesn't match the way you write. And that kills trust faster than anything else.

You need better inputs, not better prompts.

Stories that connect don't come from ChatGPT. They come from real books, real conversations, and real experiences that shape how you see the world.

People don't connect with perfect copy. They connect with you. Your perspective. Your voice. Your lived experience.

And no tool can create that for you.

I've put together a carousel with 6 books that will sharpen your thinking and help you tell better stories. Not tactics. Perspective.

Swipe through if you're serious about building a voice that's actually yours.

Stop feeding AI prompts. Start feeding your brain.

A mate of mine once told me I'm so "lucky" to have this big audience...


I had to stop them in their tracks.

Look, I don't believe in luck. I don't believe in hope as a strategy either. 

I believe in hard work, complaining less, and putting your head down to do the work when everyone else is looking for shortcuts.

Here's what I told them: "You're comparing your Chapter 1 to someone else's Chapter 12."

Then I shared something most people don't know about me. 

For the last 3 years, I've tracked my time on LinkedIn, and on average, I've spent 3.7 hours on this platform every single day.

They looked at me like I'd lost the plot. "That's crazy."

Maybe it is. But I've had plenty of people tell me I'm crazy over the years, and it's never bothered me because I know exactly what I'm working towards.

When I first started on here, I had no strategy. I wasn't an expert. My posts barely reached anyone.

But I kept showing up anyway because LinkedIn isn't a place where things happen overnight. It's a slow burn, just like building real relationships.

Here's what actually matters:

1. Every post you publish is a step forward, even the ones that get no likes. 

2. Every DM conversation is a chance to grow your network. 

3. Every email sign-up is momentum building. Every piece of content teaches you something about what works and what doesn't.

The best way to build credibility and trust is ruthless consistency in what you do. 

Just showing up and doing the work over and over again until people start to notice.

There will never be a perfect post or a perfect time to start.

If you've got something to say, say it now.

Stop waiting for luck. Put your head down and do the work.

I back you. 🤝

PS: I've added a photo of my profile from 3 years ago to remind you that everyone started from the bottom.

The LinkedIn gurus preaching authenticity are letting automation tools write their posts.  
  
You're being sold a lie.  
  
You can spot it immediately because everyone's posts look the same now with the same hooks, structure, and energy, all because they're using the same bloody tool.  
  
Look, I'm not anti-AI. I use it myself to sharpen my thoughts and to comb through documentation so I don't miss any of the good bits that a client or someone has said on a call.  
  
But there's a massive difference between sharpening your content and automating your voice.  
  
Want to use AI properly?  
  
Download your sales calls, your discovery calls, anything where you're actually talking like yourself, and use that to train your tone and keep yourself sounding like you.  
  
Letting Stanley suggest ideas and write most of your posts just makes you blend into everyone else using the same tool, and honestly, that's lazy.  
  
And it's not just the content either. So many people are now touching up their imagery with AI, making themselves look better than they actually are.  
  
Here's what happens when you do this: You sit down in a boardroom one day, and one, you look completely different, and two, you sound completely different.  
  
What do you think that does for your credibility?  
  
It kills trust, because you're basically not being yourself online.  
  
The way to stand out isn't through a template that formats you into sounding generic or an AI filter that makes you look like someone else.  
  
It's telling stories you've seen through your own eyes, raw and in the present moment, sounding actually like you.  
  
The gurus won't teach this because it's harder to sell and it requires actual bloody effort.  
  
It requires you to think, to write, to sound like yourself.  
  
But that's the only thing that works now.  
  
Everyone else sounds the same, which means if you sound the same, you're invisible.  
  
Stop letting tools write your content and start using them to sharpen what you're already saying.  
  
That's the difference.

Your content isn't converting because you're speaking your language, not theirs.

And that disconnect is costing you clients.

Look, I've coached 650+ founders on LinkedIn through Matt Lakajev's community. Every conversation taught me something new about what makes content actually connect.

Seen them go from zero engagement to inbound enquiries.

Seen them book sales calls from content that actually connects.

Those 650+ conversations gave me the accumulated learnings to help my clients' content get better and better.

The shift is simple, but most people miss it completely.

Here's what works:

1. Understand your ICP's pain points deeply, not just surface level
2. Learn how their business actually operates day to day
3. Speak their language, not your industry jargon

But here's the thing most people get wrong.

They write to sound smart instead of writing to be understood.

Magdalena Robinson came to me struggling to connect with her conservative ICP. Her content was brilliant, but it wasn't landing because she was speaking her language, not theirs.

We shifted the messaging to align with how her ideal clients actually think and communicate.

Within the first week, she got 2 inbound enquiries from her exact ICP and booked 3 sales calls.

Each prospect said her content made them feel heard and understood.

That's the difference.

When someone feels themselves in your story, they see how you can help with theirs.

Stop writing to impress your peers. Start writing to connect with your prospects.

I back you. 🤝

PS: If your content isn't converting, you're probably making this exact mistake.

Stop trying to appeal to everyone. Start pissing off the right people.

A quick few content learnings to go with your morning coffee:

1. If you want your content to grab attention, you need to define a content enemy.

Mine? People looking the same with AI content, LinkedIn gurus, and automation (lack of actual bloody effort).

2. Learn to write content that borrows credibility and helps you fight against the content enemy.

3. Always double down on your TOV.

What phrases do you love to use? What words do you never use?

Here's the thing:

The best content is when you educate, stand up for something, and write genuinely as you.

Period.

No one's DMing you because your content is forgettable.  
  
You know what you're doing, but you're too scared to sound like yourself, so you post safe sh#t that could've been written by anyone.  
  
Then wonder why no one's reaching out or replying to their DMs. 
  
Your audience doesn't need another "how to" post.  
  
They need to know how you actually fixed the problem they're stuck on.  
  
Not theory or frameworks, your actual experience.  
  
That's what builds trust. That's what gets clients.  
  
But you're too busy trying to sound clever, or professional, or like that person with 50K followers.  
  
So your content sounds like everyone else's, which means it's invisible.  
  
Here's what changes it:  
  
Stop performing and start sharing what actually worked for you.  
  
The mistakes you made, the messy bits you normally hide, your actual journey.  
  
That's your positioning.  
  
Not some polished version of someone else's playbook.  
  
When you finally trust yourself enough to sound like yourself, the DMs start coming.  
  
"Your stuff just hits different."  
  
"How do I work with you?"  
  
"Been following for months, ready to talk."  
  
You were always credible. You just didn't believe it.  
  
Stop writing for the algorithm. Write for the one person who needs to hear what you learned the hard way.  
  
Get out of your own way.  
  
I wasted 6 months copying everyone else before I figured this out.  
  
Don't be that person.

In 3 generations nobody will remember you unless you're Elon Musk.

Seriously. What are you so scared of?

You see what happens when you act like a human?

You need to learn how to stand up for something.

The bar on LinkedIn is incredibly low right now. Gurus selling you sh*t, AI tool sellers making everyone's posts look identical, and everyone wondering why no one's buying from them.

The way to win business is to become memorable. And by memorable, I mean sharing your genuine learnings and experiences with your clients. Not some AI suggestion spat out by a tool.

And you cannot be memorable if you sound like everyone else.

You think I'm worried about what people think of me? Absolutely not.

I'm worried about my clients doing well, getting results, and tapping into what makes them genuinely unique.

That's all I care about.

Be human. Stand for something. Sound like yourself.

Watch what happens.

But please, if you're using AI tools to do all your work, keep doing it. You'll help me win more business.

Just got pitched LinkedIn sales systems by someone who clearly didn't spend 30 seconds looking at my profile.

You know, the profile where it says I run a LinkedIn personal branding agency.

I had to read it twice.

Lmao.

This silly sausage is literally asking me if LinkedIn could "realistically become a proper sales channel" for my business. Mate, LinkedIn IS my business.

It's what I do for a living. I help people build their brands on this exact platform every single day.

Did you read a single post? Look at my profile? Check what the agency actually does?

Clearly not.

Because what you're really telling me with that automated message is that you couldn't be bothered to do even the most basic research.

And this is exactly what's killing trust on the platform right now. Everyone's trying to automate their way to relationships, and people can smell it from a mile away.

You're not building a pipeline. You're burning bridges before they're even built.

While you're running sequences and blasting DMs hoping something sticks, your competitors are getting in front of your prospects first. Because they actually showed up like humans.

Here's what one lazy message did:

• I never replied
• I will never work with him. Ever.

You cannot automate research, and you cannot shortcut trust.

People don't just buy from businesses. They buy from people they genuinely like, people they can have a laugh with, people they actually trust.

The fastest way to build that trust isn't a slick pitch. It's taking the time to get to know someone as a human being first.

Here's what actually works:

1. Do your bloody research first

Spend 2 minutes on their profile. Read their content. Understand what they actually do. If you're pitching someone their own services back to them, you've already lost.

2. Show up like a human, not a bot

AI can't replace genuine interest. It can't replace curiosity. It can't replace actually giving a shit about the person you're messaging.

If your outreach could be sent to 1,000 people with a name swap, don't send it.

3. Build rapport before you pitch anything

Comment on their posts. Engage with what they're saying. Be present in their world long enough that your name becomes familiar.

The best sales conversations don't feel like sales at all.

4. Stop treating LinkedIn like a cold email list

The ROI isn't in how many messages you send. It's in how many real conversations you have.

I've done business with people I connected with in January. No pitch. No agenda. Just genuine conversations where we realised there was a fit.

The DM that converts isn't the cleverest pitch. It's the one where the person on the other end thinks: "Finally. Someone who actually gets me."

No hard feelings toward the silly sausage in my inbox. But sort the approach out.

I back you. 🤝

How to kill your credebility in 3 messages

Merriam-Webster made "slop" the 2025 Word of the Year.

Their definition?

"Digital content of low quality that is produced usually in quantity by means of artificial intelligence."

2.4 million people called it out last year. Usage of the term increased 9X from 2024.

And if you're on LinkedIn right now, you know exactly what they're talking about. The "thrilled to announce" posts, the ChatGPT listicles, the engagement bait where everyone sounds exactly the same.

And look, they're not wrong. 

LinkedIn is exhausting right now. 53% of posts are AI-generated (Semrush). Same templates, same hooks, everyone's playing the same bloody game. It's like the platform got cloned 100,000 times.

Everyone's complaining about AI slop. Meanwhile, some people are out here building actual businesses. And they're not using ChatGPT to write their posts.

What's different about them?

Half the "personal branding experts" on here are just generating AI slop that gets loads of engagement...

Meanwhile behind the scenes, they're still trying to figure out how to actually run a business. But people are paying them to run their content when they haven't even figured out their own business yet.

And if you're a coach or someone selling your experience, relying on AI tools to extend your voice is bloody dangerous. Because when you get on a call with someone, they're going to notice the disconnect. Your posts sound one way, you talk another way. That's when trust dies.

The people winning on here? They don't automate their DMs with some AI tool. They just talk to people like normal humans. They write like they'd explain it to a mate over coffee, not like a LinkedIn guru selling you a $2,000 course on how to sound exactly like everyone else.

The algorithm doesn't reward volume anymore. It rewards time spent. How long people actually stop and read. People don't stop for slop. They stop for real humans with real takes.

The bar is on the floor right now. Everyone's pumping out AI content, chasing engagement, sounding exactly like everyone else.

You don't have to do any of that. Just figure out what you know that your audience doesn't, and share it like you're explaining it to a mate.

That's literally it.

Don't sound like AI and you're already ahead of 53% of people on here.

HubSpot surveyed 3,400 marketers for their 2026 State of Marketing report.

One stat jumped out that nobody's talking about.

77% of marketers rated lead quality as high or very high. That sounds good, right?

But here's the problem. 70% of those same marketers report leads come to them later in the buying process now.

Why? Because your prospects are researching you for weeks before they ever message you. They're reading your LinkedIn. Your posts. Your comments. All of it.

And if you sound like ChatGPT wrote your content, they're moving straight to someone who sounds like an actual human.

That's what the LinkedIn gurus selling you AI content tools won't tell you. Because it kills their entire bloody business model. They're flogging you AI post generators, AI comment bots, AI everything, and meanwhile your prospects are scrolling right past it.

Windmill Growth just published data from 185 founder clients showing AI-generated content gets 40-50% lower engagement than human-written posts.

Your prospects can feel the difference even when they can't explain it.

Look.

A client came to me struggling to connect with her conservative ICP. Her content was brilliant, but it wasn't landing because she was speaking her language, not theirs.

I taught her how to write for her ICP. How to make them feel understood. How to be herself.

Within the first week she got 2 inbound enquiries from her exact ICP and booked 4 sales calls. Each prospect said her content made them feel heard and understood.

That's what happens when you write like a human instead of a robot.

Your prospects are watching you long before you know they exist. They're deciding if you're the real deal or just another person who sounds like a robot.

So write like you talk. Share real experiences, not hypotheticals. Be yourself.

Stop writing to impress your peers. Start writing to connect with your prospects.

I back you. 🤝

taplio

The Battle

Joseph Rudd

Matt Wheeler-Barrett

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance ScoreMatt Wheeler-Barrett's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

taplio

The Battle

Joseph Rudd

Matt Wheeler-Barrett

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Matt Wheeler-Barrett's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

Performance ScoreMatt Wheeler-Barrett's LinkedIn Performance