Small Business Research and Enterprise

By Femi Opaneye, Founder & CEO of Vortune

If LinkedIn deleted your account tomorrow, would anyone actually notice you were gone?

The answer is no.

You can have up to 30,000 connections on the platform. But most people hover in the low thousands, so losing one connection is barely noticeable.

The real question: How do you make that reality work in your favour?

Are you playing the right game?

Most people on LinkedIn confuse visibility with trust. They post daily because some guru tells them “the algorithm rewards frequency.” They churn out cookie-cutter “value” posts.

And still – crickets. No pipeline. No referrals. No meaningful opportunities.

For those posting regularly but barely getting any views, know this: shadow banning is real. I’m not here to offer a magic fix. What matters most is this – don’t lose hope. Posting can be valuable, but it’s only one piece of a much bigger strategy.

Someone recently told me their post went viral – 50,000 views, hundreds of comments, tons of new followers, 100+ new connections. Visibility was through the roof. But when I asked how much business came from it, the answer was zero.

Why? Because viral posts often attract passive viewers not decision-makers, so don’t let it be your sole focus.

The real game happens off the feed

Meanwhile, the people who are winning – quietly filling calendars with warm leads, getting whispered about in private group chats, building reputations that stick – are playing a completely different game. For instance, I recently introduced two finance professionals on LinkedIn.

No pitch – just this message:

“You’re both in finance from different angles, both based in London. Thought it made sense to connect you – there might be some interesting synergies.”

They spoke within a day, and a week later, they told me they were exploring projects together – all from just forty-five seconds and a bit of thought on my part.

No bots. No follow-up sequences. Just relevance + intent = impact

“Ask not what LinkedIn can do for you…”

John F. Kennedy said “Ask not what your country can do for you – ask what can you can do for your country.” On LinkedIn, it’s the same. Stop obsessing over what the platform owes you. Start focusing on what you can do for the people in your network. You want to be the person others introduce like this:

“You need to speak to X – they’re someone worth knowing.”

That’s how you become a super-connector.

The dark side no one talks about

Now – a warning.

LinkedIn is quietly restricting and banning profiles at an alarming rate. Their Trustpilot rating? 1.2 out of 5, with 85% one star reviews. Many of the complaints are from people saying they’ve been blocked or restricted, even after submitting ID for verification:

• “They want my government ID. I’m not sharing it – it’s just social media, not a bank account.”
• “My verified account with 2,000+ connections, built over years, was suddenly restricted without reason.”
• “Always restricted. Won’t verify my account. Makes it too difficult to even get in.”

So what are these Common triggers?

• Aggressive cold messaging
• Chrome extensions and automation tools
• VPN use that sets off fraud detection
• Spamming connection requests
• Algorithms doing what algorithms do

Protect your account like it’s your passport. Avoid shady tools. Keep your behaviour natural. I’m so cautious about it that I have a laptop dedicated just to LinkedIn. It might sound over the top, but if my profile gets blocked, years of relationships, opportunities and income streams could vanish.

Beyond likes: the power of genuine impact

Maya Angelou said:

“People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”

Make people feel valued. Make them feel heard. Make them feel like they matter.

The real wins on LinkedIn don’t come from chasing likes – they come from making yourself useful in ways that stick in people’s heads long after the feed scrolls past.

Do that consistently, and you don’t just “grow your network.” You build something better – a web of people who’d notice if you disappeared tomorrow. And while I believe in giving without expecting anything back, we do offer a 5% referral commission when introductions lead to business – just one more way to make it a win/win for everyone involved.

A few months ago, I connected a sports injury rehab specialist with a corporate wellness consultant. Within a month, they’d launched a joint service for companies. I didn’t get a cut, but I earned their trust and ongoing referrals.

If LinkedIn disappeared tomorrow, would your network notice? What’s one small step you can take today to build connections that last?

Before the week is out, introduce two people in your network who should know each other – no pitch, no agenda, no strings attached. Watch what happens.

---

*We strive to do our best when supporting small business and their growth. Our business databases can give you information and data that can help you with advertising, market research, company information, and industry factsheets. If you have already taken the plunge, we would love for you to join us at a seminar, our workshops cover digital marketing, business model canvas and planning, demystifying taxes and intellectual property to name a few. Visit our events page or website for more information.