Learn Amy Volas' Key Techniques for Building Long Lasting Professional Relationships
Master Viral Content Styles From Top LinkedIn Creators
Each week, I breakdown how (and when) a top creator hit their viral moment, so you can weave it into your strategy.
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*This is Amy's total engagement numbers from her 8-year journey (through September 9, 2024)
Introduction
Amy Volas is a prominent figure in the startup and sales world, she's known for her expertise in executive search and talent acquisition for early-stage SaaS companies. With over 20 years of experience, she has established herself as a thought leader and mentor in the industry.
- Amy Volas is the founder and CEO of Avenue Talent Partners, where she has built a successful executive search firm that specializes in hiring Sales and Customer Success leaders for startups.
- She serves as a limited partner at Stage 2 Capital, where she is actively involved in investing in and advising early-stage companies.
- As the co-founder of "Thursday Night Sales", Amy created a community-focused initiative that fosters connections and knowledge sharing among sales professionals.
- In 2024, she was recognized as one of the Top 100 Female B2B SaaS Pipeline Pioneers for her significant contributions and impact in the B2B SaaS space.
- Amy is frequently featured as a thought leader at Sales Assembly, where she shares valuable insights on sales strategies and leadership, enhancing her visibility as an industry expert.
The thing that stands out the most to me though is seeing how much she truly cares about the community. You can see it in her videos and how she engages with others on LinkedIn. It's not just about her - it's about the community.
She lives the Pay it Forward mantra that I have been doing my entire life and I can see it in someone else in how they hold themselves and support others around them.
Now, let's get into her Content Style and talk about this a little more.
Content Style: Sales Leader
Amy is a sales leader at heart and that's why she's able to recruit so well for others. If you are able to embody that of which you want to put around you in your life - you'll attract it right back to you.
It takes times and energy to refine how you want to do this but as Amy shows in her actions - you can find your niche (or wedge) that allows you to stand out from the noise on LinkedIn to build your business.
We All Start Somewhere
I wasn't able to get anything before 2016 out of LinkedIn. Amy's journey started in 2004 BUT this story begins in November 2016.
Sharing 3 posts on her first day of posting any idea on the platform, Amy hit the ground running. Rarely will you find creators that started back sharing 3 posts on Day 1.
Although she didn’t start posting every day in the same month, most of the days she posted, she shared more than one post.
On November 17, Amy shared 5 LinkedIn posts. Who does that - on their first month, just 10 days in!
You can tell she got down to business on LI.
Amy launched her LinkedIn journey with a creator’s vibe, a vibe that she has maintained and built upon today.
In her only 2 months of posting in 2016, Amy shared 63 posts - despite not posting every single day.
Check out her first post ever, shared on November 7, 2016:
The bots are coming....the bots are coming....A worthy read on how to adjust!
And that was it… no reactions, no comments, no repots.
All 3 of her posts on this day had no engagement at all.
I love this, great read as we head into 2017 (13 reactions, 1 comment, 6 reposts)
This was the highest engagement Amy got in her first calendar year on LinkedIn (yes - she started posting just one month ago)
Does anyone know how to see share and comment details for when you post an article/posting on the new interface?... (7 reactions, 29 comments)
Amy ended this short post with “Help please.”
Although with not many likes, she had more comments on this post than ever before - 29.
Why?
She asked for help, plainly.
She also talked about a subject matter that’s affecting the majority of the people, and from her comments, you can tell that many users don’t like the recent upgrades on the platform.
Talking about subjects that resonate with your audience will always incite engagement without fail.
Amy also started to dutifully engaged her audience in the comment section.
There are no better ways to make your audience feel valued than when you reply to their response on your post - even if it’s an emoji.
See an example here (from the same post)
In January 2017, Amy started posting daily.
This was when she literally started using LinkedIn as a creator.
In 2017, she shared 474 posts in total - 46 posts in January alone. You can say “she really meant business with LI”.
Although she wasn’t getting so much engagement on her posts, she continued posting multiple times a day.
When the going gets though, the tough get going - this is the definition of Amy's starting phase.
I'm amazed by how many connection requests I receive from people I don't know with zero context, note or personalization associated… (59 reactions, 62 comments, 1 repost)
Surprisingly, she has more comments than likes on this post as well.
With this post and the previous one, Amy proves that LinkedIn is not just a social media connection or pipeline generation platform. It’s also a platform to get help and clarity.
Opening up, sharing disturbing and unclear matters, asking for help…
These show vulnerability.
Vulnerability builds trust and a stronger community.
What's the best sales advice you've received that you still follow to this day? (39 reactions, 89 comments)
How would you respond to a random person scheduling time on your calendar (30 minutes) without any previous contact or context to try to demo their product?... (29 reactions, 68 comments)
At this point, Amy may have mastered the secret of engaging her audience in the comment section.
Aside from actively replying their comments, leaving posts open-ended is a good way to engage your audience.
One simple key to this is asking questions at the end of the post.
Why on earth do people try to make phenomenally talented Enterprise Salespeople transactional sales reps?... (169 reactions, 30 comments, 2 reposts)
I've seen a whole heck of a lot of chatter about cold calling being dead. These big statements are obnoxious and dangerous as up and comers try to wrap their arms around their sales careers or anyone in sales for that matter. (154 reactions, 72 comments, reposts)
Testing Phase
Anyone hiring sales people WAKE UP! (89 reactions, 46 comments, 1 repost)
In 2018, Amy posted a little less than 2017.
Still she got more reactions, likes, and comments than the previous year. And that’s the power of consistency - it has a compounding effect on your brand.
The VP of Sales is a mission-critical hire. (115 reactions, 43 comments, 8 reposts)
Just take a quick look at the comment section. Amy has mastered how to fully engage her audience in the comments.
Check her closing phrases. She’s intentionally bringing people to the comment section.
I've closed $100,000,000+ over the last 20 years of my enterprise sales career. (258 reactions, 54 comments, 2 reposts)
If your sales process looks like this, you're blowing deals: (405 reactions, 83 comments, 15 reposts)
I talk to many #startups these days who aren’t keen on hiring remote salespeople. (226 reactions, 138 comments, 9 reposts)
From her recent posts, you can tell that Amy’s copywriting skills have greatly improved.
- She no longer writes one-paragraph posts like when she just started using LinkedIn.
- She now uses white space well enough to allow her posts ‘breathe’.
- Amy also uses symbols that improve the visuals of the post.
When you zoom out on your post, the structure should be appealing. If it isn’t, no one will read.
This totally irks me. (162 reactions, 86 comments)
It continues to baffle me when I see companies that won't hire remote salespeople. (208 reactions, 143 comments, 2 reposts)
How can your sales team take you seriously when you've never done the job yourself and handing down horrible advice that hurts more than helps?! (333 reactions, 96 comments, 9 reposts)
Sharing this as it just happened today: (1240 reactions, 139 comments, 60 reposts)
Honestly, I just wanted to catch a glimpse of why this post performed so well (this is the first time Amy crossed 1k reactions. She didn’t even wait to get 500, she jumped it all together.)
But I was glued to the post until I read the last word (and emoji).
Storytelling is one of key components of copywriting and growing your online presence. And not only did she tell a story, but she also gave the moral lessons-hammering it into recruiters and managers.
I screwed up this weekend and in front of people that I'd never want to disappoint. (402 reactions, 153 comments, 1 repost)
The reasons (I believe) this post performed well are openness and vulnerability.
- Share everything and grow in public.
- Some days would be perfect, others will not.
- Don’t only put out the good, perfect end of your daily deeds.
Creators that share everything - ups and downs, wins and loses, successes and failures… earn trust and loyalty.
Finding Amy's Creator Style
Can a strong passion for hobbies outside of work be an indicator of a good hire? (447 reactions, 212 comments, 6 reposts).
Again, see her CTA;
“What do you think?”
And she never stopped engaging her audience in the comment section.
It’s a big mistake to expect to hire A+ talent for less than A+ pay. (611 reactions, 81 comments, 4 reposts)
9 critical recruiting stats you need to know: (1660 reactions, 250 comments, 88 reposts)
Think sales is a sexy, 9 to 5 gig? (670 reactions, 178 comments, 8 reposts)
If your sales process looks like this, you're blowing deals: (2685 reactions, 453 comments, 46 reposts)
3 deadly sins in enterprise sales: (750 reactions, 89 comments, 15 reposts)
10 recruiting stats you need to know: (996 reactions, 213 comments, 63 reposts)
Remember this post from July 2020👆??
Then it was “9 recruiting stats”. This time, it’s “10 recruiting stats”.
Re-sharing a high-performing post always works with the right audience - if done the right way.
If a post performed well before, revamp it and share again. It works.
I have seen several creators adopt this with good results.
You know what's leading to "The Great Resignation?" (1236 reactions, 192 comments, 41 reposts)
The time has finally come.
I just booked a big meeting with a cherry prospect that I've had my eye on for years. (1581 reactions, 332 comments, 20 reposts.
Check out the compounding effect of consistency, good storytelling, and excellent copywriting.
Its a better performance.
Amy shared 474 posts in 2017 and had;
- ,2744 reactions
- 1,487 comments
- 103 reposts.
In 2021, she shared 302 posts. Her performance was;
- 71,573 reactions
- 23,962 comments
- 1,026 reposts.
The result compounds.
Less can be more.
Founder: We'll pay for an A+ VP of Sales (1288 reactions, 387 comments, 5 reposts)
The next time you talk to an executive's Admin, BE NICE. (1296 reactions, 175 comments, 49 reposts)
Put a fork in me, I’m done.
But in the very best of ways. (446 reactions, 126 comments)
That’s how copies should be.
- Breathing
- Every word matters
- Not unnecessarily long
- Complete, insightful and valuable.
More layoffs.
More doom and gloom headlines. (2236 reactions, 116 comments, 36 reposts)
$130,000.
That’s the difference in OTE when you compare Strategic AEs to SMB AEs 
(872 reactions, 134 comments, 23 reposts)
Layoffs.
Doom and gloom headlines.
Turmoil in the world. (847 reactions, 147 comments, 18 reposts.)
No matter how skillful you are with copywriting, here are 2 fundamental things to remember;
- Talk about topics that resonate with your audience (no matter the side you choose in a controversy)
- Deliver value for free.
Everyone has that one book that changes everything for them. (243 reactions, 145 comments, 2 reposts).
Unexpected death isn’t just a moment.
It’s a brutal mentor that leaves a mark. (557 reactions, 171 comments 2 reposts).
Amy’s journey is the definition of consistency and hard work.
Just keep showing up every day, even if you’re not seeing the result of yesterday’s work.
It doesn’t mean that work is lost.
It will ripple back to you.
Starting from a post with zero engagements in November 2016, Amy has built her way up, having consistently shared 2.4k+ posts, having 275k+ reactions, 108k+ comments, and 3.8k+ reposts..
Conclusion
Here’s what you should take away from Amy's journey:
- Master the art of engagement
- Repurpose winning content
- Embrace vulnerability
Amy's story stands out a bit differently from others that we've profiled here in the past.
Why?
Well - she really focuses on building strong and meaningful relationships. Not to say others in the past don't do that. It's just clear to me from going through her 2000+ posts that she wants to build her community on trust, transparency and authenticity.
She loves stirring up conversations in the comments. I didn't get into it much here but seeing some of her comments - you'd mistake them for posts. And knowing when and how to react is an art in itself.
Amy's done a fantastic job of building up her business on the back of her network on LinkedIn.
It's been an impressive journey to breakdown and I'm grateful that I'm able to share this with you.
1
Master the art of engagement
When you make a comment on Amy's post, she makes sure to provide a solid and complete answer. There continues to be a conversation out there about AI comments, engagement pods and having others responding on your behalf.
I can tell when someone is using one of these things. To me, that is not the way to go and from what I can see from Amy - she feels the same way.
Building your audience and trust takes real time that is important to cultivate.
Learn how Amy does it by commenting on her posts!
2
Repurpose Winning Content
Well well well... it's no surprise to see repurposing on the list again.
As I've told you before, this is one of those things that is the gift that keeps on giving. Most of the creators that we've highlighted here have in one shape or another - been masters of this.
Amy is no different here. She is able to take the method that works well for her and turn it into something that works really well. Now, I would argue doing this more often than 1x/year.
People aren't going to remember this after 6 months (or even 3) unless of course I highlight it here.
3
Embrace vulnerability
This one is my favorite. Not because of anything other than I'm trying to do more of this.
Some of my best posts are those that are opening up and being vulnerable with what's happening in my life.
Remember, at the core of LinkedIn - it's a social network and people want to connect with you on a personal level. It doesn't always have to be about business.
Below is a great example that did really well for her pre-COVID and it's clear as to why. When you can connect with someone and tell them TRULY what's going on, it creates empathy, understanding and a personal connection that's hard to put a value on - in regards to TRUST.
I screwed up this weekend and in front of people that I'd never want to disappoint. (402 reactions, 153 comments, 1 repost)
I hope you've enjoyed Amy's journey here and I look forward to bringing you Dave Gerhardt's journey next week.
Until then.
See you next Wednesday!
Master Viral Content Styles From Top LinkedIn Creators
Each week, I breakdown how (and when) a top creator hit their viral moment, so you can weave it into your strategy.
100% Free. Unsubscribe anytime.
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ANDREW MCGUIRE
Pipeline Catalyst Founder
From burnt out exec (3 exits & 15 years experience) to effortless growth by finding my creator style.
Living in Bend, Oregon and taking advantage of all the outdoor adventures.
If you can't find me, I'm probably lifting some weights in the gym, sweating in a sauna or freezing in a cold plunge.
Now I'm on a mission to help you understand how top creators have gone viral so you can weave it into your growth strategy.
Copyright 2024 Andrew C McGuire, all rights reserved.