One of the big things you hear about these days on LinkedIn and Twitter is "personal branding" for founders. Every day, a new “personal branding expert” or ghostwriter pops up, promising to help founders build a following and land new clients or investors. It’s the stuff that sounds a bit cringey on the surface – we all know that self-promotional founder who talks themselves up just a bit too much. But underneath the buzz, there’s a strategy here that’s actually driving results. And it’s worth looking at closely.
At its core, the idea of “founder-led sales” is simple: if founders are active on social media, sharing wins, posting updates, and generally building trust, they’re more likely to attract VCs, customers, and talent. For VCs, consistent posting gives them visibility into a founder’s progress and vision. For job seekers, it’s a sign that the company’s mission isn’t just lip service. For customers, it’s a way to connect with the person behind the product.
In theory, it makes sense. But is it actually happening? Are founders actually making time to post? And if they’re not, does that create an opportunity for someone else? I wanted to find out, so I did some research.
The Ghostwriters’ Perspective: Who’s Actually Using These Services?
To dig deeper, I spoke with a few ghostwriters who specialize in working with founders. To do this I sent a couple messages to the leading voices on Upwork and LinkedIn. Here’s what I found: a lot of their clients aren’t the startup founders you might expect, but rather agency owners. For them, it’s a matter of time. They know there’s value in posting regularly – they see the leads coming in from it – but they don’t have time to keep up with the content demands.
Ghostwriters also shared that some of their clients are well-known figures (think Series D - Public companies), though they kept the details confidential (ghosting practice, after all). The takeaway? Founder-led content isn’t just a startup play; it’s being used as a key lead-generation tool for smaller agencies as well.
The Data: Analyzing 180 YC Founders’ LinkedIn Habits
I also decided to look at the data, specifically analyzing 180 founders from the YC Winter 2024 class to see if they actually practice what’s being preached. Why this group? Younger, early-stage founders are more likely to lean into founder-led sales tactics since they often lack a big sales or marketing budget. Older companies with full comms teams, like Airbnb, would skew the results, while many earlier cohorts simply don’t exist anymore.
Here’s what I found: over 80% of founders in this cohort post on LinkedIn at least once a month, and about 60% post at least once a week. This was a lot higher than I expected and suggests that for many founders in this space, staying active on LinkedIn isn’t optional – it’s a competitive edge.
But it’s not just about the frequency. What they post makes a big difference. Founders posting growth stories and data-driven insights generally see higher engagement than those posting feature updates or job openings. The most effective posts show transparency about their journey – the wins, the losses, the data – which builds credibility with VCs and potential customers alike.
Interestingly, a lot of founders are also engaging through comments. This might seem like a small thing, but it's a way to stay visible and connect with new audiences in an organic, less promotional way.
The Takeaway: Posting Might Not Be A Differentiator, It Also Might Not Be Optional
I’ll be honest – I was expecting fewer founders to be posting regularly. But this data shows that at least for this group, the bar is set high. If you’re not posting, you might be missing out on real opportunities, whether it’s with investors, potential hires, or customers. Why? Because your competitors are posting, a lot.. And equally important: what you post matters. It’s not just about broadcasting random thoughts; it’s about creating value for the right audience and giving them a reason to pay attention.
A Note on the Bigger Picture
It’s worth pointing out that the YC Winter 2024 cohort might not be the norm. These are newer companies, often led by young founders who came up in a world where distribution channels are everything, and influencing isn't as cringe. When I looked at older cohorts, there was noticeably less posting. It’s hard to say how much that affects outcomes, but it could suggest that founder-led sales are increasingly necessary to stand out in a noisy market.
So what’s next? In my next deep-dive, I’ll dig deeper into what kinds of posts are actually driving engagement and conversions for founders, and share a framework a colleague of mine has been testing with a lot of success. The goal here is to use posting as a lever for growth, and there are patterns emerging in the data that show which types of posts make the biggest difference.
For now, if you’re a founder, it's likely worth posting once a week for a few months and measure the impact. If it doesn't work, that's a great thing to rule out. If it does drive value, the sooner you get started the better.
