Important Rules for Your LinkedIn Presence
Having a smaller group of colleagues who will message you directly is much better than having thousands of people who only follow you. Over time, being easy to talk to leads to more job opportunities that you wouldn't find just by having a "Follow" button, which can sometimes block important conversations.
Only use "Creator" features if you truly have time to post good content every week. A simple, standard profile that looks professional builds more trust over time than a page pretending to be an influencer but that is rarely updated. It shows you are focused, not someone who starts things and quits.
Only use special features like header links when you have a short-term goal, like showing off a new project or your updated resume. Treat these tools as situational — turn them on for a specific goal, then return to a standard profile when the goal is done. Your profile should always reflect what matters most right now.
What is LinkedIn Creator Mode?
LinkedIn Creator Mode was a profile setting that changed your primary button from "Connect" to "Follow," moved your content to the top of your profile, and unlocked publishing tools like Newsletters and LinkedIn Live. In February 2024, LinkedIn retired the on/off toggle and made those tools available to all users by default. The Follow vs. Connect button choice remains yours to control — and it still has real consequences for how recruiters experience your profile.
For most professionals who aren't publishing consistently, showing a "Follow" button creates a barrier. According to LinkedIn's talent data, 72% of recruiters actively use LinkedIn to source candidates. A profile that asks people to follow rather than connect can make outreach feel more formal and less direct — and that friction is enough for some recruiters to move on. For more on making your profile easier to find, see our LinkedIn SEO optimization guide.
The Creator Mode Choice
Turning on LinkedIn "Creator Mode" is not a guaranteed way to advance your career; for most people, it’s just a way to look popular. Many professionals think this simple switch makes them look like an expert, but this belief that success will just happen is often a mistake. In reality, if you look like an influencer but don't post lots of content, your profile becomes a "Ghost Town"—it focuses on how many followers you have instead of how useful you are in your career.
The problem is that it creates a wall. By changing the "Connect" button to a "Follow" button, you send a message that you are here to talk at people, not with them. This stops important conversations before they even begin. You end up with many followers but an empty message box, making you look more like someone who tried to be famous and failed, instead of a top candidate.
To get your competitive edge back, stop thinking of Creator Mode as something you keep on all the time. Use it only for short, focused periods when you have something specific to show, like a new project or newsletter. If you aren't sharing valuable ideas twice a week, turn it off. True influence comes from being an accessible peer, not a low-level celebrity. Focus on being connected, not just followed.
How to Decide on Creator Mode
To help you figure out if LinkedIn Creator Mode is right for you, this chart breaks down the different features into three levels. Use this guide to see which level of effort matches your current career goals.
Level 1 (Just Watching)
Main Features / Benefit
- Changing profile button to "Follow"
- Defining your 5 core topic areas to anchor your professional niche
- Showing your best work in the "Featured" section
What This Gets You
Visibility: People searching for your topics can find and follow you, even without connecting formally.
Level 2 (Sharing Ideas)
Main Features / Benefit
- Starting a weekly Newsletter
- Holding live Audio Events
- Joining groups to earn a "Top Voice" badge
What This Gets You
Influence: You become a thought leader. Newsletters send direct alerts to followers, helping your content stand out in their feeds.
Level 3 (Mastery)
Main Features / Benefit
- Using the custom "Call to Action" button on your profile
- Looking closely at detailed post data (CSV files)
- Connecting with outside posting tools
What This Gets You
Results: This turns views into actual business benefits. The custom button sends people where you want them to go, and detailed data shows you what content brings in the best leads.
The Visibility Strategy for LinkedIn Creator Mode
To figure out if LinkedIn Creator Mode is a smart move for your career, use The Visibility Vector. This guide shows how to change your profile from a static resume to an active platform for sharing your work.
What You Stand For
Your Profile's Message
Goal: To let people know right away what subjects you are an expert in.
Action: Define five specific topic areas that describe your expertise. These anchor the content you publish and signal to visitors — and LinkedIn's algorithm — what you're about.
Your Content Flow
Sharing Your Work
Goal: To use professional tools to share your ideas, not just make simple updates.
Action: Start a regular Newsletter or LinkedIn Live session so that your followers get notified every time you post something new.
Filtering Your Network
Growing Your Audience
Goal: To reach more people by favoring followers over one-on-one connections.
Action: Change your main profile button from "Connect" to "Follow" so that as many people as possible can see your posts without filling up your personal messages.
These three parts—Identity, Content, and Network—must work together to turn your static profile into a strong platform that gets you noticed and makes an impact on LinkedIn.
The Quick Plan: Getting Things Moving
This plan fixes common LinkedIn settings that create obstacles (Friction) between you and good career chances, and shows you how to switch to a useful, easy-to-access profile (Flow).
The "Follow" Wall: Recruiters and peers feel like they are just fans because your main button asks them to "Follow" you.
Be Approachable Again: Turn Creator Mode OFF. This brings back the "Connect" button, making it easier for recruiters to send you a direct message.
The Ghost Profile: You have Creator Mode turned on but haven't posted anything in weeks, making you look like an influencer who gave up.
The 2-Post Rule: If you can't commit to two good posts per week, the Follow button works against you. Research from LinkedIn's own platform shows content creators need consistent posting for the algorithm to prioritize their content in others' feeds. A clean, standard profile looks more professional than an inactive creator page — and keeps your network accessible. See our guide on building a focused LinkedIn content strategy for practical starting points.
Your Best Work is Hidden: Your most important links, website, or resume are buried deep in your "About" section or contact details.
The Featured Link Trick: Turn on Creator Mode only to use the header link tool for a specific 30-day goal, like launching a project. When the project is over, switch back to a standard profile to stay easy to reach.
Focusing on Numbers That Don't Matter: You get random followers who don't talk to you, instead of building a network that helps your career.
Prioritize Connections: Focus on how valuable your reach is, not just how big it is. Use a standard profile to encourage real conversations, which leads to job offers much faster than having a high follower count.
The Quick 30-Minute Plan to Launch Creator Mode
Follow these steps to quickly set up your profile and start reaching more people right away.
Make sure you are ready to focus on getting followers instead of new direct connections before you change the main button on your profile.
Go to your profile settings and switch on Creator Mode. Then, define the five main topic areas that reflect your professional focus.
Change your main headline to clearly explain the value you offer, making sure it matches the five hashtags you just picked.
Plan your very first post using a creator tool, like a Newsletter or a Poll, to let everyone know about your new focus.
Check your post results dashboard every week to see which topics are getting the best response from your new followers.
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Common Questions
Should I use Creator Mode while job searching?
Most likely, no. When you are seeking employment, you should try to remove any obstacle between you and a recruiter.
Creator Mode changes your main button to "Follow," which can make you seem unapproachable or "too busy" for a new role. Unless you are using the "Featured" section to show off a large, important set of work that needs a special link, it's better to switch it off. This keeps the "Connect" button as the main feature, which signals that you are open to direct talks and ready to join a new team.
Can people still connect with me if my button says Follow?
If you keep Creator Mode on, you must tell people how to reach you. You can add a clear note in your "About" section or on your banner image that says something like, "I welcome new professional relationships; please click the 'More' button to send a connection request."
But expecting people to find a hidden button is risky. If you aren't getting a steady flow of connection requests from peers, it means the "Accessibility Wall" is probably hurting your networking.
Will I lose followers if I switch back to Connect?
No, your followers stay. Switching your primary button back to "Connect" only changes how your profile looks — your follower count is unchanged and you can still post content.
The tradeoff is losing some creator-specific display features, like the header link and the profile video. For most working professionals, that's a reasonable cost to become more reachable again.
Did LinkedIn remove Creator Mode in 2024?
Yes. LinkedIn retired the Creator Mode toggle in February 2024, and also removed the profile hashtags/topics feature at the same time. The tools themselves — including Newsletters, LinkedIn Live, and the Follow/Connect button choice — remain available to all users.
You no longer activate a single "mode." Instead, you use each creator feature individually. The strategic question of Follow vs. Connect is still yours to answer, and the advice in this post still applies to how you configure your profile button.
How often should I post to make Creator Mode worth it?
Aim for at least two posts per week. Below that threshold, LinkedIn's algorithm significantly reduces your content's reach, which means your Follow button collects passive followers who rarely see your updates.
Three to four posts per week is the sweet spot for steady audience growth. If that commitment doesn't fit your schedule, a standard Connect-first profile will serve your career better until you're ready to commit.
Focus on what truly matters.
Don't let your professional profile become a "Ghost Town" just to get a badge that looks good. The only way to avoid the "Accessibility Wall" is to use LinkedIn as a tool for making connections, not as a stage for showing off. If you aren't sharing valuable ideas at least twice a week, the "Follow" button is probably hurting you more than helping.
Use Creator Mode for short, specific tasks, then go back to being an expert who is easy to talk to. Real career chances happen in private messages, not in the follower count. Stop acting like a speaker to an empty room and start acting like the accessible, knowledgeable expert you are.
