My first column as a columnist for Marketingfacts is live! A huge thank you, Imke Walenberg 🙏
I’m incredibly proud, of course!
Not because it’s “a publication.”
But because this article perfectly sums up what I’ve come to believe in more and more over the past few years:
The way we network has fundamentally changed.
In the past, you built a network in meeting rooms, at events, or through introductions.
Today, people form an impression of you before you’ve even spoken to each other.
Through your content.
Your ideas.
Your energy.
Your reputation.
Your consistency.
And yet I see that many people still use LinkedIn as if it were 2017:
- posting more
- pitching more
- “dropping value” more
- using more tricks to gain visibility
While the real shift lies elsewhere.
We’ve moved from an attention economy to a trust economy.
That means reach alone is becoming less and less valuable.
Relevance wins.
Recognizability wins.
Humanity wins.
In my first column, I’m therefore introducing a concept I’ve been working on a lot myself:
Magnetic Networking.
Don’t chase after people.
Instead, build a position where the right people naturally gravitate toward you.
That happens when expertise, personal branding, and genuine connection come together.
An insight that changed everything for me:
These days, the strongest networks often form before the first meeting.
Because someone has been following you for months.
They understand your way of thinking.
They sense your values.
And has already built trust without you ever directly asking for it.
That’s no coincidence.
That’s strategic visibility.
And I think that’s becoming one of the most important skills of our time.
I’m curious to hear your thoughts on this.
Do you think personal branding enhances the quality of networking…
or makes it more superficial?
See the column here.
