The AI LinkedIn Advantage with Al Kushner

Tim Melanson: Hello, and welcome to today’s episode of the Work at Home Rockstar podcast. Excited for today’s episode. I am talking to an award-winning author from linkedvantage.com, and what he does is he helps people to optimize their LinkedIn profile, lots of different things, uh, headshot and background images, and he helps you use AI for keywords and just to help you get found on LinkedIn.

So I’m excited for today’s episode. We’re talking to Al Kushner. Hey Al, you ready to rock?

Al Kusher: Absolutely Tim, looking forward to it.

Tim Melanson: Beautiful. So we always start off here in a good note. So tell me a story of success that we can be inspired by.

Al Kusher: Store of success. Well, I would say my latest book, uh, out that I released, it’s called the AI LinkedIn Advantage, and it really kind of. Um, I would say it’s a breakthrough book because it’s the only one that actually combines both LinkedIn AI together to help people optimize, you know, their, their, their performance on their platform.

So I think it’s great and I’m very excited about, um, sharing my knowledge.

Tim Melanson: [00:01:00] That’s awesome. Yeah, and I, I agree. I’ve had a couple other people on this podcast that have talked about LinkedIn and no one has mentioned ai, so, so that’s really cool that, uh, that that’s the space that you’re in. I’m excited to hear more about that too. Uh, before we do though. There. There are also things that don’t go as planned, so we like to talk about the good notes and the bad notes that get hit, and I’m wondering, can you share with us something that didn’t go as planned on your journey that we can be aware of?

Al Kusher: Well, as with anything, I think if you wanna be successful on, let’s say LinkedIn, you gotta make mistakes and that’s what you do. And if you don’t make mistakes, you’re not gonna grow. And I’ve had tons of these mistakes. I’ve been on LinkedIn for the past 20 years, so I’ve seen the, the growth of the platform and I think what it really made a difference.

Is that when AI was, uh, introduced like three or four years ago, particularly chat, GPT was really kind of a, a way that really changed the game of how to, um, create content, which is really something on [00:02:00] LinkedIn is, is king, you know? And, and if you don’t have quality content, you’re not gonna get people interested in following you.

You’re not gonna make quality connections. And that’s something that really made a difference for me. And I, I would say. Up until that time, my, my presence there was really very limited because I didn’t have a lot of time to, you know, create content or have editors and proofreaders to really help in making it, uh, flawless and seamless.

And now I do. So I’m really grateful for that.

Tim Melanson: Hmm. Yeah, I hear you. And I mean, one of the other things too is there’s so many different platforms out there and you’ve gotta create content. And some of the platforms are different than others. So the content you create for one platform might not work in another platform. Right. Is that the case or?

Al Kusher: Yeah, exactly. It depends on the audience. You know, in LinkedIn’s case, uh, you have dealing with a lot of professionals, people, educated people who are there to really like business to business in a sense. So it’s a certain way of, you know, creating content that resonates well with them compared to other [00:03:00] platforms where maybe more of a casual type of, um, content, um, to be displayed.

So yeah, there’s differences. I noticed.

Tim Melanson: Yeah, me too. Uh, yeah, I think like some platforms you wanna be a little bit more like funny, right? And some platforms you wanna be a little bit more serious, you know, that kind of stuff, right?

Al Kusher: yeah, pretty much. So, uh, every platform has its, um, pluses and minuses. So, but if, uh, I would think if you want to connect with business owners, entrepreneurs, or looking for new type of work, um, LinkedIn is definitely the place to be.

Tim Melanson: Yeah, totally. So let’s talk a little bit about that. I mean, first, uh, topic that I should talk about is about fans here. So I’m wondering, you know, the, the audience is out there, right? I mean, we’re looking at LinkedIn, there’s tons of people on LinkedIn. The audience is there, but how do you get them to like you?

Hmm.

Al Kusher: Well, very simple. You have to give value to whoever you’re connecting with. And the first thing you don’t wanna do is pitch, slap them. You know, [00:04:00] as soon as you connect with someone. And that’s pretty much common, and that’s the way to really turn off people for the most part. So if you make a connection.

And hopefully that could be a second connection, like you knew from someone else, and that makes it much easier. But it’s always about trying to add value to whoever you’re connecting with and, and really to get to know the person as a person and not as a sales or a dollar sign. And that’s really gonna make a difference in your approach and you’re being accepted.

Tim Melanson: And when you say add value to them, like are you talking about. It like individually, like through just messaging them or through your, your, your public posts.

Al Kusher: Well, I mean certainly with the public posts, like articles that are creating content that create newsletters. For certain, let’s say, um, I have newsletters for five different type of targets. I’m working with accountants, I’m working with financial planners, I’m working with attorneys, and each newsletter is designated for them touching on their pain points.

So when they look forward to the newsletter, they’re gonna reach something that really is [00:05:00] a pain point for them. So when I help resolve an issue that’s commonly affecting that particular group, so that’s really what you wanna do is, is give value.

Tim Melanson: Okay. Yeah, and, and that’s kind of cool the way you’re thinking about that because now when you fix or resolve a problem with one client, that can actually be a sales tool for a whole bunch of other clients, right?

Al Kusher: It’s like a case study. You, you, you share your information. You talk about a problem that’s commonly with that industry, and so show how you resolved it, and that’s really about. Them learning and people like that fact, they can learn something from others’ mistakes.

Tim Melanson: Do you think that like, I, I think that one of the struggles, well, I mean you even had that same struggle, is, is kind of coming up with content all the time. Like you’ve gotta keep, kind of, keep you be very consistent with it. I’m wondering, does the content, can you reuse content that you’ve already used before, over and over again?

Al Kusher: Well, I would say if [00:06:00] the content was, um. It became viral, for example, uh, which could be pretty rare. There’s no reason why you can do a spinoff on that particular topic or expand upon that and, and reuse it. Certainly. Uh, if it was very popular, I’m sure it would resonate well with people. And I’ve had that situation, which was, uh, really good.

So you have to monitor it and see which one works and which one is trial and error. As with anything.

Tim Melanson: Hmm. Yeah. Yeah, exactly. Yeah, because I mean, sometimes you might. Think that it’s gonna be really good content and it doesn’t go anywhere. And other times, you know, something that you just kind of threw in, threw in there, ends up going really well, right?

Al Kusher: Yeah, it’s really strange how the algorithm works, but that’s, uh, how it is. But that’s great is as long as you’re consistent with the content, that’s the key thing, you know, and that, and always do it every week, uh, you’ll find people will follow you and look forward to what you, uh, have to say.

Tim Melanson: Yeah. Cool. So let’s talk a little bit about the instruments. Now I am wondering, you’re probably gonna talk about [00:07:00] ai, but is there, is there any other instruments that you use, any other tools that you use for success in your business?

Al Kusher: Well, certainly there are graphic tools available like Canva, which I think is really good for creating. Book covers and, um, things for videos like, uh, you know, um, I know artwork for that. So, uh, there are other things besides, you know, content text itself, but, you know, artwork is definitely, uh, a vital, I would think, too, one success on the platform.

Tim Melanson: Agree. So when it comes to ai, I mean, I think I, I think now most of the people that I talk to, especially on this podcast, are sort of like at the point where they’re embracing it and going, okay, yeah, this isn’t gonna gonna go away. But there are some people that are still afraid of it, or at least afraid to use it.

I’m wondering, you know, can you like tell us like, what is it, what, what does it do for us and, and how can we use it properly?

Al Kusher: Well, I guess an analogy would be is when the, um. You know, a [00:08:00] hundred years ago we’re watching the Gilded Age recently. I’m not sure if you watched that program. Um, but, uh, you know, it showcases, you know, when they introduced electricity, you know, the light bulb and everybody’s using candles and such. And a lot of people think, oh, well, you know, candles, you know, are are inexpensive and it works.

Guess what? That’s what people are doing. When they’re not embracing AI technology, they’ll just say, they’ll go back to their own ways and means, and that’s it. The problem is they’re gonna go left, left behind. ’cause those who are using electricity are really gonna be, uh, on the forefront. I’m gonna be the cutting edge and the competition is using it.

If you’re not, so you really need to step up your game and there’s no reason why not to embrace it. Uh, I think it says with anything you could dip your toes into it. There are a lot of great. Programs out there, like chat, GPT for example, that really gives you an opportunity to try out, uh, AI and, and see how, uh, it can help, uh, make a difference in your, um, running content or any other solutions.

I mean, it’s really amazing.

Tim Melanson: That’s a good analogy. And now I [00:09:00] think that another thing too is that, uh, like, because I’ve been using AI for quite a while now, and you know, even though now it’s gotten quite a bit better, uh, but it’s still, there is a bit of a learning curve. Like you still have to kind of learn how to use this tool properly.

And I think maybe that might be one of the, uh, one of the drawbacks is that people will try to use it, it won’t give them what they want and then sort of abandon it. Like, I’m wondering, do you, uh, like have you taken courses, like how do you learn how to get better at using ai?

Al Kusher: Well, I mean, there are a lot of videos on YouTube, for example, that you can research on and, and learn from that. Um, there are courses that are available. Books of course, are, uh, amazing. Uh. And podcasts, you know, that you could learn from. So there’s no, no, you know, there’s no shortage of information out there to learn it.

It’s just a matter of your deciding you want to do that. And most people are procrastinating because they don’t have the time to do it, don’t have the energy, and [00:10:00] it’s about, you know, investing in yourself and you should. Of the money you’re making 5% of that to invest in yourself. And whether it’s, uh, the attending a course or going to a conference on ai, there’s no reason not to do it because it’s only gonna make you better at what you do.

So that’s really the way to do it.

Tim Melanson: I agree. And what about, so what about you? Like, do you participate in masterminds? Any type of like, uh, you know, do you hire coaches yourself?

Al Kusher: Oh, actually I do one step better. I have AI as my coach. I, uh, I created an AI agent that works as a coach. ’cause normally a coach can run you thousands of dollars a month, you know, and I can get the same results with a coach as long as I program it the way I’m. Wanted to think, then I can get, get the results I’m looking for.

And I’m amazed and shocked on how, uh, impressive the results are. And you can have a conversation with the AI and tell ’em, Hey, what should I do today? You know, and they will tell you. Well, and you can create AI [00:11:00] based on certain characters that you can make one based on Warren Buffet or Gary Hick or any other people that you admire.

And you could take their information and put it into ai. To create a personality that will reflect when you talk to them, they’ll sound like, you know, or display like the person you want to connect with, which is incredible. So, yeah, that’s how I do it.

Tim Melanson: That’s awesome. That’s such a great idea that I haven’t thought of yet.

Al Kusher: And here’s also, and you think too, not just one person. Imagine you can have an advisory board. Okay. Made of members of people you respect in the industry now, who are your favorite, uh, people that you respect in the, in your industry, would you say?

Tim Melanson: Uh, well, I mean, you did, you did mention, uh, Gary Van Derrek. I love watching his stuff. He’s fantastic. Uh, I’ve just actually started looking into guys like, uh, grant Cardone. He seems to be doing some cool stuff right now with his 10 x stages. Uh, Tony Robbins is, uh, I’ve taken a few of his courses [00:12:00] in the past.

Um, uh, that’s a, that’s a good start.

Al Kusher: Well, imagine these three guys on your board of advisors, okay, as AI bots, okay? And they have all the information of these guys over the years. Stored in and just imagine you can just ask a question and they will come back to you as Gary or the other guys who mentioned about how to make strategies in your business direction you wanna take.

That’s the incredible way that AI is, is developing, that you can do this without, um, you know, uh, paying top dollar, you know, to get advice from these individuals. So it’s incredible.

Tim Melanson: That’s really bright. I, I actually, uh, so I, I did actually create A-A-G-P-T or like a, a personality in my. My area for my accountant. So I’ve got an accountant now that he handles all my books or it handles all my books and stuff like that, but I never got to the point that’s, that’s actually a really bright idea to create, you know, a board or a coach [00:13:00] through AI as well, because, I mean, you know, you do sort of ask AI about that stuff, but the more you train it, the more you teach it.

The better it gets. So, uh, you could really kind of hone that right in. And I love using the personality of, of, of a coach like that. ’cause then, you know, part of the reasons why, you know, I know we talk about this quite often on the, on this podcast where, you know, you hire a coach for different reasons.

Sometimes you might hire them for accountability, sometimes you might hire them for strategies. Uh, you know, but the accountability part is, is a huge one. You’re not gonna get that from the cheerleaders in your life. You know? You need somebody that’s gonna actually give it to you straight and say, Hey, listen, I think you’re actually not doing what you should be doing right now.

That’s important, right?

Al Kusher: Oh, it’s essential. So for me, I, I think it’s, it’s amazing how the technology has grown, particularly with, um, Google, um, uh, platform where they. Have, um, notebook lm, where you can actually put information, let’s [00:14:00] say Tony Robbins for example, and take all of his books and put it all into the, the thing to study it.

Okay? And it’ll come out sounding exactly like the individual. So you have a question, how did he handle it? And guess what? You’re getting that information that would maybe take you hours, days, months to read, available in seconds. I mean, how cool is that?

Tim Melanson: Wow, wow. Uh, and I think. Probably some of that information would already be there, wouldn’t it? You wouldn’t even have to enter it in. Wouldn’t the GPTs already know it?

Al Kusher: Well, no, you’ve gotta give the information what you’re requesting. So let’s say he’s got, I don’t know, 13 books. Okay? You want to take all that information and put it into a notebook, lm, and then create a, um, an AI bot based on that information. And you ask a question, it’ll come back with an answer based on all the information that’s been, you know, told over the years.

So it’s incredible.

Tim Melanson: And I’m a big reader too, so I mean [00:15:00] this, you know, there’s quite a few books that I have not read yet and I imagine this is a good way to just grab those books that I haven’t read yet, upload them up there, and then anytime I’m asking a question, it’ll actually just draw from that. It can read much faster than I can.

That’s for sure.

Al Kusher: Yeah. And, and, and advise you and, and, and it’s amazing. And then not just use that influence, but others as well, that you respect, put all the information they can be part of your team, and then you have, you know, and, and then have the team also come up with solutions based on their experience. I mean, it’s incredible how that works in your favor.

Tim Melanson: Ah, wow, Al. This is one of the best ideas I’ve heard on this show. I will say it’s amazing. Great job. That’s good. So now it is time for your guest solo. So I, you know, I wanna hear more about your business. I wanna hear about what, what’s exciting for you right now.

Al Kusher: Well, I would say that, um, well of course my book, uh, launched in, in June and that’s exciting and going a lot of, uh, uh, podcasts and also, uh, organizations that are reaching out for speaking [00:16:00] opportunities. So I think it’s incredible and I can reach a lot, a lot of people, and I do, um, really, uh, it’s just amazing how.

Uh, you know, the content on, on, not just LinkedIn, but other platforms you can reach so much more people. Uh, it’s tremendous. And I’m also creating my own podcast too, so that’s pretty exciting and that hopefully will launch in September. So I think it’s just a great time to be in business, to be self-employed because you have all these resources available that I never had years ago.

I mean, AI didn’t exist 20 years ago. Think about it. And now it’s like, I wish I was 20 years younger and I could take advantage of everything that’s available. So, but I’m glad to be in where I’m right now, you know, exciting times to, uh, to share my information and, uh, get the word out about, uh, technology that’s really changing people’s lives.

Tim Melanson: Yeah, well, tell me about your book.

Al Kusher: Well, it’s called the AI LinkedIn Advantage, and it really talks about how to use AI and um, LinkedIn to grow your [00:17:00] business. And, uh, I refer to certain types of, uh, software that’s really popular that you can use to enhance your profile, to optimize it, and also develop a strategy for outreach. So if you wanna connect with people you know, who are your target audiences, if you wanna connect with referral partners like accountants or attorneys.

You know, uh, it’ll create content that’ll resonate well with them. You can create an ebook. You can create, um, video scripts that could be influ influential. I would say groups also are really popular on LinkedIn. Are you part of any groups on LinkedIn at all, or?

Tim Melanson: No, not.

Al Kusher: Okay, well guess what? You should look into getting groups and get at least 20 or 30 groups, uh, to be part of.

’cause that also is gonna help in your outreach because if you’re connecting with people, a lot of times they may accept you because you’re part of a group. And what’s great about it’s that once you’re in the group, you can actually connect with those people and send direct messages to them. And some groups are so large, I mean, they got over hundreds, if not over a million.

Followers in the group or [00:18:00] members. So it’s really a great way to expand your network, um, that people seem to ignore, but groups are really a great way to connect.

Tim Melanson: Yeah. Um, I, most of my outreach happens on Facebook, so I’m part of Facebook groups and I do all those things there. So I imagine all those same sort of, uh, concepts are all available on LinkedIn too, right?

Al Kusher: Yeah. Yeah. And, and a different type of group, again, is different than on Facebook. And I think also the reach is much greater because a lot of times Facebook is pay to play for the most part. So if you wanna go and get your message out there, you gotta boost it where it’s not necessarily on LinkedIn the case.

So that could be also getting greater outreach, which is also important. And newsletters also very important too on LinkedIn because you can create a newsletter and when it gets sent out to the people following it. Not only do they get notified on LinkedIn itself, but also outside of LinkedIn, like their inboxes.

And a lot of times it won’t go to spam filters, it goes straight directly to their inbox because LinkedIn has such a high authority that it just bypasses. It’s almost like [00:19:00] a red carpet come on in. The spam filters don’t even say, you know, that’s not spam. It’s from LinkedIn. So it must be good. And guess what?

It gets better reach. So I definitely recommend starting a newsletter if you haven’t done that yet.

Tim Melanson: Yeah, LinkedIn probably does its own sort of, uh, content moderation as well too, right.

Al Kusher: Yeah, it’s really incredible how, um, the, uh, the platform, the algorithm works in your favor and they encourage that for people to do that. Particularly videos. They do encourage that a lot as well. I would say that if you post a video on LinkedIn, you’ll probably get a lot more reach than you did if you did a text post.

And a lot of people are really starting to learn about that as, uh, making a difference.

Tim Melanson: so now tell me about this podcast that you are creating.

Al Kusher: Well, I’m, uh, working on one that will, um, focus in on AI and, uh, branding, um, to become a thought leader and how to use the information with ai. To create a persona you might say that will resonate [00:20:00] well with your target audience. So I’ll probably have people who are, um, guests in the industry and leaders and, you know, people who are thought leaders and branding experts to really share their knowledge with my audience.

So hopefully that will, uh, transpire, uh, next quarter.

Tim Melanson: Awesome. Good. So where do we get your book?

Al Kusher: Easy, uh, Amazon, uh, one place, uh, bronze Noble, uh, any retailers online you could find available. It’s also, uh, in an audiobook form available on Spotify, and I believe Audible hopefully should have it. So, uh, that’s another option for people who could choose. You can also go to my website linked vantage.com, where I do offer a, uh, free, um.

Kinda newsletter or ebook that helps you optimize your profile. Uh, it’s kind of a checklist that you can kinda look at to see whether or not you are doing the exact way of making your profile stand out. And I think a lot of, uh, you know, listeners would love to, uh, get that [00:21:00] access available. And it can also follow me on LinkedIn too.

You can have access to many directly. Um, look forward to connecting with anyone on uh LinkedIn. Just don’t pitch slap me. That’s most important.

Tim Melanson: It drives me so crazy when that happens to me. I just add somebody and they immediately send me this big old pitch, right? Uh, but that’s the thing is that nowadays with, uh, with ai, the, I think the disadvantage is that you do get a lot more of that. I mean, ’cause I imagine that way back when, you know, someone would’ve to spend the time to write that pitch.

Now, you know, they’re probably just throwing it into AI and it’s generating them a big paragraph and they’re dumping it into the, into the messages. Right.

Al Kusher: But it’s still the same old thing. It’s just gonna really turn away people. So whether it’s AI generated or written on your own, that’s the wrong way to approach anyone who we’re making a connection with. Give something of value to whoever you’re connecting with. When I connect with someone, I give ’em a copy of my, uh, profile checklist.

Okay. It’s, um, and what’s great [00:22:00] about it is that I don’t require them to give me my email or give them, you know, the email to get it, you know, take it, do what you want with it, which is great. You wanna make it real easy and non-threatening, and that’s it. And if they’re interested, they’ll reach out to you.

And I’ve got plenty of business, so I don’t worry about that.

Tim Melanson: So when someone pitch slaps you, what do you, what do you write back? What do you do?

Al Kusher: I don’t write black, I just simply block them and I, and I delete them. And that’s it. I mean, it’s just, it’s just a process that I do. And then for me, that really works very effectively and for the most part, um, and if I want to, you know, take the time, I may pitch, slap them back. You know, tell ’em that your pitch slap sucks, you know, but I help you to make a better one, you know?

Tim Melanson: That’s what I was wondering if you would do, Hey, this is a terrible pitch. But if you hire me, I’ll get, I’ll help you fix this.

Al Kusher: Yeah. Why not?

Tim Melanson: It’s a great idea. Cool. Okay, so now I’ve got one more question before we, uh, before we wrap up here. [00:23:00] This might be the hardest one. Who’s your favorite rockstar?

Al Kusher: Oh, living or dead?

Tim Melanson: E Either one.

Al Kusher: Oh, okay. So many. I don’t know where to

Tim Melanson: I know.

Al Kusher: I mean, I was watching a documentary on Billy Joel recently, so it’s really incredible how the life he lived. So that something is pretty much what I’ve been kind of focusing on and listening to songs and everything. So he is been incredible, you know, rockstar I would say.

And he’s from New York, so where I’m originally from as well. So I kind of partial to that. I would say definitely he is, uh, he is one of my favorites I would say.

Tim Melanson: Yeah. Yeah, he’s, uh, he’s incredible. I love his stuff. And, uh, his, his, uh. I think he’s coming up to the end. Hasn’t he been playing in Madison swear guns for a long time? Is that almost ending now? Is it? Or?

Al Kusher: It’s hard to say. He may be continuing because obviously it’s, it’s still selling out. I mean regardless. And he’s been also to other areas. Uh, he’s in Florida. I know recently visit. [00:24:00] Um, I guess it’s just a matter of supply and demand. He’s really, uh, finding, uh, new Renaissance, I would say. And a lot of, uh, younger generations are tuning into him before, never because of his, uh, popularity.

Tim Melanson: because I heard, and I’m not sure if this is accurate or not, that that was his initial deal. Was he okay? I, you know, I’ll do it, but I’ll only play until it stops selling out and it’s still selling out.

Al Kusher: Yeah. It is still in demand, so.

Tim Melanson: It’s like.

Al Kusher: Yeah. As, as with anything. So why not? I mean, think about it. You know, I mean, you’re doing things you love and, um, you know, it’s not really taking much of your time. You’re making money. Why not? If you love what you’re doing, you know, you’ll do it until you’re dead, I guess.

So, I mean, look at, uh, Ozzy Osborne, you know, and he, you know, gave a, uh, recent concert a week before he passed away, but he was still enjoying his, you know, um, notoriety, his, uh, fame because of the many people that love his, uh, work. So [00:25:00] may rest in peace.

Tim Melanson: Yeah. Rest in peace. Absolutely. Awesome. So before we wrap up though, uh, again, what was, uh, how’s the best, what’s the best way for people to get in touch with you?

Al Kusher: Well go to on my website linked vantage.com. You can also check on my book on Amazon or Spotify. Uh, reach out to me on LinkedIn. Follow me on LinkedIn. I’m happy to, you know, uh, connect with people. And, uh, yeah, those are just some of the ways that you can reach out to me.

Tim Melanson: Awesome. Thank you all for rocking out with me today. This has been awesome.

Al Kusher: Thank you. Appreciate the opportunity, Tim. Have a good one.

Tim Melanson: Cool. And to the listeners, make sure you go to workathomerockstar.com for more information and we’ll see you next time on the Work At Home Rockstar Podcast.