The Engagement Mining Method
Someone else's viral post is your warm lead list.
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Time to result
- ~weeks to results
- Steps
- 4
- Confidence
- 88%
The Engagement Mining Method treats the comment and like lists under a relevant LinkedIn post as a ready-made list of warm leads. Because people who engage with a post about, say, getting into Facebook tend to work at Facebook or in tech, you can filter those engagers for your target companies. By liking or commenting on the same post, you manufacture a shared touchpoint that becomes your opening line. Javier extends the tactic to other people's viral content — especially layoff announcements — where recruiters and helpers cluster in the comments.
Origin
Javier noticed that whenever he posted a LinkedIn strategy about breaking into a specific company, most of the people liking and commenting actually worked at that company or in tech. He realized the engagement list itself was a targeting tool and taught it as a repeatable networking move.
Core principles
- 01The likes and comments on a relevant post are a pre-filtered list of people at the companies you care about.
- 02Engaging with the same content creates an instant, honest common ground.
- 03Post viewers and engagers are already warm because they've shown interest in the topic.
- 04You can mine other people's content, not just your own, including viral layoff posts where recruiters gather.
How to run it
- 1
Find a relevant post
Locate a post about your target company or industry — your own or, better, a popular one from someone else.
Pro tip Viral posts from people affected by layoffs attract recruiters in the comments who are actively trying to help.
- 2
Open the engagement list
Look through everyone who liked and commented on the post.
- 3
Filter for target companies
Identify the engagers who work at the companies you want to break into.
- 4
Create the shared touchpoint and reach out
Like or comment on the same post, then message the person referencing that you both engaged with it.
Pro tip A message like 'I saw you commented on Jonathan's post, I did too, would be great to connect' converts the engagement into rapport.
In the wild
When Javier posted a LinkedIn strategy on getting into Facebook, the people who liked and commented were mostly Facebook employees or tech workers, so anyone could scan that list and reach out with built-in common ground.
→ The post's comment section became a targeted, warm list of people at the exact company a job seeker wanted.
Javier advises watching viral posts from people affected by COVID-19 layoffs, because recruiters trying to help that person cluster in the comments.
→ Those same recruiters can be reached out to for your own search, turning someone else's post into your opportunity.
Common mistakes
Only mining your own posts
The biggest lead pools are often on other people's viral content, not yours; limiting yourself to your own posts shrinks the opportunity.
Reaching out without the shared touchpoint
If you don't actually like or comment on the same post, you lose the honest common ground that makes the outreach land.
Is it for you?
Best for
LinkedIn users targeting specific companies who want a steady supply of warm networking leads.
Not ideal for
People not active on LinkedIn or in niches with little relevant post activity.
From the transcript
“you go look at the likes and comments and you go find people who work at the companies you're interested in and guess what now…”
“if their post is getting a lot of engagement go look at the comments there's probably recruiters there too as well”
From the episode
Jonathan Javier: Networking Hacks to Land a Job in the Pandemic
Jonathan Javier