How to Write a LinkedIn Post Using the SOAR, CLEAR, and PAIPS Formulas
The Three LinkedIn Post Formulas I Use With Every Client
A LinkedIn post formula only earns its keep if it tells you what to write in every line after the hook. The hook alone isn’t enough.
So I sort every post into one of three shapes before I open a blank draft.
| Hook type | Format | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Story, Result | SOAR | Turns one thing that happened into a post with a clear beginning and end |
| Hot-take, Fear, News-jack | CLEAR | Makes an argument the reader has to agree or push back on |
| How-to, Framework | PAIPS | Teaches a process the reader can run today |
The hook decides which row you’re on. Once you know the row, you know the format, and the post stops being a blank page.
SOAR Is the Format for Story and Result Posts
SOAR stands for Situation, Obstacle, Action, Result, and I reach for it whenever a post opens on something that happened.
- Situation. One sentence that sets the scene: who, what, when.
- Obstacle. What got in the way, stated plainly, no drama added.
- Action. What you did about it, in enough detail that a reader could copy it.
- Result. What changed, in terms the reader can picture.
I ran the same four beats on a coaching client of mine. She had 40 posts sitting under 20 impressions each.
Every one of them announced a class or thanked a testimonial, and neither one stops a scroll.
So we rewrote her next post around one coaching session that went sideways, and what she told the client afterward.
That post pulled more comments in a single afternoon than her previous 10 posts combined.
Because a reader’s brain wants the setup before the payoff, the four beats don’t need headers when you post them. They just need to happen in that order.
CLEAR Is the Format for Hot-Take and Opinion Posts
CLEAR stands for Claim, Logic, Evidence, Application, Recap, and it’s built for the post where you’re arguing something.
- Claim. State the opinion in one flat sentence.
- Logic. Explain why the claim is true, in your own reasoning, before you reach for outside proof.
- Evidence. Back the claim with a client moment or a named example.
- Application. Tell the reader what to do differently because the claim is true.
- Recap. Restate the claim in one line, because a reader who scrolled past the middle should still land on the point.
I used this shape on a post arguing that positioning costs freelancers more deals than price does. I opened on that exact claim, then reasoned through it in one line.
A buyer who already trusts you stops negotiating your rate.
And the evidence was a client moment where a prospect paid full price without countering, once she’d rewritten her bio.
So I told freelance readers to rewrite their own bio before their next proposal, then closed by restating the claim.
PAIPS Is the Format for How-To and Framework Posts
PAIPS stands for Problem, Agitate, Insight, Proof, Steps, and it carries any post where you’re teaching a process.
- Problem. Name the specific thing the reader is stuck on.
- Agitate. Say what it costs them to stay stuck, in real terms.
- Insight. Give the reframe, the one sentence that changes how they see the problem.
- Proof. Show it worked, once, on something real.
- Steps. List the steps, numbered, so the post is usable without you in the room.
A how-to post I wrote for a SaaS founder followed the same shape. His onboarding emails were sitting at a low open rate.
Every day, another lead left one unopened and forgot why they’d signed up in the first place.
The insight was that his subject lines were selling the product when they should’ve been selling the next five minutes.
He rewrote one line to match that insight, and opens on the very next send jumped noticeably.
Then I gave the reader three numbered lines telling them exactly how to rewrite their own subject line the same way.
The Three Formulas, as Finished Posts
Beats on their own stay abstract. So here are the three examples above, written out as posts you could paste into LinkedIn.
The beat names are labelled here for teaching. Strip the labels before you post, because the reader should feel the structure without seeing it.
SOAR, written out
(Situation) A coaching client came to me with 40 posts and almost nothing to show for them.
(Obstacle) Every single one announced a class or thanked a testimonial. Nobody stops scrolling for either.
(Action) So we threw out the announcement and wrote about one session that went sideways instead. A client cried nine minutes in, and she had no script for it.
She wrote what she said next, word for word.
(Result) That post pulled more comments in an afternoon than her previous 10 put together.
The lesson she took from it was that the session you wouldn’t put in a testimonial is the one people want to read about.
Notice the Obstacle beat doesn’t soften anything. “Nobody stops scrolling for either” is the sentence that makes the rest worth reading.
CLEAR, written out
(Claim) Positioning costs freelancers more deals than price does.
(Logic) A buyer who already trusts you stops negotiating your rate. They’re no longer comparing you to three other quotes, because they stopped shopping.
(Evidence) A client of mine rewrote her bio to name the one problem she solves and who she solves it for. The next prospect paid full price without countering.
Same rate she’d been discounting for a year.
(Application) So before you send your next proposal, read your own bio back. If it could belong to any freelancer in your field, that’s the deal you’re losing, not the number at the bottom.
(Recap) Price is rarely the objection. Being interchangeable is.
The Recap beat exists for the reader who skimmed the middle. It costs you one line and it catches everybody who scrolled.
PAIPS, written out
(Problem) Your onboarding emails are getting opened by almost nobody.
(Agitate) Every day another signup leaves one unread and forgets why they gave you their address. By week two they couldn’t tell you what your product does.
(Insight) Your subject lines are selling the product. At that moment nobody is buying the product, they’re deciding whether to spend the next five minutes.
(Proof) A SaaS founder I worked with rewrote one subject line to promise those five minutes instead of the feature. Opens on the very next send jumped enough that he messaged me about it.
(Steps) Rewrite yours in three passes:
- Cut the product name out of the subject line entirely.
- Write what the reader gets in the next five minutes.
- Cut it to six words.
The Steps beat is what earns the save. A reader who bookmarks a post comes back to it, and LinkedIn counts that.
Matching the Format to Your Hook
I keep 40 LinkedIn hook examples in my own swipe file, sorted into seven categories: hot-take, story, result, fear, how-to, framework, and news-jack.
Those seven categories map straight onto the three formats above.
Story and result hooks run on SOAR.
Hot-take, fear, and news-jack hooks run on CLEAR, because all three are making an argument even when they’re dressed up as a warning or a headline.
How-to and framework hooks run on PAIPS, because both are promising a process.
Comments drive LinkedIn reach more than views do, so every format above ends on a line built to pull a reply.
SOAR ends on a result specific enough to comment on.
CLEAR ends on a claim someone wants to argue with.
PAIPS ends on a step someone wants to report back on.
The One Rule That Makes All Three Formats Work
Any of these three formats depends on a specific detail sitting in the Result, Evidence, or Proof beat.
I ask myself the same question no matter which format I’m running.
Could a reader picture this happening, or could it have happened to anyone?
A SOAR result that says “and it worked” isn’t a result.
A CLEAR evidence beat that says “clients see better outcomes” isn’t evidence.
A PAIPS proof beat that says “this really helps” isn’t proof.
Swap in the client moment, the reframe, or the before-and-after, and the same four or five beats turn into a post instead of a template.
But this is the part of a LinkedIn post formula that stays on you.
The acronym gets you to the blank spot. Filling it with something real is still your job.
Writing One of These in Under 10 Minutes
The three formats above are the shape. The words are still yours to write, and that’s usually the part that eats the 10 minutes.
I built a free tool that takes your hook, asks which format it matches, and drafts the rest of the post in your voice.
It runs the same three shapes above, so the post it hands back follows SOAR, CLEAR, or PAIPS depending on what you fed it.
Pick the format that matches your hook, drop in the real situation, the real claim, or the real process you already have, and post it.
And that’s the only part of this that was ever going to take effort.
FAQ
How do I write a LinkedIn post?
Start from the hook, since the hook decides the shape. A story or result hook runs on SOAR, an opinion or hot-take hook runs on CLEAR, and a how-to or framework hook runs on PAIPS. Pick the matching formula, then fill each beat with a specific detail instead of a general one.
What is a good LinkedIn post formula?
A good LinkedIn post formula matches the type of post you're writing. I use SOAR for story and result posts, CLEAR for hot takes and opinions, and PAIPS for how-to and framework posts, and I pick between them based on the hook before I write a single line.
How do I structure a LinkedIn post?
Open with a hook that fits your situation, then run the body through one of three shapes. Story and result posts follow Situation, Obstacle, Action, Result. Opinion posts follow Claim, Logic, Evidence, Application, Recap. How-to posts follow Problem, Agitate, Insight, Proof, Steps.
What's the best LinkedIn post format for a hot take?
CLEAR works best for a hot take, because it forces you to back the opinion with logic and evidence before you tell the reader what to do about it. A claim with nothing under it just reads as a complaint.
What's the best LinkedIn post format for a client result?
SOAR works best for a result post, because Situation, Obstacle, Action, Result gives the reader the setup before the payoff. A result with no obstacle in front of it reads like a brag instead of a story.
What is the 4-1-1 rule on LinkedIn?
It's a ratio for what you share, not a formula for what you write. For every one post that promotes you and one that reshares someone else's work, it says publish four posts that are useful on their own. Andrew Davis built it at Tippingpoint Labs and Joe Pulizzi popularised it, originally for Twitter. It's a fair check on how self-serving your feed looks, and it still won't tell you how to write any single post. That's what SOAR, CLEAR, and PAIPS are for.
What is the 3/2/1 rule on LinkedIn?
There isn't one agreed version, which is worth knowing before someone sells you theirs. The most common reading splits a week into three industry posts, two posts carrying your own opinion, and one personal story. Others use it as an engagement ratio instead, commenting on two or three posts for every one you publish. Pick whichever cadence you'll actually keep, because none of the versions tells you how to write the post itself.
Want this built for your business? Book a free strategy call →