| name | post-to-linkedin |
| description | Use when announcing a release, paper, grant, talk, award, or project update on LinkedIn from this repo. Covers drafting, OAuth setup, token refresh, and posting via scripts/post_to_linkedin.py. |
Post to LinkedIn
Compose and post announcements to LinkedIn from this repo via scripts/post_to_linkedin.py. LinkedIn API posts are free (no per-post charge, unlike X Premium). Max commentary length is 3,000 chars.
The draft format, hashtag sets, and writing rules are shared with the post-to-x skill (same scripts/drafts/ directory, same references/draft-patterns.md, same references/hashtag-sets.md at skills/post-to-x/references/).
When to use
- User asks to post, share, or announce something on LinkedIn
- Cross-post: the same release/paper/grant that went to X, adapted for LinkedIn tone
- Longer-form academic/professional framing where the 25,000-char X Premium post would feel out of place
Do not use for: generic networking DMs, connection requests, group posts to a Company Page feed (this skill posts to the authenticated user's personal feed only).
Prerequisites
Two gates.
Gate 1: drafting / previewing
~/miniforge3/envs/py312/python.exe has requests and python-dotenv installed (pip install -r scripts/requirements-post.txt).- Source data available:
data/open-source.json, data/publications.json, or user-provided text.
Gate 2: real post
.env at repo root contains LINKEDIN_CLIENT_ID + LINKEDIN_CLIENT_SECRET.- LinkedIn app has products Share on LinkedIn (Default Tier, gives
w_member_social) and Sign In with LinkedIn using OpenID Connect (Standard Tier, gives openid profile email) approved. Both are self-serve; approval is typically instant.
.env also contains LINKEDIN_ACCESS_TOKEN, LINKEDIN_TOKEN_EXPIRES_AT, LINKEDIN_USER_URN, written by --auth on first run. LINKEDIN_REFRESH_TOKEN is written when LinkedIn returns one; on default self-serve apps it may be empty, in which case re-run --auth after the access token expires (60 days).- User has reviewed and approved the dry-run preview for this specific post.
If Gate 2 fails, stop and report before posting. Drafting and previewing may continue.
One-time OAuth setup
Before the first post, user must:
- Create a LinkedIn Developer app at https://developer.linkedin.com (requires a Company Page, not a personal profile; a 2-minute free Company Page creation is fine).
- Add Products: Share on LinkedIn + Sign In with LinkedIn using OpenID Connect. Both auto-approve.
- In the app's Auth tab, add
http://localhost:8765/callback to Authorized redirect URLs.
- Copy Client ID + Client Secret into
.env (see .env.example).
- Run:
python scripts/post_to_linkedin.py --auth
This opens a browser, user authorizes, tokens + user URN are written back to .env. Takes about 10 seconds.
Access tokens last 60 days. The script auto-refreshes when a refresh token is available, but LinkedIn's default self-serve tier typically does not return a refresh token (observed 2026-04-22). In that case, re-run --auth when the access token expires; the re-auth flow is unchanged, takes ~10 seconds.
Workflow
1. Identify source → open-source.json / publications.json / user-provided
2. Draft to file → scripts/drafts/<slug>.md (same directory as X drafts)
Can reuse an X draft directly, or tweak for LinkedIn tone.
For LinkedIn the draft can be longer (up to 3,000 chars)
and more narrative; hashtag volume can be higher (~5 to 10
is normal on LinkedIn without penalty).
3. Preview dry-run → python scripts/post_to_linkedin.py --dry-run --draft <path>
4. Iterate → show preview, accept user edits, re-preview
5. Post → python scripts/post_to_linkedin.py --yes --draft <path>
Attach images with --media <path> (repeatable, up to 20).
6. Report URL → return https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/<URN>/
Always run step 3 before step 5. No exceptions. --yes skips the interactive prompt; never use --yes without a prior successful --dry-run that the user approved.
Hard rules
- Lead with the one-line value prop, same as X posts. LinkedIn readers scan the first sentence; if it does not answer "what is different now?", they scroll past.
- LinkedIn tone is slightly more professional than X. Fewer bullet lists, more connective prose. Emojis are accepted but not required.
- Hashtags: 3 to 10 tags is fine on LinkedIn (higher ceiling than X). Pick from
skills/post-to-x/references/hashtag-sets.md.
- Apply CLAUDE.md writing rules:
- No em dashes (Unicode U+2014) or en dashes (Unicode U+2013) as casual punctuation.
- No banned AI-tell words.
- Prefer full forms (
it is) over contractions.
- No Unicode
U+202F.
- Verify every factual claim. Star counts, download counts, venue names, coauthor names must match
data/open-source.json, data/publications.json, or user-stated facts.
- Cost: zero. LinkedIn does not charge per-post via the API.
Post type differences from X
| Aspect | X (Premium) | LinkedIn |
|---|
| Char limit | 25,000 | 3,000 |
| Per-post cost | $0.20 with URL, $0.015 without | free |
| URL length counting | t.co shortens to 23 chars | full literal length |
| Hashtags | 3 to 5 | 3 to 10 |
| Tone | direct, punchy, dev-adjacent | professional, narrative, network-adjacent |
| Thread support | native reply-chain (X side only) | not used; single post is canonical on LinkedIn |
| Image limit per post | 4 | 20 |
Common mistakes (draft from post-to-x + observed)
| Mistake | Fix |
|---|
| Reusing an X draft verbatim without adjusting tone | LinkedIn readers expect more context; add 1-2 sentences of positioning before the bullets |
| Dumping too many hashtags (over 10) | LinkedIn allows more than X but the algorithm still penalizes stuffing; stay at 5 to 8 |
Posting without running --dry-run | Contract: dry-run is mandatory. Check cost, char count, media attachments |
| Posting with expired token + no refresh_token | Re-run --auth to get a fresh refresh_token |
| Posting an X draft that uses t.co-shortened URL math | LinkedIn counts URLs literally; re-check char count on the preview |
Quick reference
- Script source:
scripts/post_to_linkedin.py
- Flags:
python scripts/post_to_linkedin.py --help
- Env vars: see
.env.example for LINKEDIN_* keys
- Shared draft patterns:
skills/post-to-x/references/draft-patterns.md
- Shared hashtag sets:
skills/post-to-x/references/hashtag-sets.md
- First live post: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:share:7472734205077053440/ (posted 2026-06-16; "Safe Models, Unsafe Agents" talk announcement, slide image + 6-paper list)
