Sam G. Winsbury

We Create Thought Leaders Through Personal Branding | 150+ Personal Brands Built | Founder & CEO Kurogo

-- DM for Speaking Enquiries --

We turn entrepreneurs into credible thought leaders through personal branding so they can scale their businesses, unlock untapped opportunities and outlast their competition.

If you’re anything like our clients, you’re an expert in your field. One of the best.

But you just don’t seem to have the reputation you deserve.

You want to be the go-to authority in your industry and become an opportunity magnet.

That way you could…

- Generate inbound leads consistently
- Win clients and customers with ease
- Attract media features
- Attract top talent
- Speak on stage

The list is endless.

We help our clients do just that through the power of personal branding, by:

1. Giving them clarity on their brand and positioning them as industry leaders.
2. Blowing up their social profiles and landing them high-profile media features.
3. Helping them convert their new-found reputation into meaningful opportunities and ROI

And having built 300+ personal brands, we’ve got quite good at it, achieving results like these in the process:

🚀 Jack generated 2.5M views and 6 figures in revenue in 90 days with us 
🚀 Joe and Olly generated millions of views and saw a record month
🚀 Guy added 5 figures of pipeline value in a matter of months
🚀 Shan Grew 24,000 followers and landed $200,000 in sales
🚀 Olie added £50K of inbound revenue to his pipeline
🚀 Sue generated over 8.3 million views in 4 months
🚀 Jemma increased her views by 51,347%
🚀 James became an Amazon Best Seller 
🚀 Tom generated 5M views in 3 months 
🚀 Anna doubled her followers in 1 year
🚀 Debbie generated 11M Views

Your reputation is your biggest asset. Take control of it! 

If you want to see how we could help you build your personal brand, shoot me a dm saying ‘Personal Brand’

If you're not quite ready yet, I post daily content on here showing you how to do it yourself.

Founder

Pret A Manger CEO Pano Christou's journey is incredible.

2000: Assistant Manager
2019: Became CEO

In a world that pushes you to start a new job every 6 months or build a 6 figure business in 3, it’s nice to see there's still a case for working your way up in one place.

Personal Brand Advisor To Leading Entrepreneurs & Execs | 350+ Brands Built | Speaker | Sky, Entrepreneur, Insider | Founder & CEO Kurogo

2020

- Struggling freelancer
- Constantly ignored
- Insecure

2021

- Started taking LinkedIn seriously
- Began building my personal brand
- Started signing more clients

2022

- Hired team members
- Signed loads of clients
- Was the ‘kid with potential’

2024

- Grew rather fast
- Got rather stressed
- Increased my prices

2026

- Run quite a good personal brand agency
- Helped 350+ people build their brands
- Happiest I’ve ever been

What changed? 

1. 6 years of trial and error 
2. Huge focus on authority over everything
3. Realising everything you want is the other side of reach and reputation

More people trusting you as an expert will never not be useful.

So start sharing your ideas/opinions/expertise online.

For 15 years, the growth playbook was “send & spend”.

Run ads → generate leads → sales grinds → numbers game → maths works.

And to be fair… it did work when buying was simple and linear.

2005 buying: see ad → click → buy.

But 2026 buying is not linear.

2026 buying: see you → ignore you → see you again → ask a friend → google you → check your LinkedIn → read comments → watch a video → forget → come back 3 weeks later → then enquire.

It’s not a funnel anymore. It’s a squiggly line.

Inside the chaos, only one thing matters:

Trust.

Because when buyers have unlimited choice and unlimited information, they don’t pick the “best” option on paper.

They pick the option that feels safest.
The one they trust most.

Here’s the truth:

If you still rely on “cheap leads + pushy sales” to do the heavy lifting,
you’re betting against how modern buyers behave.

They do the work before they ever speak to you:

- searching your name
- checking your LinkedIn
- looking for social proof
- scanning for authority
- testing if you’re credible

So if your marketing is only designed for volume

but not designed to create trust…
you’re just paying to enter the messy middle 
(where you’re judged, compared, and forgotten)

That’s why trust-based marketing is winning.

And the best way to collapse the timeline for trust? 

Personal brand.

- 89.4% are more likely to trust a company if a senior leader is seen as an expert
- 98.2% say leadership expertise affects purchasing decisions
- 85.9% would pay at least 2x more to work with a leader in their space

The top 1% in every industry are exploiting this.

Over the last few years, I’ve even used it to:

- help 350+ execs build their brands
- generate 100M+ views
- drive £10M+ in pipeline

And I’ve seen the same patterns again and again.

There are 5 trends the top 1% of industry leaders are using to dominate 2026.

I’m breaking all of them down in a new live training:

“The 2026 Personal Brand Playbook: How To Build A $1M Personal Brand.”

If you want your reputation to do more of the heavy lifting…

Join the live training here: https://lnkd.in/e6ZKYnmB

Ps. Everyone who attends will get our FULL LinkedIn Profile Optimisation Blueprint for free (usually £79)

For years, 'having a great product' was enough.

Your work would do the talking... That world is closing. Fast.

Here is what the data says:

→ 90% of executives think people trust them
→ 30% of customers actually do

Pwc call it 'The Trust Gap'.

That gap is where deals are won and lost.

Best way to close it? Personal branding.

When I look at the 350+ brands we have built, the ones who win treat personal branding as a tool, not an ego trip.

They follow a simple flow:

1️⃣ Position

You become “THE person for X”, not “Another option”.

→ Clear proof
→ Clear promise
→ Clear point of view

2️⃣ Amplify

You show up where your buyers already spend time.

→ Content that speaks to their pain
→ Opinion, frameworks, predictions
→ It acts like a 24/7 salesperson

3️⃣ Convert

You turn attention into pipeline.

→ Clear, low friction next steps
→ Nurturing focus, not chasing
→ Ecosystems, not funnels

We are in the reputation economy.

So today I'm breaking down the 5 trends that will separate the top 1% of leaders from everyone else in 2026:

→ The rise of the executive personal brand
→ The shift from posting to positioning
→ Fame vs authority
→ Ecosystem-driven growth
→ How AI will make or break your reputation

If you want your face to be the one people trust in 2026, now is the time to build it.

Join us for our workshop later where I have nothing to pitch to you:

https://lnkd.in/e6ZKYnmB

View company: Kurogo - Personal Branding Agency

In this session, Sam Winsbury (Founder of Kurogo) will walk through the 5 Trends That Will Separate the Top 1% of Thought Leaders From Everyone Else in 2026:

✅ The rise of the executive personal brand (and why people trust individuals far more than companies

✅ Why positioning beats posting (and how authority compounds)

✅ Why fame ≠ authority (and how ‘smaller’ brands are winning higher-value deals)

✅ The “ecosystem” strategy replacing funnels (how modern consumers really ‘buy before they pay’)

✅ How to use AI without damaging your reputation

Plus everyone who attends will get 3 exclusive bonuses:

🎁 Bonus 1: Our Complete Guide To Building A Personal Brand in 2026
🎁 Bonus 2: Our Profile Optimisation Checklist For Free (Worth £79)
🎁 Bonus 3: A Free 30 Day Trial To The Thought Leader’s Academy (Worth £97)

This session is designed for:

- Founders, CEOs, and marketing teams
- Consultants, coaches, and professional services
- Anyone whose business depends on trust, credibility, and reputation

If you feel like:

- opportunities are harder to come by
- sales cycles are getting longer
- competition feels louder but not better
- or you’re being overlooked despite having a great offer

This session will give you the roadmap to dominating your industry in 2026. 

🗓️ 5th February 2026
⏰ 18.00 GMT / 12.00 CST

View event: How To Build A $1M Personal Brand In 2026: 5 Trends You Must Know

How To Build A $1M Personal Brand In 2026: 5 Trends You Must Know

Lara Acosta

Entrepreneur and investor building businesses online | Featured on Forbes, Kajabi + Semrush | Helped 3,000+ people build their personal brand.

Everyone wants to build a personal brand, and I figured out how.

With over 20M+ impressions, 300,000 followers across socials, and multiple 6 figures made, I can show you how you can build one too (without spending years figuring out how)

In 2022: I was unemployed and trying to get into a master's degree - downloaded LinkedIn
In 2023: I became #1 female creator on LinkedIn by building my personal brand and agency
In 2024: I'm building the best education platform to teach people exactly how to do it

Helped, coached and worked with 500+ build contents systems, increase engagement, improve their writing and beyond using proven strategies that worked for me. 

Here's how I can help you:

1. Subscribe to my YouTube (It's free, and better than people's paid courses!)
2. Join 15,100+ amazing people and subscribe to my newsletter. 
3. Join 500+ members inside Literallyacademy.com

And if you're not ready for either! Welcome to my profile anyway, I talk about writing, storytelling,  personal branding and tell a lot of stories.

See you on the feed 💖

Sponsorships + booking : mary@ladigitalmx.com

I failed to get into my dream university when I was 18.
Next week, I'm headlining as a guest speaker there. 

I've dreamed of this moment for 10 years.

Got rejected, but kept pushing.
The reason? It was my dad's dream too.

In the 90's he won a scholarship to study at the London School of Economics amongst 100s of applicants.

Packed his bag and flew all the way to Europe.

All in pursuit of one goal: providing for his future family.

Getting the privilege to get to see my dad's dreams become a reality is the greatest honour. 

The late nights, early mornings, and hard work paid off. 

A reminder from me, a serial rejection letter receiver:

When the plan doesn't work... change the plan, NEVER the goal. Please. Believe in yourself, you got this.

We made it dad ♥️

To anyone in London next week - hope to see you there: https://lnkd.in/eKn7KUQK 

Repost ♻️ to inspire all other entrepreneurs who are doing it for their parents ❤️

PS: Did you spot the background?

Entrepreneur and investor building businesses online | Featured on Forbes, Kajabi + Semrush | Helped 3,000+ people grow their personal brand and scale their businesses.

I posted on LinkedIn for the first time in 2023 after deleting it for an entire year...it changed my life. 

Here are 12 things that happened since my first post:

 1. Got featured on Forbes 4x times
 2. Became an investor for @Neutonic
 3. Been on my dream podcasts and events
 4. Moved to my dream apartment in London
 5. Built 3x businesses making 6 and 7 figures
 6. Built a community of 310,000 people on here
 7. Sold out a programme in 7 days made $200k
 8. Flew my parents in business class a few times
 9. Became friends with people I used to learn from
10. Scaled an Kleo to multi-6 figures in <4 months
11. Became LinkedIn's #1 Female Creator worldwide
12. Traveled around the world to speak at conferences

The CRAZIEST part? There's nothing special to me.
I was just a student trying to get a job after university.

Turns out that 1 single decision can change your life. 

If you've been waiting for a "sign" here it is. 

Remember my friend: the cost of being invisible is the opportunities you never get access to. 

PS: Drop ONE question you have about LinkedIn growth? 

PPS: I'm hosting a 3-day LIVE FREE challenge for LinkedIn Growth... join me here: https://lnkd.in/e3SHsCjw

"Speak at the London School of Economics, for my dad"

I've had this as a goal for over 3 years. 

Last night, that dream I used to journal about came true.

When I started posting on LinkedIn, I had nothing to talk about. No "big" qualifications. No industry connections.

Just me, poor writing skills and a free LinkedIn account.

Weeks later, I'd gotten my first freelance clients.
Months later, I started building a marketing agency.
A year later it crossed 6-figures while I was at university. 

Not because I had the "perfect" plan.

But because I was willing to go for it without it. 

Post 4x a week about a skill you have.
Comment 10x more than you post (please).
Write about your story, not just what you know. 

That's it, the rest you'll figure out later. 

Start before you "feel" ready. Do it scared.

Make your family proud, just like I did mine. 🫶 

PS: What is your dream, tell me about it!

PPS: I'm hosting a 3-day LIVE FREE challenge for LinkedIn Growth... join me here: https://lnkd.in/e3SHsCjw

We ranked popular business books and got 494k views.

After reading over 200+ business books and building businesses... Timothy and I had VERY honest takes. 

Drop your list of books below so we can rank those next!

PS: Think and Grow Rich will ALWAYS be a staple for me!

Age 18: Couldn't speak in public. Had a stutter.
Age 21: Couldn't pitch myself. Felt insecure. 
Age 23: Couldn't increase my prices. Felt expensive.
Age 25: Built my first 6-figure business. Felt late. 

At 28: I run 3x multi-six and 7-figure businesses.

I speak in front of 1000s weekly (without stuttering.)

I never felt ready to do the things I did to get here.
I didn't wait until I had all the right skills to start.

Instead I: 

Found a hard skill I could learn fast (writing).
Relentlessly studied it and mastered it. 

My self-confidence grew, and so did I in the process. 

You don't lack confidence; you lack repetition. 

To every professional and entrepreneur who relates:

If you can't find a seat at the table. Build your own.

The company is better anyway. Build yourself. 
Don't let confidence and self-doubt stop you. 

Repost ♻️ to inspire others today. 

PS: I'm documenting everything step-by-step here from business to confidence https://lnkd.in/ePmtkSa8! see you there!

pov: our ai startup just hit its first $190k month.

26 days. 1 webinar. 1 huge email campaign + linkedin.

our approach has been dead from day 1 simple:

1. build distribution first (organic linkedin content)
2. turn that into owned traffic (waitlist to email list)
3. build the product in with our users ( early access)
4. fix, test and iterate the product every week
5. pick a launch date (randomly) and promote 
6. send weekly emails pre-launch to warm list up 
7. build a promotion sequence for launch week
8. wrap up with a webinar and make a 1-time offer

this is exactly how we've done it. 

not paid a single penny on ads, marketing or influencers. 
we became our own "influencers" instead. 

crossed $100k 24hrs in. 
grew to $190k weeks later.

and our bets? we can cross $200k before february ends. 

and it's just the beginning... thank you for your support.

ps: we're hiring! if you want to join the Kleo team drop a comment and tell us why you'd like to join us. 

try Kleo here → https://lnkd.in/emEV_GhM

I grew to 310k LinkedIn followers with 7 non-negotiables.

60-second growth masterclass (Save this for later):

1. I write a 'transformation' story once a week
↳ Focused on my starting point to be relatable
↳ Share where I am at now to show proof + credibility

2. I invested heavily in visual branding
↳ Premium visuals and photos 10x your positioning (!!!)

3. I focused on frictionless leverage building 
↳ Built omnipresence through strategic collaboration 
↳ Picked 10 people with similar niches to hack visibility

4. I focused on the distribution networks that matter
↳  LinkedIn first, then newsletter and YouTube
↳  Long-form attention compounds over time

5. I write 2-3 in-depth posts breaking 1 topic down
↳ Step-by-step outlining the exact steps (for authority)
↳ Give away the entire playbook so anyone can use it

6. I publicly support others on the platform
↳ Not many people do this, but it builds community fast
↳ Turn your brand into a movement, not just content

7. I have a set of topics I NEVER branch out on 
↳ Keeps my content specific and consistent, not random and sporadic (helps the algo rankings).

Bonus one I started doing more in 2025 (worked well)

8. I don't educate... I try and test and document.
↳ Instead of focusing on being an expert, be a scientist 
↳ Show what you're doing, not just what you've done

This is how you actually build in public, by documenting the process live and what you're doing day-to-day.

A very honest list. But it works, every single time. 

These 7 non-negotiables work for any niche. 
They work even better in this new algorithm. 

Focus on being useful, not an expert. 

Your audience will love that even more. 

PS: What is your 1 non-negotiable? Drop it below! 

PPS: If you want to learn how I do 8 - I just dropped a 27min masterclass on founder-led storytelling.

Watch it here (for free): https://lnkd.in/eWf6Waq7

Repost ♻️ this and I'll give 5 of you free access to my community and programme!

I figured out a way to get 1,000 leads for free on LinkedIn

(It works every single time I do it)

Now, most people do this the wrong way:

They have pushy DM sequences.
They build "lead magnets" with ChatGPT.
They post "sales only" content that gets no reach. 

My favorite way that actually works?

Building a weekly lead magnet using Lovable. 

I pick a single burning problem (i.e an AI post analyzer)
I build it with all my knowledge in seconds so it works.

And here's what I avoid doing:

I don't do the comment X and i'll send you Y tactic.
This is getting people banned from LinkedIn every day! 

Instead: 

1. Build a product that you'd actually sell
2. Write why this is unique to your customer in the copy
3. Give them free access in exchange for an email 

That's it. No need to send 1000's of DMs in a day. 

Just good copy, an insane website built on Lovable and happy users that will reach out to thank you for it. 

Been running this exact playbook for a year now.
It works (and doesn't get me banned).

Watch the full video to see what I built for you this time. 

Want to give it a go? Try Lovable here https://lnkd.in/ewye_p4Q 

PS: Repost this post and i'll send you the tutorial of how I built this LIVE so you can do the same!

#lovablepartner

By 27 I built a $1M online business with 89% profit margins using LinkedIn a distribution channel.

Here’s how I’d do it all over again in 2026:

(If you’re not getting leads, this workflow will help you)

I call it the 3-Step AI Lead Gen System.

1. Content that builds trust fast
3. Tools like Apollo to scale outreach
3. Comment + DM strategy to capture intent

The lead-gen game isn’t about inbound vs outbound.

It’s about doing both, well at the same time.

• Build content that creates trust over time.
• Outreach to people who show interest using Apollo.
• Build a sales sequence with it to maximise lead gen.

My agency clients showed me how they are making $100k/mo without 100k followers using those 3 steps.

1. Post weekly educational content to nurture.
2. Use Apollo’s AI Assistant to find warm leads...
3. Build ready-to-message lists in minutes.

Land clients faster, instead of waiting for them.

You don’t need to play the lead gen game on hard mode.
Content builds attention but the right system converts it.

Apollo’s new AI Assistant is in beta and if you want to get access to it before everyone else you can try it out here: https://lnkd.in/eh7icQgH

#ApolloPartner 

PS: I recorded a 20-minute FREE masterclass for this.

Want it? Comment LEADS and i'll send it over now!

Yes, it's true. The "LinkedIn Algo" has changed... but landing high-ticket clients was never about impressions.

It's about what I call "content-offer" fit.

I learnt this after I grew to 20k followers.
And had no clear monetisation path. 

Viral content. An 'optimized' profile... Few closed deals.

This hurt - I didn't want to be a 'content creator'. 
I wanted to run my content into consistent revenue.

So my content and overall brand had to match my offer.

Before I break this down, I'm going live for a 3-Day FREE live masterclass, join me here: https://lnkd.in/e3SHsCjw

Here's what I did to land high-ticket clients from posts:

1. My content went from "broad" to "1 person 1 problem" - I spoke about their needs and wants not just me.
   
2. My engagement went from "adding everyone" to "10-15 hyper-personalised connection requests to my ICP.
   
3. My comments and dm's always focused on solving a problem or giving value not just "hey good post". 
   
   ^ this was a life-changer, I still get leads from just that. 
   
4. My "engagement" time went from just commenting on every post to looking at profile views and targeting them. 

Look today, your content is either converting clients or wasting your effort and time pursuing impressions.

The difference between both is content-offer fit.
Not the algorithm, or your "low impressions".

If you want to see me explain this in FULL depth and show you the step-by-step LIVE join me on Thursday: https://lnkd.in/e3SHsCjw

I keep on doing these free lives and we keep on getting better. See you there!

PS: Comment "dm" below if you want me to drop a full DM to close masterclass to convert 'lurkers' on Linkedin!

I'm scared. In less than 6 hours I'm exposing every single "new" LinkedIn algorithm claim LIVE. 

And I need your help. 

I know you've read the algorithm reports.
I know you've seen the posts around it too. 

I know that you're even trying to follow the "new" strategies pushed by big creators 

So I have 4 questions for you:

1. What question do you STILL have about the algo
2. What is ACTUALLY working for you right now?
3. Have those reports/articles actually helped?
4. Knowing what you know, what do you still not know?

Let's make this the best live class I've ever done. 

Here's the free link if you want to join https://lnkd.in/e3SHsCjw

Drop your questions below.

I'm rooting for you.

I've been building in public since I started on LinkedIn. 

The benefit? Sold-out launches every single time. 

The thing is, you don't need "authentic" content.
You just need "useful" content. 

Marketers overused authenticity for content.
But undervalue expertise and experience. 

And so if you've been wondering how to do exactly that..

Jake Ward and I will be showing you how we both:

• Built our personal brands to 170k and 308k in 3 years
• Grown cult-like followings without selfies
• Used content to build our businesses

Join us for a 60-minute Q/A! 

See you on Wednesday, 4th at 7pm UK time

Drop your questions below so we can prepare the best answers.

Mahmoud Owies, Lara Acosta and 22 other connections attending

Free Q&A: Building Profitable Businesses, Content + Distribution

taplio

The Battle

Sam G. Winsbury

Lara Acosta

Followers

Posts

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Likes

Performance ScoreSam G. Winsbury's LinkedIn Performance

Performance ScoreLara Acosta's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

taplio

The Battle

Sam G. Winsbury

Lara Acosta

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Sam G. Winsbury's LinkedIn Performance

Performance ScoreLara Acosta's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

Performance ScoreSam G. Winsbury's LinkedIn Performance