7 Steps to Make your LinkedIn Profile Work for You
As social media continues to play a big part in the professional world, we all know how invaluable a strong LinkedIn profile can be. This is especially true if you are looking for a new role and want to make sure your profile is showcasing the best of your skills and expertise, so that a future employer will be able to find out about your experience quickly and easily.
Currently, LinkedIn has over 660M active members, so it’s more important than ever to invest in the content, layout and overall presentation of your profile. This is typically the first view into your professional experience that future employers will have, so spend some time making it the best version it can be. A professional resume writer can also help you with this, so reaching out to them could really benefit your profile.
7 STEPS TO OPTIMIZE YOUR LINKEDIN
1- Include a headshot
This should be your first point of call when focusing on LinkedIn optimization, and is your virtual handshake to someone visiting your profile. If possible, use a professional photo of yourself where you are wearing appropriate attire and smiling naturally. A good presentation of yourself is key for a successful profile. Make sure not to leave this blank, and don’t be shy!
2- Use a custom URL
You will have a default profile URL when you set your profile up, but what not many people know is that this can be changed by the user. Consider using your full name (if it’s available) and a keyword from your industry eg ‘alanahenry-resume’. A professional resume writer could also help you with profile writing; contact The Writique for more details.
3- Enhance your branding
See this line as an opportunity to think about your personal brand and how you want to articulate it. Customize your headline to showcase your expertise and try and summarize what you do. Think about stating your specialist area or role, but then adding extra keywords to bulk your headline out that will ultimately make your profile more searchable.
4- Focus on experience
This is the most important section of your profile; your experience and employment history. This section is the reason why someone has been brought to your profile in the first place. Take time with this, and make sure to include as many relevant industry keywords when relaying your experience. Make sure to include professional achievements and examples, and feel free to use a more informal tone than in your resume or cover letter.
5- Build connections
Your network should be built on strong connections, so it’s important that you spend time connecting with those in certain sectors or industries that are relevant to either your experience now, or to a future job search. Look at people who inspire you, who work where you would like to work and who may connect you further with great individuals (and subsequently their networks). The best resume writing services will tell you to aim for around 250 connections, but be sure they are all carefully selected and make sense to your network.
6- Show your skills
This section allows you to list your individual skills and is another important section for building your personal brand. Here, you are able to list up to 50 skills that best describe your strong points with regard to your experience. Think carefully about which skills you include, and be honest. Too many and a recruiter’s eye may gloss over them, and too few could make you look more junior than you are.
7- Get involved
Whilst LinkedIn is predominantly an environment for professionals, it’s functions can be used in a more social way. Making sure you like, comment and congratulate people on their posts or work news means that you are staying present on the network whilst being supportive of your connections The phrase “out of sight, out of mind” absolutely applies here and, if there isn’t a huge amount of activity, consider sharing interesting articles and blog posts that you believe may interest those in your network. Staying at the forefront of people’s minds (and notifications!) could improve your chances of being considered more quickly for new roles.
For extra guidance, contact The Writique for your LinkedIn optimization.
