Your LinkedIn profile is the perfect tool to advertise yourself as a professional and grow a solid network. A well written and updated LinkedIn profile can bring countless benefits to your professional life.
Most employers and recruiters use LinkedIn to find candidates to fill their top positions.
They may determine how employable you are right after looking at the information on your LinkedIn profile, before even considering inviting you for an interview!
Your colleagues and clients can also look you up on LinkedIn and write a recommendation or “review” about you as a professional and/or your services. These can be powerful endorsements from those who you’ve had professional relationships with in the past.
WHAT TO KEEP UPDATED?
SOCIAL TONE
Your CV is a formal document. The strength of your CV is in the structure and word choices, so every word should be carefully selected for impact and relevance.
LinkedIn, on the other hand, is a social network first. Because the strength of LinkedIn is in the connections you make, your tone can be more relaxed and casual.
a professional photograph
A photo is essential for an optimised LinkedIn profile. Remember that the main idea on LinkedIn is to portray yourself as a professional, therefore, it’s strongly advisable not to use pictures of yourself in social settings, or at the beach!
Your goal is to keep you photo recent, recognisable and come across as likable, professional, influential and competent:
- dress professionally;
- make sure the background doesn’t distract from your face and is professional;
- face the camera and smile with your eyes.
YOUR HEADLINE
When someone performs a search on LinkedIn, they’ll see a list of people in the results who meet their search criteria. Along with their picture, name, title, and location.
Include keywords and interests in your headline, so that anyone can find your profile when searching on LinkedIn for your skill set.
PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY
This gives you the opportunity to present a compelling snapshot of your professional expertise and personal brand.
FACTUAL FLOW OF ROLES & PROJECTS
Make sure your current position and industry are correct. This will help connect you to relevant groups, jobs and content. Ensure your past jobs and projects on LinkedIn are complete and consistent with your CV.
UPDATE YOUR LOCATION
Including a location and keeping it up to date can help you be discovered up to 23x more in searches by employers, recruiters and former colleagues.
UPDATE YOUR STATUS
Posting status updates at least twice a week is recommended. That way, your updates will be seen by your connections and all the people who find your profile on LinkedIn.
SKILLS & ENDORSEMENTS
Show your skills and endorsements. You can list your professional skills, and your connections might endorse you for that skill and write a review for you.
VALUE DELIVERED
Whether you have successfully increased production by 10% or increased sales by 15%, strategically addressing what’s in it for the reader is appropriate (and effective) on both platforms.
USE KEYWORDS
Be strategic about describing your qualifications and skills to maximise the usefulness of both tools.
Use key words and jargon appropriately. You know your industry best, make sure you’re using language that not only makes sense, but also makes you easier to find.
BRIEF CV, LONGER LINKEDIN PROFILE
LinkedIn gives you more space than the length recommended for a traditional CV. Don’t miss the opportunity to use it by giving examples and even stories!
Remember your LinkedIn profile is a living, breathing, and ever-evolving creation. Keeping it current and updated is critical for your success in online networking. Take advantage of your ability to include links to projects and publish blog posts to create a reputation and position yourself as a knowledgeable go to professional in your industry!!!
