The views expressed by the business participants are their own.
With more than 1 billion users in 200 countries around the world, LinkedIn is currently the largest networking platform. So, whether it’s for professional networking or job search purposes, it’s more important than ever to customize and optimize your LinkedIn profile. Similar to advertising, visitors to your profile page will likely spend a few precious seconds to form an impression, so it’s important that everything is clear, concise and to the point. Fortunately, LinkedIn has a robust feature set that allows for a lot of customization. Unfortunately, many on the platform ignore the important parts of their profile, in some cases they don’t include them at all and often they don’t make the most of what is there.
As you create your LinkedIn profile, an important goal to remember is that you want to clearly describe four things in a short and digestible way: who you are, what you do professionally, what you’ve done and why. you want – especially those who are hunting for jobs. You should remove anything that does not contribute to any of these points.
Related: Learn How to Improve Your LinkedIn Profile and Land Your Dream Job
Below are six key considerations and optimizations for optimizing your LinkedIn profile:
1. Your profile picture
When you see someone’s profile on LinkedIn, at the very top is a back cover photo. It’s shocking how often that important piece of real estate is left empty. It’s easy to customize, so be sure to upload a cover. Anything is better than nothing, but I strongly encourage you to make the most of that space; don’t just put a solid picture or pattern there. Take advantage of that key area by choosing an image that gives you a certain sense of understanding and, ideally, even your validation (check mine, for example, to show an interview taking place) or, at least, that conveys some kind of emotion. about something important to you.
2. Get a certified test score
Below the cover photo, look for a verification check next to your name. This is a free service from LinkedIn and it verifies potential employers and partners (and employers for job hunters) that you are who you say you are. Fake profiles are often created, so this verification gives your visitors more confidence that your profile is legitimate. If your profile is not currently verified, find a way to verify it if possible (or the next time you can, do it; it’s important for the future, even if you can’t have it now). Understandably, you may have privacy concerns, and those same privacy concerns, in fact, relate to everything you do online using your desktop and mobile. Always remember that this is an important validation of your work.
3. Create your title
Almost everyone on the platform has a great article posted. Many of them need improvement. This is a small space for communicating very sensitive information. Avoid any extra words that don’t have your meaning. Avoid using too many symbols. Avoid using broad, general language. Be brief, specific and use this space to clearly express who you are, what you do, and/or what you want.
4. Display your work on your “personal billboard”
LinkedIn has a featured section that you can add, but most people don’t use it at all. Submissions may include posts, newsletters, articles, links, media or other transparent content from your profile. You can also organize the list, which is important since visitors will only see two to four of your entries (depending on the viewing platform) without scrolling.
5. List your skills – and promote the skills of your colleagues
LinkedIn allows you to list your top skills, and others may allow those skills individually. Usually, people have 50-plus skills associated with their profile and allow a certain number of them. Did you know that visitors to your profile page only see the top two listings (unless they click to see more, which most don’t)? Also, did you know you have the ability to sort the list? Be sure to organize your skills so that the top two reflect the most important things a business partner or potential employer would like to see.
Related: Learn How to Improve Your LinkedIn Profile and Land Your Dream Job
6. Show your experience
Most important is your experience section, where you list each company you’ve worked for. The first mistake people make is using a description to describe a company. Think of this page as your CV; this space is where you should describe your role in the company. A line or two about the company is fine, of course, but also consider using letters to highlight important jobs and accomplishments you’ve made while working there. This is especially important for your recent experience or the last couple if the most recent was a short period of time. What is often overlooked is that you can associate skills with each experience description. You can also add media, such as press releases, white papers, interviews or other media related to your involvement with that company.
By the way, if you happen to sign up for LinkedIn Sales Navigator, there is a tool available on the platform called the “Social Selling Index,” which measures your social selling efforts. This tool assesses your overall brand, relationships, people and insights. Part of your index product is related to your profile.
Some say LinkedIn is the place for CVs. I won’t go that far, but there is no doubt that it is an important professional communication tool and well worth your time to adjust and perfect. In some cases, it is used literally instead of continuous. In some cases, you’ll never even get asked for a resume unless your LinkedIn page tells the right story up front. I encourage you to explore all the categories, try all the settings, organize each editable list to highlight the most important and think about the images you use.
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