How To Create An Effective LinkedIn Profile That Lands Jobs
“3 people are hired through LinkedIn every minute” – LinkedIn
If you are not using LinkedIn for your job search, you are missing out on a lot of opportunities.
LinkedIn now has close to 800 million people and 70% of them are “decision-makers”.
Through LinkedIn you have great opportunities to engage and interact with millions of people and develop meaningful connections.
Through LinkedIn you can showcase your skills, expertise and credibility much more easily and effectively than if you were to use other means like resumes or cover letters.
The days of creating a resume and sending to 100s of companies are long gone.
If you want to command your own income and success, you need to improve how you do things online. Especially on LinkedIn. I consider LinkedIn to be a goldmine for professionals.
Through my experience as a job seeker and a digital marketer, I have identified 5 key areas that will bring the greatest success for you with LinkedIn.
Let’s get started.
1. Update Your Headline
Your headline is the most viewed piece of text in your LinkedIn profile.
It is the first thing people see when they visit your profile, when you send a connection or post comments or updates on LinkedIn.
To make the most out of this section, create a headline that clearly tells people what you do.
If you are looking to advance your career. Try this formula.
Format: [Your job title] | [keyword] | [keyword] | [keyword]
ex: Digital Marketing Specialist | Email Marketing | Content | PPC | SEO
This format will make it easier for hiring managers and decision makers to find you.
The keywords listed will help others figure out your speciality.
Alternatively, if you are working for yourself, you can position yourself as a solution provider for specific client challenges.
Format: Helping [who is your ideal client] [client challenge]
Ex: Helping accountants write effective content for email and social media
Brainstorm a few and play around to see which one you resonate with.
You can always change and refine it over time.
2. Put a professional or very clear profile photo
Having a professional headshot will show others that you are organized, thorough and credible.
People are fundamentally social beings. They feel comforted and secured when they see the faces of others.
The goal is to put a clear picture so that people can easily identify and connect with you.
Here are some tips for great pic:
Smile – it’s the universal welcome symbol
Avoid side views and shadowy shots
Face forward so you can look into the eyes of those checking you out
Choose a simple background or one that shows your personal brand
Dress in a way that reflects who you are and people you help
I highly recommend you invest in a professional picture if you don’t have one already. It will pay off for a long time.
3. Add a banner to your profile
Your banner image is the largest image area in your profile.
Many people leave this section blank or they put something rather vague.
This is an area that can be utilized to showcase your skills and creativity and invite people to work with you.
Be creative and show your personality.
You can easily create a LinkedIn Banner Using Canva for free.
If you are looking for a job, you can create banners with your job title and key skills just like the one below.
If you are a freelancer or starting out your business, you can tell people what you do to help others. You also provide more details such as your website.
Keep it simple and straightforward to get started.
4. Get & give recommendations
Showing recommendations and testimonials is key to building trust and credibility among your people.
When people first meet you, they have no idea how it feels to work with you. The recommendations others give you will provide an insight for others how it feels to work with you.
The more recommendations you have, the more they feel trusted and connected.
If you do not have at least 2 recommendations on your LinkedIn profile, I highly recommend you send recommendation requests to either your past colleagues or managers at least once a week. Make sure to customize the message before you send it.
Continually work on getting more recommendations as you live and build your career.
Also it is very important that you take the time to recommend others.
Give recommendations to others without their request freely. They can decide to display it if they wish.
Recommendations help other people advance their career and find valuable opportunities as much as it does for you.
Do unto others what is done upon you.
When you help others, you will be helped.
This is a great mantra to remember whether it is for professional or personal life.
5. Engage and comment on other’s posts
This is one of the easiest and most effective ways to get more attention towards yourself on LinkedIn.
Once you have created a great profile, you need to get it in front of people.
No point creating a beautiful profile and nobody sees it right?
When you comment on other people’s posts, everybody in their network also sees your comment, profile picture, and the headline.
If you have set up your profile with key details outlined above, it will increase the chances you will be contacted by people who you can help and people who can help you.
Career success comes down to the number of meaningful relationships you have with others.
To develop meaningful relationships, write meaningful comments and ask insightful questions. Set aside 45 minutes each day to encourage, provide value to others’ posts
Start small and be consistent.
Actions steps:
Here is quick summary of the steps:
1. Update your Headline
2. Put a professional or very clear profile photo
3. Add a banner to your profile
4. Give and get recommendations
5. Engage and comment on other’s post
Bless you and love you!
