LinkedIn Profile Optimization

LinkedIn may not be the most popular social media platform out there, but with the right content and an optimized profile, LinkedIn can open a world of opportunities for working professionals and students alike.

The most important thing to have while using LinkedIn is the right mindset. LinkedIn shouldn’t be considered as a job site or an online resume. It is a social media platform like Instagram or Facebook; the only difference is that it’s used by working professionals to share meaningful content only. Content matters on LinkedIn just as much as anywhere else. With time, consistent posts will earn you a good reputation among your connections. Companies looking for professionals to hire will be able to determine whether you would fit into their work culture by observing the way you mingle with others on LinkedIn.

Content is king.

Let’s discuss how you can optimize your LinkedIn profile section-wise so that your reach will grow, and people will be interested to connect with you. The first section on LinkedIn is your basic details, where you have your profile picture, name, headline and banner image. The first thing people notice is your profile picture. Your picture does not have to be too formal; choose a picture where your face can be seen clearly, and you are the only one in the picture. Selfies are not recommended. The name you specify on LinkedIn should be your official name, refrain from using nicknames or emojis. Your profile headline should state your current designation. You can also include keywords you want to be identified by when people search for you, and a catchy phrase linked to your profession. Another feature people tend to notice is your banner image. You can include points you couldn’t include in your headline on the banner image, like the services you offer.

The next section on LinkedIn is your about section. Here, try and write a story about your professional career. Use lots of white spaces, as people are less likely to read a large chunk of text. White spaces will help the reader get all the points while briefly scanning through your about section. Here, you can use emojis as well to attract the reader. Towards the end, don’t forget to add your contact details, like your email id or phone number.

Your experience section should mention the places you’ve worked at. Remember to tag your official company handles. Instead of just stating the name of the organization and the duration for which you worked there, write a few lines about what you did, the tools you used and what you learnt as well. This will help recruiters gain an insight into how you will be useful to their company.

The next section is your education and skills. Here, you can add where you studied, the certificates you have earned over the years, and the skills you possess. While mentioning your alma mater, tag your university instead of your college. Your university name will be more familiar and recognizable than your college name. Regarding your skills, LinkedIn allows you to add a maximum of fifty skills. Add as many as you can. People you’ve worked with can also endorse you for your skills, which will be a boost to your profile.

The last section of your profile is the recommendations section, where your recruiters can write a few words of recommendation for you. Try and get as many as possible, as a good number of recommendations increases your credibility. It will show people looking at your profile that you know what you’re doing.

You might be wondering how you can decide who to connect with. Build your network with professionals working in a similar field to yours, or people working in fields you may be interested in, which will help bring diversity to your profile. While connecting with someone, always check for an optimized profile. Don’t send or accept connections from dead profiles. Also, it will be nice to make a good first impression by adding a personalized note to your connection request. Find a reason to send a message from their profile. Ending your message with a question is a good idea, as it increases your chances of getting a reply.

As I mentioned earlier, having good and original content is important for your LinkedIn profile. Content can be in the form of LinkedIn posts (up to 1300 characters), LinkedIn articles (>1300 characters), images, videos and documents (PDFs). Good content is an opportunity to create your brand identity. Be consistent while posting content. Refrain from directly mentioning your services; instead, share a story about how you achieved a task or handled a situation, which will advertise your services with subtlety. Content can be divided into an opening, middle and end. The opening should build curiosity among the readers. The middle section should add value to your content, and the ending can be topped off with a call to action (For example, drop a comment). Remember to focus on readability. A few ingredients of good content is personalization, a sense of humour and a personal touch with a few emotions. Adding elements of storytelling can help as well.

Tip: While sharing content available on a platform away from LinkedIn (like a blog on WordPress), write a summary of the content and add the link in the comment section, rather than directly on the post itself. This will give your post more reach.

Along with creating content, active engagement can also help grow your profile. Like and share content you find interesting and comment on your views about the topic. People tend to notice someone who wrote a smart comment. You can also like and reply to other interesting comments, thereby allowing you to expand your network.

In conclusion, these are some of the tips I learned from an expert in profile optimization and digital marketing. I applied these tips to my profile and I can honestly say that it has tremendously increased my reach on LinkedIn, leading to interesting conversations with some amazing connections. I hope this has been helpful.