As you may know, a strong LinkedIn profile is essential to creating and maintaining your business network. But! There are many things you could be doing (right now!) to make it even better – a reflection of your personal brand (for more on personal branding, click here) and a key tool in setting you apart from the very fierce competition that is today’s business world. This week we take a look at Brad Verdonck’s Lynda.com video course: LinkedIn Profiles for Business Success (2017), and Chapter 2 of Groundswell (Li & Bernoff, 2011) for info on how to make the most of your LinkedIn profile.
Let’s start with Groundswell (Li & Bernoff, 2011). The authors discuss how using Groundswell technologies enable relationships and threaten institutional power through the use of blogs, podcasts, social networks, wikis, forums, and reviews. Li and Bernoff (2011) go into detail about how many people use each of these activities to shape the modern world and pose key questions for you to ask yourself when you are deciding on your social presence:
- Does it enable people to connect with each other in new ways?
- Is it effortless to sign up?
- Does it shift power from institutions to people?
- Does the community generate enough content to sustain itself?
- Is it an open platform that invites partnerships?
(p. 36-37)
The two key ingredients of the Groundswell, according to the authors are technology and people. Technology has no use without people who use it, and Li and Bernoff say we should “concentrate on the relationships, not the technologies” (2011, p. 18). As I mentioned a couple weeks ago, the authors suggest using the POST approach to forming your social-presence plan. As a refresher, POST stands for people, objectives, strategy, and technology. Li and Bernoff (2011) pose a question you can ask yourself for each step of this method (p. 67-68):
P – What are your customer’s ready for?
O – What are your goals?
S – How do you want relationships with your [audience] to change?
T – What applications should you build?
It’s important to take some time and figure out what you want your social media presence to look like, rather than jumping haphazardly on each bandwagon that rolls by. Only use the platforms that work for you, and provide clear answers to the above questions. This was my biggest fear before starting this course, if I’m being honest. I was so worried about getting onto every app and opening accounts on each platform, thinking I might be missing out or ‘doing social media wrong’. I’ve since taken some time to think about my personal brand and which technologies help me meet my goals, both personally and professionally, and I have to say, it’s a lot less scary when equipped with a little knowledge from the experts.
Which brings us to the next portion: Making the most out of your LinkedIn profile. I opened a LinkedIn account several years ago when I was starting in my professional career, but it was far from exceptional. Take a look:
Armed with Verdonck’s (2017) tips, I’m ready to take my LinkedIn page to the next level. Let’s break down his course:
Get Started with the Essentials
Verdonck (2017) states that the single greatest mistake people make with this social media platform is using their page as a billboard and not a tool. To get the most out of your LinkedIn network, build a profile that is visible, connectable, likable, credible, and trustworthy. Here are his top tips to accomplish this:
If people are having a hard time finding you on LinkedIn (re: you’re not getting any new connect requests even though you’ve made lots of positive connections), try adding your nickname in brackets beside your given name. You can also add common misspellings of your name somewhere into your profile. Verdonck (2017) says a great place to add these into is an old experience entry as most people won’t even see them, but will still help people find you as LinkedIn catalogs every word in your profile. Yes, you heard that right – every. word.
You also need a strong profile picture. Most people will not visit a profile without picture, so choose one that captures your head and shoulders only, and does not include anyone else. Next, choose a background picture. This is a great place to add logos from affiliated companies. Now it’s time to fill in your headline. Add prominent keywords people will be using to search for people in your field of expertise, as well as a personal touch to keep things interesting and communicate that you are not a robot. Finally, add your location and industry information. Verdonck (2017) says you can use either your home or workplace address. Just think about where you want people to find you. Of course, this is a much bigger consideration if you work in a different country than you live.
Your Contact Information
How do you want people to get in touch with you? Verdonck (2017) states that only your connections are able to see your email, IM, and phone number. The first thing you need to do is make sure your email address is professional. If you’re still using iheartkittycats@hotmail, chances are professionals won’t give you a second thought. This is also the section where you can add your websites. His top tip in this section is to add a vanity address. You can do this by clicking on ‘Your public profile URL’ and typing in your name. If it’s already taken, Verdonck (2017) suggests flipping the order or adding a number. Completing this step will give you a shareable link so people can find your profile more easily, and shows other LinkedIn users that you are not a novice when it comes to building a professional profile.
Your Summary
Your summary is the hook that lures people into reading the rest of your profile. Verdonck (2017) says this is the single most important piece of your profile, and the most commonly overlooked during setup. He suggests adding three key pieces of information here: corporate branding from the company you work for, what you do in your role, and personal branding. You should also have a call to action in the form of inviting people to contact you or read further in your profile.
One of the easiest ways you can stand out from the crowd is to include rich media in your summary. A great place to start is by adding a relevant YouTube video (For tips on creating your own, check this post). LinkedIn also allows you to use a variety of file formats in your summary.
Your Experience
Everyone pushes their resume on LinkedIn. One of the best ways for you to set yourself apart is to show people the results you’ve achieved in your career, rather than focusing on where you’ve been (Verdonck, 2017). He suggests adding some of your employer’s corporate branding and a detailed description of what you do, but more importantly, tell your audience what you have accomplished in a tangible and verifiable way. While filling out this section, be careful that you are not violating any of your company’s privacy policies or agreements. If in doubt, ask.
When filling out your prior experience sections, include why you enjoyed working for the company, what you learned from your employment there, and any achievements when you were in that role (Verdonck, 2017). Your experience sections are a great place to add in keywords that will help more people discover your profile.
Finally, include rich media in this section. Visual cues are more easily digested and create interest in the rest of your page. Verdonck (2017) says you can use sites such as slideshare.net to upload your work and easily share it on your LinkedIn profile.
Create Your Own Brand
LinkedIn is a great way to share your personal brand. Make sure this is consistent with your professional and corporate brand to build credibility with your network (Verdonck, 2017). You can do this by adding any professional awards you have received, patents or certifications you hold, and projects you’ve been involved with. Adding projects that you’ve worked on is a great way to demonstrate to your audience that you are capable of what your profile is telling them you are. Don’t forget to include any team members who collaborated on the project to convey to your reader that you are team player.
LinkedIn allows anyone to publish content for free. This is a great way to increase credibility and keep people coming back to your page. Verdonck (2017) suggests keeping posts between 300 and 500 words, and to post regularly on Thursdays or Sundays. Bonus tip: posts that contain links will get much higher engagement.
Verdonck (2017) reminds us in this section that sharing is caring. You don’t have to give away all of your knowledge for free, but posting tips and infographics is a good way to keep your followers engaged and advertise your skills. He says that the key intention with this is to give and receive, rather than give and take. When you don’t expect anything in return, you will often receive more, as people are drawn to your selflessness (think likability).
Skills and Recommendations
You should decide which skills you want to highlight that will give you a competitive edge. Verdonck (2017) says you should choose a mix of broad and niche skills from keywords relevant to your industry, and avoid buzzwords and irrelevant skills. Once you have a few in your profile, you can start receiving endorsements from your connections. Focus on receiving high-quality, rather than high-quantity recommendations from people who are proficient in each area you are looking to showcase.
Your Education
Add as much information as you can in each field in this section. The dates you attended are important, as they allow your classmates to find you (Verdonck, 2017). In the description, add your motivation for choosing your education, what you learned while attending, and a summary of the institution. While some of your education may be outdated, he says it is still valuable to people who are curious about how you got to where you are today. You can also add credibility by including specific courses and certifications you’ve taken in each of these areas for maximum impact.
Make the Most of Your Personality
This is the part that makes you human (Verdonck, 2017). Don’t be afraid to include your personality in a professional manner. Add your volunteer experience to show your audience what some of your interests are and to round out your experience. Volunteer work helps you connect with a broader audience, and shows people you care about more than a paycheque.
Extra Strategies to Stand Out
If you aren’t sure what keywords are most relevant in your industry, Verdonck (2017) suggests using Google AdWords. It’s important to use the same language that your target audience uses. He also encourages joining relevant groups, although he says you should hold off on this step until your profile is optimized. Along the same lines, you can follow thought leaders and anyone in the business community who inspires you. LinkedIn allows you to customize your privacy settings, but Verdonck (2017) says you should always let people see that you’ve viewed their profile. Finally, add some spice to your profile by including emojis (especially for mobile use) and special characters or text.
Next Steps
Verdonck (2017) provides some excellent templates in the exercise files for his course that assist in mapping out a strategy for your LinkedIn profile. He suggests spending a few minutes each day to complete each of your profile improvements so it’s less overwhelming. Once you’ve optimized your profile, you can share it with your connections and ask for feedback on your work.
I know this is a lot of information, but Verdonck (2017) reassures that each of these techniques have been tested and will give you a solid competitive advantage on the most widely used social network for business. I’ve started updating my profile with his tips, and it’s already looking much better! I’m going to keep working on it over the next few weeks as I prepare to transition from education to finding work in my field, so feel free to send me an invitation to connect so you can follow my progress. Just let me know in the request that you found me through this post!
References
Li, C., & Bernoff, J. (2011). Groundswell winning in a world transformed by social technologies. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Publishing.
Verdonck, B. (2017). Linkedin profiles for social business success. Lynda [tutorial video]. Retrieved from https://www.lynda.com/LinkedIn-tutorials/LinkedIn-Profiles-Social-Business-Success/512777-2.html.
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