What is a gathering of professionals called? A LinkedIn. And in any gathering of professionals, especially a virtual one as competitive as LinkedIn, you need to take extra steps to stand out, like having a perfectly curated LinkedIn profile.
Having a well-tailored profile on its platform suggests that you prioritize personal branding. Here’s how to inject some life into your profile, and by extension your digital presence.
Have a professional-looking profile picture
I can tell you for a fact as a career coach & part-time recruiter that this does wonders for your personal brand. People have very limited information to assess a person on LinkedIn and they will make assumptions based on what they see. If you are able to project a certain level of professionalism on your LinkedIn profile, it helps to greatly accelerate your career trajectory. Go all out and hire a professional portrait photographer if you have the funds, but if not, a clear portrait of your face will do the magic.
Show off your communication skills
When you consistently show off your writing skills by encapsulating a school of thought, life lessons or your experience in an interesting-to-read post, you start to gain popularity amongst your peers and employers alike, which shows off expertise and thought leadership. Let me share some insider information – for specialized mid-top level roles, recruiters preferred means of sourcing is headhunting. All they do is search for the specific role on LinkedIn and they get supplied with profiles of top likely candidates. What really standouts and makes them 6o% decided on you is your persona on the platform. Being social on LinkedIn makes your job hunt so much easier.
Make your profile summary your pitch deck
The Elevator pitch is popular because of its ability to briefly lay out all the points needed for a person to make a decision in the moment. Now, I want you to use that same logic to evaluate your profile summary.
Remember, don’t write it in a passive voice or without actually researching other professionals’ profiles. Be creative but make sure to lay out your skills and experience in a way that anyone reading it can get an idea of your experience level, principles and interests. It can be 2 – 3 paragraphs long.
Really connect with people
Go out of your way to connect with professionals like yourself. This is called horizontal networking. Don’t be shy, send a message, leave a comment, and engage in stimulating discussions that show your mental prowess. Avoid bringing negativity to your page by trolling people because it’s a great turn-off, you can leave that on Twitter.
Get your peers, and bosses to recommend you
This works like magic. Ask a colleague for recommendations, your boss & clients as well. This acts as social proof of your skills, work ethic & professionalism. Serves as a referral bank for you, but without the awkwardness of cold-calling estranged bosses & colleagues.
