Whether you want to improve your professional online presence, look for new opportunities or build a network, it’s no secret that LinkedIn is a valuable career resource.
However, it’s also a platform with nuanced features. If you know how to use these features, they can open significantly more opportunities for you than the everyday user.
Here are four ways to enhance your LinkedIn profile and progress in your career.
1. Keywords drive profile searches.
Keywords are crucial for a website's search engine optimisation strategies. The same applies to a personal LinkedIn page. Typically, recruiters refine their candidate searches using keywords.
In short, it makes complete sense to incorporate certain keywords into your profile.
The likelihood of your profile appearing in recruiter search results will subsequently increase. You’ll want to steer clear of cliched, overused words. These include passionate, creative, strategic, etc.
2. First impressions matter.
A LinkedIn profile with a professional headshot is 14 times more likely to be visited (according to LinkedIn) than a profile without an image or one which may not appear professional.
Remember, LinkedIn is a social network for business. You want to communicate and present yourself formally. Your profile engagement will likely increase if you present a personable, professional image. The same goes for your background image. While this doesn’t need to be of you, it should represent an aesthetic that represents the values of you and your company.
3. Highlight your talents.
You have a 2,000-character limit for your ‘About’ section on your LinkedIn page. It’s not a lot, but it needn’t be. You want to engage with readers but don't want to lose them. It’s a delicate balancing act.
The WHOSEES framework may help you. WHOSEES stands for:
- Who you are
- Strengths you want to highlight
- Examples to evidence your strengths
- Ethos
- Skills
In all cases, write what you know, not what you think you should know. List your achievements, but don’t be afraid to list your core values — inside and outside the office.
4. Don’t copy and paste your CV.
Instead, approach your profile text as a series of mini-stories leading to your accomplishments.
Rather than listing your job titles, credentials, qualifications and professional memberships, you should creative and add narrative exposition so potential employers feel more invested in your career story.
You could list some of the challenges during your period at a company and how you delivered exceptional results, regardless of the restraints. By painting a picture of the environment where your achievements occurred, employers can start to envision how you may deliver similar results to them.
This method can elevate your LinkedIn profile above an echo chamber of job seekers and professionals, who will typically lift their career history from their CV, often making for an uncompelling narrative.
