How to Optimize Your LinkedIn Profile

by | Social media

Can you remember the last time you went through your LinkedIn Profile? Well, if you can’t remember, you should read this and then get started!

Having an up-to-date LinkedIn profile means you have a keyword strategy, up-to-date value prop, and a fully drafted ABOUT section in your profile. Also, your accomplishments are posted for the world to see and LinkedIn to display when people you don’t know are looking for experts like you.

A convincing and organized profile can easily become your source of securing leads and new business. There are over 570+ million people using LinkedIn worldwide and 260+million active users. The numbers show how great of a networking platform it has become. You never know when the next opportunity is going to come in. Therefore, optimizing and keeping the profile up-to-date is a must.

Let’s have a look at some of the major tips which can help you optimize your LinkedIn:

Clarify who your key prospect is. Industry, company, role, etc.

It is extremely important that whoever lands on your LinkedIn profile immediately and easily understands who you are, the industry you work in, the companies you have worked with, and how you can help them.

Are you looking to connect with HR execs or CEOs? Take a few minutes to clarify the role of the person who you hope to connect with. This will help you with keyword research and copywriting.

5 keywords are important

SEO is extremely important in the context of LinkedIn searches. You need to be aware of the keywords people type in their search bar when looking for help from people in your industry and area of expertise. The top five keywords are extremely important as they are the deciding factor of the traffic on your LinkedIn profile. If you have cracked down the top five, you are in for a big win. However, this can’t work alone. You need to have a strong profile, too, as mentioned previously. Otherwise, there is no point in having more traffic on your profile.

Free keyword tools are a google search away. Some of the best are:

  • Moz.com
  • Wordstream.com
  • Spyfu.com
  • keywordtool.io

Get a professional headshot taken – and use it

A picture is the first impression you have on someone who lands on your LinkedIn profile.

Gone are the days when headshots were only a thing for actors and models or only high position professionals. Spending money on a good photographer is in no way a waste of money as it is going to help you out greatly.

The photographer should be able to help get the best out of your shot. In case you don’t have the funds to hire a photographer, you can make barter trade with him if he may need your services or expertise. Spending on a headshot sounds irrelevant or luxurious, but it is not. You will realize the worth once you are in it for a time.

Hack your headline

Draft a personal Value proposition that fits in the Title section and uses your keyword.

On its default settings, LinkedIn straight up uses the current job title as the headline on the profile. This restricts the job prospects as you may not be looking for the same position as your current job, or you may not want to be known for it. There is a solution to it, though. You can change or edit the headline suiting your needs. We highly recommend that you make the edits and use a compelling title instead. Make use of terms and words which are widely used and are SEO optimized.

Draft a short and to the point personal value proposition for your headline. Make sure it is interesting and attracts the eye of the reader and integrates the primary keyword from your research. The maximum length is 120 characters.

Update the banner in the background with your value proposition and logos of past clients or awards or other proof to support your value proposition.

This is a great way of making your profile stand out. First of all, it will look good. Secondly, you will be able to put out your achievements and awards and previous work success.

However, make sure you do it in a professional way. It should be clean and easy to read. This minor tweak will help you design a good-looking profile as well as attract new people to the profile.

Your summary is prime, use it wisely

Update your ABOUT section with a copy that is written about what your target prospect would like to have solved.

This section should contain your professional bio. This is the section that will be the back of your headline and title. Everything that you have briefly mentioned in your title and headline should be expanded wisely in this section. Use compelling points to tell your summary about each and every single thing. Move from one paragraph to another as you move from one skill to another. Make sure to mention your qualifications and awards and describe how you got them and what they mean. There should be 3-5 paragraphs in total. In order to come off as professional, make sure to run the summary through a grammar check and have someone proofread it.

This may sound irrelevant or not so important, but we cannot emphasize how important it is. Your about section must include all the updated information. It should contain a copy of what your target prospect would like to have solved.

Experience and past roles

Make sure the past roles you put on LinkedIn are in a position where they are easily visible to the person on the profile. Use your keywords in every title and description. Also, make use of LinkedIn’s multimedia feature to showcase components of your portfolio, including presentations and articles to provide solid and convincing information.

Build your reputation with recommendations

Recommendations carry immense value and weight on LinkedIn. However, it is not so easy to get them, unless you ask for them. You shouldn’t sit back and wait for people to give you recommendations. Instead, go out of the way and ask people for recommendations in your contacts. In this way, it puts you in the good books. Moreover, request all recommenders to focus on a single skill or thing. In this way, you will come off really strong in your area of expertise.

Show off your success

Every valuable professional success you have, should be listed. Any of your achievements and awards should be put out there without any hesitation. The Accomplishments section is the area where you can boast about these things. Make sure you do it professionally and in an appropriate manner and use your keywords.

Get endorsed

Endorsements are an incredible way to get validations for your skills. However, remember that excess of everything is bad, so refrain from having too many of these. Update your skills regularly and focus them on the area with which you want to be known.

Use a custom URL

Using a custom URL is another great tweak to promote your LinkedIn. A custom URL is also shorter than what LinkedIn already gives you – two advantages from one. You can simply do this by clicking on “Edit Public Profile and URL” on your profile. Then you click the edit button right next to the URL and type in your desired URL.

Conclusion

An effective LinkedIn Profile is your route to gainful employment. We hope these tips will help you ace your job hunt!