Get Started &Build Your Foundation
Leveraging the power of LinkedIn begins with building a solid professional profile and presence. As a professional, how do you stand out from the crowd on LinkedIn? How do you differentiate yourself from the millions of professional users on the network? What will make your profile visitors want to learn more about you and your business to ultimately connect with you? You must first establish a foundation in order to begin building your influence, generating introductions and
referrals, and uncovering valuable business opportunities.
LinkedIn suggests that having a completed profile provides you with a 40% greater chance for networking success, and they make it easy for you to understand how to achieve that
100% completion.
Having a completed profile is the most effective way to showcase all of who you are
through your talents, background, experience, passions, interests, and areas of
expertise. In addition, a completed profile is going to make you appear to be a more
competent user in the network.
Your LinkedIn profile may be the first stop for a new introduction. With a solid foundation,
you will be well positioned for the next phase, where you can grow your influence and
build your business.
Checklist to Achieve a Powerful and Complete Profile
Upload a professional image
This is your best opportunity to make a great first impression, and it is essential
to attracting connections.
Create a compelling headline
You only have 120 characters at the top of your profile to describe what you
do to the world and grab their attention. Use brief, descriptive, compelling keywords
so the right professionals on LinkedIn can discover you.
List your current position and at least two past positions
Use descriptive keywords that you quoted in your headline if possible, and be
sure to describe your role for each position.
Complete the “Summary” section of your profile
This is your chance to really describe who you are and how you help people. I
recommend that you write your summary in the third person. Otherwise, you’ll
be using the letter “I” quite a bit, which can be off-putting.
Complete the “Specialties” section of your profile
Utilize customer-focused keywords, as these are the terms that will help you
show up in search results within LinkedIn. When thinking about these keywords,
brainstorm words and phrases that people in your target markets
might search for to find someone with your background, experience, and service
offering.
Give recommendations first
Request recommendations that can be displayed on your profile. The best way
to receive recommendations is to first give them! Hint: You will need at least
three recommendations in order for LinkedIn to label your profile “completed.”
Complete the “Interests” and “Groups and Associations” sections
Each of these terms will be hyper-linked and will take you to other users in the
network who share these interests.
HINT
You will need at least three recommendations in order for LinkedIn to label
your profile “completed.
Optimize Your Profile to Get Found by Contacts
By now, you probably realize the importance of adding relevant keywords that your
target markets may search for to your headline, summary, and specialties sections of
your LinkedIn profile. Here are some pro tips to optimize your profile to get found by
great new contacts:
Optimize Your Profile to
Get Found by Contacts
1 )Edit your public LinkedIn URL
An example is my personal LinkedIn URL, http://www.linkedin.com/in/chandrakamal
Such customization will optimize your LinkedIn profile to show
up in search results on major search engines when someone searches for
your name. It is important to claim those results for your name as they provide
a gateway into your personal brand.
2)Customize your “website” listings
Under the “websites” section of your LinkedIn profile, you can list up to three
URLs. Choose the “other” option when setting up each of these links and
describe them with relevant terms. For example, rather than using the terms
“my website,” I use “Smart Social Pro Blog.” Not only is this more descriptive,
but it also gives me a better opportunity to rank for these keywords in search
engines.
3)Include a link to your Twitter profile
You can have more than one Twitter account listed. Give folks an additional
method to use to connect with you!
4)Make your entire LinkedIn profile publicly visible to everyone
You want other professionals on LinkedIn to be able to find you and contact
you anytime. Being invisible won’t help you build your network.
Get plugged in with linked in APPLICATIONS
To build a truly vibrant and influential profile on LinkedIn, you will want to take advantage of the
applications that are available. My personal favorites are listed below, but feel free to choose the
applications that are the best fit for you!
SlideShare
I use this application to bring in presentations that I've uploaded to Slide-
Share. It gives me a chance to show my expertise visually. Also, you can embed
video or audio into your SlideShare presentation that will automatically
play when someone visits your LinkedIn Profile. This can certainly be an effective
way to make your profile stickier. Most likely, if the visitor hears your voice
they will scroll down to this part of your profile.
Reading List by Amazon
We are what we read. Don’t miss this opportunity to create a window into
your passions and interests by showcasing and reviewing your latest reads.
Alternatively, when you are searching through profiles on LinkedIn for potential
connections and introductions, you can glean the same insight about others if
they have this application installed.
My Travel and Events
Personally, I love these two applications because they give me the opportunity
to showcase the part of my schedule that mostly involves connecting! I want
my connections to see where I’m traveling and also the events I’m attending.
Don’t miss any opportunities to meet a LinkedIn connection face-to-face.
WordPress or Blog Link
With these applications, you can automatically pull blog posts into your profile.
If you are taking the time to create great content on your blog, you must get it
out into the world.
Polls
The LinkedIn Polls application allows you to essentially conduct your own research,
either simply within your own network or to a more targeted audience
of professionals, which is a paid resource. I have found Polls to be an effective
tool for understanding my audience. You must make sure that your poll is
simple to understand and that your questions are compelling. Otherwise, you
may not get much response.
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