Your LinkedIn Profile should work for you!
The way you put your LinkedIn profile together can really help determine how you are going to come across to your readers. Of course, you want to put it together in such a way that they get a good idea of your brand and the person behind the brand. But, don’t make the same mistakes that a lot of people make – they throw in a lot of words and hope something will stand out to the reader. You work hard putting a resume together - spend that kind of time on your profile – it’s that important. Remember though your profile is not your resume so you don’t want it to sound like one.
Take some time and think through what you want out there.
Here are some tips to keep it mind when putting your profile together:
- WHY are you on LinkedIn?
- WHAT are your business goals for using this site?
- WHO do you want to connect with?
- Are you looking to acquire new clients or are you looking for someone to partner up with in your business?
- Are you looking for a job change or are you looking for new employees?
Make sure that everything that you include in your profile is there to help you achieve your business goals.
Your LinkedIn profile will be indexed by Google so you want to make certain that you include some specific keywords that will help you get found. And, when thinking about those keywords consider something else – do those keywords match your business experience? As most of us know, every industry has their own buzzwords so you make sure you are including them. Very often your potential client or business partners will use those buzzwords when looking for someone to connect with.
Also, be certain to include the full name of your company – not a nickname or just initials. Include the college you went to as this might help you link of up with people that you knew back in the past or make an impression on a possible client or business recruiter.
Remember people will just scan your profile so don’t get too wordy – omit the unnecessary information but, at the same time, make certain to include the necessary details. There is a fine line there -stay on track.
Be Professional
LinkedIn is not a site where you want to delve into your personal life – think of this site like you would a professional meeting where you are looking to make business contacts to network with. Feel free to add a few details that make you appear a little more human but, by all means, keep away from the cutesy things that you would put on such sites as Facebook and MySpace.
Be Sure to Check Your Grammer and Spelling
Nothing detracts more from looking professional than bad grammar and stupid spelling mistakes. If you have a question about how a word is spelled, use your spell checker or do the old fashioned thing and get out your dictionary. Ask someone else to critique your profile before you post it. All of us are guilty of reading what we thought we wrote instead of what is actually on the page. One last idea idea is read it out loud to yourself. It is amazing what mistakes you will find when you do.
