I received a LinkedIn message from a long-time friend who goes way back to my drippy-nose, knee-skinned days in Milwaukee. The message was simple:
“Hey Rocket Man! I am looking to update my LinkedIn. Would appreciate you taking a look at my current profile. I need your help to make me more marketable as I enter 30 years in advertising!”
OK, so my first thought: Where the heck (edited) did those years go!
Second thought: Why was she looking to a snotty-nosed hooligan from her childhood years to help power-up her LinkedIn presence?
“P.S. I need some help with content and I know you are the best person to help me.”
OK, fair enough. Butter me up. It works. Here was my response:
Become Your Own Content Machine
While Rocket Man Digital drives large, integrated content marketing and inbound strategies for brands and corporate partners, the lessons we’ve learned apply to the individual level, too.
Your professional content is the cost of doing business today. Think about what you are sharing. You need to be your own content machine, keeping the flow of content energetic, relevant and in your personal voice and tone. Ultimately, it has to answer these questions:
- Does the content you share matter to who you are? Personally? Deep down?
- Does it provide a solution or fill a need for the people you want to connect with?
- Are you more concerned about others than promoting yourself? What are you giving them in exchange for their time and attention? Hopefully, lots!
Most profile pages don’t take advantage of all LinkedIn has to offer. The site is already set up to let you customize the layout, add personal posts to become a key influencer in your space, and lots of other extras that show off your business savvy.
Here are a few tools that are imperative to use, as well as some suggestions for immediate improvements:
Professional Photos Only
LinkedIn is a purely career-oriented social media site. Everything shown on your page needs to reflect your business point of view, and you in the best possible light. Nowhere is it more important than your photo. Many people think it’s okay to use a photo from a webcam or a selfie from the slopes in Colorado. Uhhh, skip the urge and save those for Facebook.
LinkedIn photos have to show you in the way that you like to conduct business. If you are formal and all buttoned up all the time, then you know exactly what your photo should look like. If you’re a creative character, get creative and stand out. A great LinkedIn picture is worth 1,000 business contacts.
Here are a few suggestions to getting that spot-on picture that represents you in your best professional light:
- Many expos, conventions and business gatherings are pretty savvy and will take attendee photos on a professional backdrop as a service. Take advantage of it and have them email the jpgs to your inbox.
- Clarity is a priority. No pixelated photos; avoid wide angles; you get the idea. Spend a few dollars on a professional photo if needed. After all, it’s your business image!
- When doing professional presentations, have someone take your photo in action. These may not be ideal for profile photos, but they are great for content when you’re sharing exactly what you presented.
Polish your summary
Here’s an “always” and a “never.” Always include a professional summary near the top of your profile. Never skip it. Some people opt out of including this information, and go right to experience. Truth is, many people don’t get beyond the summary statement, so make it work hard. Very hard.
- Include keywords that people would most likely search for when looking for your profile. Think like a searcher, first.
- Explain your expertise, concisely yet completely. What do you want people to know about you and your career? Make sure it is in your summary.
- Include bullet points on the details. Leave out paragraphs, include nice concise bullet points that can be easily scanned in seconds.
Standardize your experience
LinkedIn profiles resemble resumes, and so much more. When showcasing your experience, it’s important to fill out all positions (with the exception of jobs that have not contributed to your career path). This way, viewers can look at how you became the pro you are today.
Work experience is a vital part of your profile so it’s essential that you follow standardized steps to write each entry. Standardizing these elements in every entry will make your profile look polished and take it from a resume listing to something worth digesting.
- Expertise. Explain why you were so hard to replace once you left that position.
- Examples. Include 1-2 examples of your top achievements in each specific position. And always communicate the results.
- Accomplishments. Include a paragraph telling what differences you made at the company. What were your duties? How did you help take business to the next level? Don’t just list; explain concisely.
- Results. What were your key results? Include them to back-up your claims.
Keep It Relevant
LinkedIn has a ton of space to share experience, work examples and even links. That’s why it is a favorite platform for the business universe.
With all of this freedom, it’s important to remember to keep it all relevant. It’s helpful to fill out as much of your profile as possible, but focus on keeping all content relevant to your business or the work you hope to be doing. Posts, visuals, links and more need to be focused on providing a polished picture. Not a fragmented mess. Here are some starting points that will quickly clean and boost your profile:
- Share links to articles and posts that will help, truly help, your connections.
- Have a blog? Turn some of the past great ones into new LinkedIn posts, but update and polish them before hitting the publish button. Adding your writing to LinkedIn shows you know your topic well, as long as it reflects the skills you want to highlight.
- Presentations. Many of us are overloaded by them. Don’t let all that hard work go to waste. Every presentation is a new opportunity to add content to LinkedIn. They’re focused on topics key to the audience you want to connect with. The best part: The hard work is already done!
- Demonstrate endorsable skills. Don’t include anything that makes you take a step back into a field or skill you are no longer developing or expanding. It’s more important to be endorsed in fields you are now focused.
- Reciprocate! If someone endorses you, endorse them back. If you endorse other peoples’ skills they will want to help you, too.
- Provide recommendations. People will value your experiences if others are giving you shout-outs for great work and skills. To get this going, you’re going to have to do the same with others. Don’t be afraid to ask for a recommendation swap. It works.
- Be visible and active. Post often. Comment, Share. The more you engage, the more connections will engage back. You get out of it what you put in.
Share your best LinkedIn profile tips in the comments below. While you’re doing that, I’m going back to my profile to polish it. Right after I wipe my drippy nose!