4 quick steps to making a professional LinkedIn profile
Posted on Tuesday, August 2nd, 2016
LinkedIn is a great tool for connecting with those in your industry and searching for jobs
LinkedIn is an amazing tool to grow your professional network. It allows you to connect with people in your industry, find job openings that you may be interested in, and gain insight into different career paths. A professional LinkedIn page allows you to gain an edge over your competition.
Here are 4 quick tips to make your LinkedIn page look professional:
Improve your Profile Picture
They say first impressions are everything. Your profile picture is the first thing that people will see when they visit your profile. Your profile picture is your first chance to communicate with potential employers and connections that you are a worthy candidate, and as such, your picture should communicate professionalism. Accomplishing this is fairly simple; your photo should be a headshot of just yourself, with a simple background. Your face should be the main focal point of the photo, taking up a little more than half the photo. You should be dressed in clean, professional attire that is appropriate for your respective industry.
Headline
A successful LinkedIn headline will quickly and clearly communicate your professional skills to others. It should be simple and short sentence(s) that is engaging and informative. Use keywords that will make you seem more attractive to recruiters in your industry.
If you are currently unemployed, don’t just write “unemployed” or “looking for work.” Come up with something that highlights what would make you an attractive candidate for the position.
Check out some good examples here: http://www.linkedin-makeover.com/linkedin-profile-samples/linkedin-headline-examples/
Background and summary
Your LinkedIn summary should give the reader more insight into your professional life and should be broken down into the following categories; professional accomplishments, professional ambitions, and special skills or ways you can differentiate yourself from your competition.
Your professional accomplishments should include a sentence or two about anything significant that you have accomplished at a previous position, for example: “Led a small team with the highest sales numbers in the region.”
Professional ambitions could be anything from your professional interests, such as, international commerce or social media marketing, to things that impact your life on a more personal level, such as an interest in a particular sport.
If you’re a student and don’t have a lot of professional work experience, be sure to include any important roles you played in any big class projects or assignments.
Work Experience
Your work experience is also very important and should include details from your work history. This section should list all the relevant positions that you have held, as well as your role in that position.
Each position should have at least a handful of bullet points explaining your role within the company, while also highlighting your responsibilities and skills. Anyone reading this should be able to determine what made you a valuable member of your team within that organization.
A good thing to remember when writing your work experience is to try and include any transferable skills that would make you an attractive candidate for a variety of industries.
For an example of a good LinkedIn profile created by an Algonquin College student, visit Adam D’Agostino’s profile
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