So many people have incomplete or just plain bad LinkedIn profiles. Which isn't great.
Recruiters and prospective employers will nearly always search for you and find your profile.
So it's important that your profile is complete, looks professional, and, if you are job seeking, is keyword optimised.
Now, I often post tips about LinkedIn - it's my favourite platform and there are just so many tips I want to share!
However, if you are just starting out or need to makeover your LinkedIn profile, here are my top 8 tips.
1. Custom URL/weblink
LinkedIn will allocate you an ugly URL ending in lots of numbers. You can change this by clicking ‘Edit Public Profile and URL’ in the light grey box on the right of your View Profile screen, then Edit Custom URL. Choose a unique URL (delete the numbers on the end) and click save. This will look much neater when you post the link in your resume.
2 . Photos
The simplest way to update your profile is to fix your profile photo and add a background image.
While you don’t need to get a professional profile photo taken, make sure that it looks professional and projects the image that you want in the workplace. (Maybe do your hair and make-up and have a photo shoot with a friend.) Once you upload your photo, you can adjust it using the LinkedIn filters.
It’s also a good idea to add a background image that matches your profile photo. Check out unsplash.com for lots of free images that you can download then upload as your background image, or use Canva to create an image.
3. Headline
Your headline is also really important. It defaults to your current /most recent job title and organisation, but it's better if you over-write this and include key words that describe who you are professionally.
You can add multiple terms. For example: Project Officer | Administrator | Policy Advisor. You have 120 characters, so put in as many key words as you can.
Alternatively you could list your value proposition - what you bring to an organisation. However if you do this, try to also include some keywords relevant to your job/industry.
4. About
The About (or Summary) section of your profile often gets left out, but it's really important to add this in. This section appears directly below your headline and needs to tell people who you are and what your unique skills or selling points are.
You should start with your Professional Profile from your resume (if you have one in there... you should!), and then add in a summary of your Key Skills. The more suitable keywords you add in, the better.
Your profile should describe who you are, what your background is and what skills you bring to an organisation.
5. Experience
Make sure you align your job titles and dates with your resume, and it's useful to have a couple of dot points describing your high level responsibilities for each role.
6. Skills and Endorsements
In the Skills section you should add skills that define your professional roles and experience. LinkedIn will then ask your network to endorse you for those skills. This greatly increases your chances of being picked up in searches.
Not sure what to put? Search for people with similar roles and see what they have listed, and don't forget to include transferable skills such as stakeholder engagement, communication and leadership.
You should then edit your list and pin your 3 top skills, which will show on your profile.
You can now also include skills within each job entry.
7. Become an All Star
Use the LinkedIn prompts to complete all the sections of your profile so that you become a LinkedIn All Star! Cheesy, but it will help you to be picked up in searches.
8. Show Recruiters you are open to work
In your profile section just under your name there is a blue box that says "Open to" where you can Show Recruiters you are open to work. This can be set to private (only visible to Recruiters) or public (everyone can see you are open to work). You can select the location, type of work, and up to 5 job titles that you are interested in.
Want additional help to update your LinkedIn profile, including step-by-step instructions on how to write a professional profile/About section? Enrol in the Not Just a Resume Template program!