LinkedIn is the number one place to not only build your professional brand, but also to showcase your skills and achievement, share content with other professionals, and connect with colleagues, business partners, and potential employers. Becoming a LinkedIn superstar is a must for 2022.
To do this, it is essential to make your profile stand out and our easy guide can help you do just that! After reading this, you can really craft a (near) perfect LinkedIn profile. Happy days.
1. Profile picture.
This one is the first and one of the most important factors to get right on your LinkedIn profile. You really do need to upload a great profile picture. It should be recent, look like you and your face should take up around 60 per cent of the total space. Be sure to represent how you normally look at work, in turn making it easier for prospective contacts who may have only met you virtually to recognize you from your profile picture.
2. Background photo.
You can also set a wider background photo to showcase a bit more about yourself. You should make it something that’s memorable and tells visitors more about you as a person. As an example, if you’re a professional fitness instructor, meanwhile, you might opt for an action shot of you in the gym.
3. Headline.
Use this to help boost the impact of your profile. Some choose to simply add their job title, but why not add a short description adding a bit more detail about your current role, what it means to you or what you’ve accomplished.
4. Become a storyteller
Use your LinkedIn summary to become a storyteller. Don’t just use this space to list recent job titles, use it to really sell yourself and let your readers know exactly who you are and how your story so far has unfolded. What led you to your current role? What are you looking for in a career?
5. Skills.
Your reader will always notice your skills list as it is one of the most important parts of your profile. However, do not fall for the trap of listing endless skills boring your reader. While highlighting your skills is critical, make sure they’re relevant.
6. Stay connected.
It’s a good idea to stay connected once your profile is up and running. Stop by for at least 20 minutes a week to see what you’ve missed. Be sure to make comments on relevant stories and answer any messages.
7. Post new content.
While a sound LinkedIn profile is great, it requires regular maintenance to perform over time.
Just like some of its social media rivals, LinkedIn relies on content updates to keep things fresh and interesting. You, therefore, need to be posting new content. This could be your own ideas or the work of other leaders in your industry that you find interesting.
8. Go public.
This one is so important if you want connections to find you and recruiters to track you down. Head to your LinkedIn page and click on the “Me” button under your profile picture at the top of the page, then select “View Profile”. You’ll see an option for Edit Public Profile and URL — select this option and you can toggle your public profile status on and off, and control who can see your profile picture.