Powerful LinkedIn Profiles
Does your LinkedIn profile make you look mediocre?
We’ve seen too many job candidates spend countless hours polishing a resume that may never be seen and gave almost no thought to their LinkedIn profile which was the first thing their potential employer used to check them out.
Big Mistake. For one, employers may never find you - Hiring Managers today often search for people on LinkedIn using specific keywords. And you you don't have them, they'll probably never find you. Second, employers who do "check you out" on LinkedIn may be unimpressed with what they see and move on. LinkedIn profiles provide a great opportunity for you to spell out precisely how you would add value to their organization. Instead most profiles are downright boring.
3 Ways Your Profile May Fall Flat
Here are the three most common mistakes
job hunters make and miss the great
opportunity that a LinkedIn profile affords.
- Just duplicating your resume.
- A bland summary.
- Bad photo or no photo.
Your Profile Summary is Key
Your summary can do so many things that
your resume just can't - you can focus on
skills you've used unstead of job listing.
- More than a chronicle of your past.
- Tell your story, your way.
- The opportunity to focus on your best.
Your Photo is Important
Leaving no photo or the wrong photo in your
profile hurts all your other efforts at personal
branding. Make it one that:
- Appears friendly.
- Is recognizable.
- Professional and consistent.
More things to keep in mind
Simply duplicating your resume just won't cut it.
LinkedIn is a different medium that requires a different approach from what you did in your resume.
A key part of the profile is the Summary. Unlike the resume that forces you to focus on the past, the LinkedIn Summary allows you to tell your story, your way. Many fail to seize this opportunity and focus on the wrong story—or don’t tell much of a story at all.
Suppose you’ve been out of work for two years—or your last job was a clunker. Your resume focuses attention on your most recent, least past. The LinkedIn summary, however, allows you to focus on you at your best.
Maybe you spent most of your career as a technical consultant, but recently became a bank manager. LinkedIn lets you focus on your great work at the bank, rather than dwelling on a (somewhat) irrelevant past.
But you must carefully craft your text. Make it conversational and tell stories about how you produced results. The summary has a capacity of 2,000 characters, and you should use all of them.
Bad or missing photo in your profile
Many people still have LinkedIn profiles with no photo, or sometimes, a poor one. The trend is clearly toward displaying a picture. Here’s why:
Many will feel disappointed if your photo is missing. They want to know what you look like; to get to know you a bit. The photo is an important part of your online image. Here are a few tips on your photo. It should:
- Appear friendly
- Don’t be like the man who posted a picture of himself wearing dark glasses. He looked like he was a hit man for the mafia.
- Be recognizable. Help people who might be meeting you for the first time at a networking coffee or function. I often see pictures that are too dark,
too distant, or too blurred.
- Be professional. Casual is OK; a suit is not mandatory.
- Be consistent. If you have photos on your web site, Facebook, etc., display the same photo to develop an online image.
There are lots more ways to improve your LinkedIn profile.
Ready for a powerful resume? Call me right now 847-673-0339
