How to Up Your LinkedIn Game
By — — Posted in LinkedIn, OTJ Career Management
GOT TALENT? Do you know how to showcase it?
For anyone that’s not familiar, America’s Got Talent is like American Idol and So You Think You Can Dance (plus any talent/performance type at all) rolled into one gigantic, national talent show.
The competition is fierce. EVERYONE has, in fact, ‘got’ talent. In spades. (and some, literally have them in spades, if they are card magicians!)
There are multiple rounds of auditions, and the expectation often cited by the celebrity judges is that if a contestant is to be voted through to progress to the next round, that you need to ‘up your game’ in your future performances to continue to the finals – and maybe, you hope, even WIN the whole show!
The same expectation holds true in your job search to get noticed – you have to stand out from your competition. So ask yourself – “Do I need to up my game here?”
One way to do that, where many ‘judges’ will be looking to recruit top talent, is to improve your LinkedIn profile! Did you know that 94% of recruiters use LinkedIn to source and vet candidates, according to Jobvite.
Have you even looked at your LinkedIn profile lately? Will it get you voted to the next round (an interview invitation)? Or will it earn you the big red “X”/buzzer of NO, we’re moving on to the next applicant?
5 Tips to Improve Your LinkedIn Profile: How to Up Your Linked In Game!
1) First, LI should be more ‘conversational’ in style. It can be a bit more personal. It can ‘tell your story’ and career moves/progression in ways a resume does not. It complements, and should not simply repeat verbatim, your resume (though of course some content is the same). (Most people’s LI profile are just their resume copy & pasted. This is a big mistake!)
2) It is also recommended that you customize your LI profile url. You can then add that link to your resume. This is much more professional than having a link url that is 14, 576 random characters long, make sense? (how to do this in the pdf download below…)
3) Photo: You need a photo! You’ll have 7 times the chances of your profile being viewed (by connections you want to make from your colleagues, to recruiters/HR managers!). Keep it professional, of course.
4) Consider adding samples of your work (or links to samples) to your profile. You can also showcase your expertise by publishing articles on your LI profile.
5) Just like on AGT, your presentation matters. On LI, think about adding some simple formatting (unlike on AGT, however, more ‘pizzaz’ will NOT help though) Less is more with formatting on LI! (How to format your profile in the download pdf – click below!)
Get MORE “How To’s” for Upping Your Linked In Game
for the 6 page LI Tips pdf instant download!
Tips & Ideas for Strong LinkedIn Profiles”
What’s included:
• How to format LinkedIn content (add bullets, lines, stars and more!)
• Privacy settings – what you should know
• Headline, job titles and key words – things to think about
• If you’re employed: safely using LI for job search
• How to use LI groups to make new connections
• Do recommendations, or skills endorsements matter?
And more!
