Having a LinkedIn profile is one of the must-haves of a modern job searching. This social network allows to get noticed by recruiters, receive job offers, communicate with colleagues, participate in groups and a lot more than that.
Create Your LinkedIn Profile
Your profile reflects your personality and tells everything about your professional skills and experience. Your LinkedIn profile is a number one tool for being noticed and get a job offer. If you are a bit lost and do not know what to write, try to perceive it as a kind of resume.
The basic principle is to make it detailed and full. It is possible to use the same information that you mention in your resume. It is common to pay more attention to skills and experience sections, but do not forget to add recommendations and volunteering activities as it can help your profile to stand out.
Upload a Photo
In a search list or in a friend invitation, the first thing the person sees is your photo. No matter how great the profile information is, a picture still gives the first impression. Adding a profile photo has a lot of advantages. It increases the views, make the profile more recognizable and appealing. Be sure to use a photo of a good quality and a proper size.
It usually contains only your face and shoulders, but it is still important to dress nicely and avoid applying too much make-up. Remember it should look formal and professional. It is also crucial not to include objects, animals or other people. Additionally, it should be a current photo of only yourself.
A Summary and a Headline
The two most noticeable sections of your profile are a summary and a headline. The recruiters usually rely on a summary while searching for the candidates. Thus, it is better to make sure it emphasizes all your powerful sides and includes additional information like languages, certificates or any extraordinary skills.
Place the headline right under your photo at the top of the page and it will catch visitor’s eye immediately. It should be bright, vivid and contain a few keywords.
Keywords
To make your profile is more visible in search, it is a good idea to use the keywords from your resume. Consider adding some details, extend some phrases, enhance the sections. Do not forget to select the industry as well. Recruiters often use it to find the employees.
The skills section on LinkedIn is basically made of keywords. Do not hesitate to add some more of them. It is important to differentiate the keywords from clichés that make the page boring featureless. Try to avoid the overuse of standard adjectives like creative, responsible, passionate etc.
Build Your Network
No matter how perfect your profile is, it is not lucrative, if you do not have any connections and no one sees it. That is why it is important to make it public and add some contacts. It might be your former colleagues, classmates, and anyone you know. The more connections you have, the more opportunities it brings.
However, it is not efficient to add random people you have never talked to. If you want to widen your network and find some new contacts, try to participate in groups and write relevant social media posts. After a few comments and a short discussion, it is quite appropriate to send an invitation.
Check the Settings
The settings of your profile allow informing others about what you are open for. There are such options as consulting offers, career opportunities, new ventures, reference requests, and job inquiries. You may choose the one that is the most suitable for you to show what are your expectations. It gives a chance to get more opportunities, even if you are not in active search for a job.
Do a Search
In case you follow the tips from the previous paragraphs, your profile will attract the attention of recruiters. This way the job will find you. However, to speed up the process, try using a search that will give the list of all the available jobs. You may choose different criteria like location, company, position, salary.
Once you see the interesting job, you may click on “apply”. Sometimes you could be redirected to company’s website, the cover letter might be requested or it might be necessary to contact by email.
Conclusion
Using LinkedIn effectively is quite easy, but it is also important to realize that registering on the website is not enough to achieve desirable results. Not all job seekers know how to fill in the page the way actual resume writers do it. Hopefully, this guide will help you overcome the difficulties of a new user and reveal some secrets of a successful LinkedIn profile handling.
