LinkedIn profiles are our one and only place to build connections and a network around our experience. Sure, other social media platforms give us an opportunity for us to talk about our experience but our LinkedIn profile allow us to showcase our capabilities without having to repeat numerous times.
Creating a killer LinkedIn headline and an exceptional summary are half the battle as whether we are job seekers or seeking to build a business, the additional information on our profile that starts with the “blue box,” begins to play a stronger role. Your headline and summary are your searched terms but once appearing in search results, a connection is made after review of your basic information is reviewed.
The Linkedin “Blue Box”
The LinkedIn blue box is what is seen first when your profile is clicked. Your name, headline, location and industry are displayed at the top. Thereafter, the information displayed is what makes networkers want to connect with you or move on to someone else. The items displayed beneath this basic information is some of the most important as people want to know what you bring to their network – whether that be an alumni connection, a job connection or shared information.
8 Tips to Enhance Your LinkedIn Profile
1. Status Updates. Your status update is displayed immediately beneath your basic information. Status updates have become increasingly popular with the LinkedIn integration with Twitter. Automating posts from twitter to post on LinkedIn has been used extensively but not widely accepted. Different audiences. Your LinkedIn status is business and not what you ate for dinner, where you went or how your children are destroying the house. Be selective on what you share in your status but be sure to update at least 1x per day to show that you are an active networker.
2. Current Employer. Your current employment is what stands out when people are looking for people within their industry to connect with, are looking for a referral to do business with OR want to cross check your resume. Your most recent experience needs to match your headline and summary. If you are job seeking your opening paragraph of your summary will reflect that however the body should match your career aspirations and your experience.
3. Past Employment. Your past employment is where some get queasy. A position that you only held for a few months or admitting that you worked for a company that was an “in-between” job is never pleasant however long gaps are almost worse. Adding your previous employment for 5 to 10 years (up to 10 years only if it relates to longevity in a field) not only shows that you are employable but that you are eager to work (also can show that you jump around). This is also a great way to connect with coworkers that you have lost touch with. Also, remember, beneath the blue box you can add information about each position you held and your role in the company. Suddenly that “in between” job may have a whole lot more meaning than just paying the rent.
4. Education. Your education in the blue box is not much more than where you attended. This is pretty much letting people know that you did further your education and also for an alumni connection. Beneath the blue box allows you to expand upon your your degree, years of attendance, additional information about the school and activities you participated in.
5. Recommendations. Your recommendations are highly regarded as people want to see that you are well liked, trusted and respected within your industry. When seeking employment or trying to build a business, your recommendations are taken into consideration as if you have performed well for others, then you will perform well for them. The question always arises as to whether ask for the recommendation or to wait for it to be provided. This is never an easy question as some do not think to give a recommendation as they are either not as active on LinkedIn or are unsure as to what to say. Best practice is to consider the person that you would be asking. Have they freely given out recommendations with out being asked or from your experience with them, do they need that nudge?
6. Websites. Websites is set to the default of my website, my company, my blog, my RSS, my portfolio and other. The option of other allows you to add your actual company name for the website and the name of your blog. A common mistake made by many is not changing the default. Changing the default to Other and customizing your links not only introduces the names but also provides a familiarity to them.
7. Twitter. Since the development of the app and the integration with Twitter, you can add your Twitter account as a separate line item. Cross connecting is always encouraged however cross posting, as discussed above, is not always welcomed and generally warrants a “hide” of your profile. Why? People share items that are now always LinkedIn worthy. Best bet is to set your LinkedIn Twitter to “Share only tweets that contain #li”. This way you can hashtag your tweets of an article, a quote, etc to be posted on your status.
8. Public Profile. Your public profile is customizable to your name or something of the like should your name be a common one. This is another common mistake that people make by not creating a custom profile. Your custom profile does not contain a series of. For example, your custom profile would be: www.linkedin.com/in/yournamehere and not www.linkedin.com/pub/name/seriesofnumbers. To customize, simply click edit and create your profile name when prompted.
The LinkedIn blue box does pack a powerful punch as before connecting, this is the main exposure people have to you and base their decision to connect from this initial information. If your profile blue box snippet peaks their interest, they will scroll down to review your summary, expanded work history and education. If not, they move on. LinkedIn CEO’s contact information is one of the most sought after executives.
Thank you Ms. Suzanne for this very detailed information about LinkedIn. I didn't realize the importance of Status updates and the others you mentioned until now. I think I will edit my profile and follow your tips here.
Also remember to use keywords for your skills, services and products in your LinkedIn profile to be found more easily in searches. This is particularly important in the “Blue Box”.
Brett
Thanks for this awesome post. Really very detailed information about LinkedIn. Awaiting for your next one good post.
I love Linkedin now as there are a lot of my friends out there
I can also add my updates from different sources like Twitter, FB too. Thanks
“Your LinkedIn status is business and not what you ate for dinner, where you went or how your children are destroying the house.”
That is the most important aspect and should have it's own section.
LinkedIn isn't Twitter and it isn't Facebook and it isn't MySpace. What you post on each of those should be very different a changed according to the respective audiences.
Just signed up with LinedIn last week so I appreciate the tips!
i am the a big fan of Linked and this post is really very helpful to me to enhance by profile.
Great tips Suzanne, I'll have to re-think the twitter/linkedIn connection. Also the “other” tab-great advice.
Great post Suzan! There are many excellent ways to use Linked In, but sometimes its primary purpose – to connect people professionally, is forgotten.
What a great article, not only for those looking for a new job or career but also those just looking to network or market their own business.
I feel the tip which works best would be-
Create a customized URL. For example, you can set up your LinkedIn profile to be found at linkedin.com/in/joelelad instead of the default, which could be linkedin.com/in/4JPA678
Thanks for the tips! While I am not new to blogging, I am new to actually trying to grow my blogs rather than just blog and see what happens. Your info is helpfull
What an awesome blog! You've taught me significant information on ways to enhance a LinkedIn profile from this article. I appreciate you for taking the effort to extend this topic so comprehensively. I look forward to learning more on your upcoming posts. Thanks.
I always look forward to reading your articles. What a great post, not only for those looking for a new job or career but also those just looking to network or market their own business.
Josefina Argüello –
Since I use Linked-in a lot for networking, your article would indeed be very useful
Thank you for a post! Definitely nice tips. Unfortunately in my country (Russia) people do not use LinkedIn much, that is why CV writing skills should be on the first place.
Include the keywords and skills from your resume in your profile. This will make it easier for your profile to be found in search results.
I used these tips for my own linkedin profile and i should tell you that the results are good.I added as many past employees I can so that more coworkers can find me.To give a classy look, I added a picture of mine to the profile.Make your profile public and set it to Full View so your LinkedIn profile will show up in Web search results.Add links from your LinkedIn profile to Web sites you are trying to promote, like your blog, e-commerce store, or company Web site.
great tips for LinkedIn, it is certainly an effective means of professional networking. I am also advertising on LinkedIn for a client and it is delivering great initial results!
You have a great list of tips here! Thanks for sharing. The use of social media today is rapidly spreading fin almost all ages. It's really essential to inform people how to use social media in their advantage when it comes to marketing and advertising.
Wow, great post! I would almost be worried for most people of they linked their LinkedIn and Twitter accounts. A lot of people post things on Twitter that might hurt your chances with a potential employer. In my experience, Twitter is for fun and LinkedIn is for business.
Nice article. For some reason, that I can’t quite put my finger on, I don’t much care for LinkedIn’s user format. It seemed outdated from day one. Not as user friendly as other soc meds.
Thank you for such a great article! This is very useful post. I will update my linkedin profile according to this.
I’ve singed up for LinkedIN not that long ago and did not actually have time to develop my profile there.
Owing to your tips I’m now able to do this quickly and with greater benefit.
LinkedIn is a weird beast! Thanks for the tips, how does everyone go with LinkedIn? I have been using it for around a year and i haven’t really gotten a lot out of it?
I find Facebook better i guess it depends a lot on the industry you are in
If you are a business person and you are online, you have surely heard of LinkedIn. In fact, with 19 million users around the globe, the odds are good that you have already created your own LinkedIn account.
Learning to set up a great LinkedIn profile is foundational to any successful job search. Not only will it help you land the job, but it will pay off for you throughout your career.
“Nice article. For some reason, that I can’t quite put my finger on, I don’t much care for LinkedIn’s user format. It seemed outdated from day one. Not as user friendly as other soc meds.”
Afraid I gotta agree with the guy who posted this. I understand the value of LinkedIn but I just don’t like the feel of the place.
Hopefully it will grow on me though.
Thanks for the great tips. Good to know that the Status Updates play such an important role in improving the LinkedIn profile.
Thanks so much for your article, I have a Linkedin account, I appreciate the help you have given me, now I’m off to work on my profile. Cheers
I find being an active member of groups relevant to your profession helps me the most. That has where most of my networking has taken place on LinkedIn.
Great info. Just started using Linkedin so this will come in very handy
wow! .. that’s really great tips .. i have ahad created my linkedin profile 2 years back ..but never knew u can do so many things on it. ..looks like i hav to update it right now. thanks
I am new to Linkedin, till now have been using more Twitter but after going through this post and I feel like be using it more….
Thank you for the Linkedin tips, great stuff! Always the more content in your linkedin profile, the better. Always include your Twitter handle as you nailed down well in this post. I have gained many followers through Twitter directly from linkedin.
Hi there,
Linkedin is a growing and popular site for sure, Thanks for the interesting read!
I enjoy Linkedin more than Twitter. Linkedin has some great powerful features exclusively that attract many business and professionals. So you must build your network on Linkedin to get maximum benefits. It has a lot of runway ahead and there’s a lot more still to come. Thanks for such a nice post.
Thanx 4 the info. I hv just started using Linkedin . i do know what i must to do. now i try your stuff. thx..
I definitely agree with what this post is saying but Linkedin is limited only to a certain type of audience. What you should do is apply the thought of this article to every social media you use. Linkedin is basically for businessmen and women you should also try improving your profiles in different social medias.