Considering the fact that more than 94% of recruiters use LinkedIn to hire employees, LinkedIn is currently the hottest career development tool out there. But what surprises us is how little users understand about the impact of having an optimized LinkedIn profile. Well, to start with - a fully optimized profile can increase your chances of getting your dream job by a whopping 71% yet more than 50% LinkedIn profiles are incomplete.
Below, we list down the most actionable ways to make your LinkedIn profile impactful and effective, plus advice from reputable career coaches & experts. Enjoy!
According to LinkedIn, a photo can get your profile up to 21 times more views. Your profile stays incomplete unless you have a photo. And an incomplete profile is likely to show up less in networks.You may think this is an obvious one but after having reviewed numerous profiles over the past year, we can confirm that many candidates forget this fundamental step. Also, profiles without profile pictures have reduced credibility. Our mentors, who’ve been FAANG+ recruiters, hiring managers, and individual contributors, admit to associating a missing photo with an out-of-date or inactive profile.
Here’s an example of a good profile picture:
Make sure the picture you use is:
The purpose of your About section is to attract the right opportunities to you and tell your story. Whether you use it to put career choices in context, highlight your biggest achievements, or show off your personality, the summary is your chance to put your best self out there.
The first 265-275 characters show up on your profile before someone clicks on 'see more'. This is where we recommend including a clear focused Personal Value Proposition Statement.
💡 Try to keep it scannable and focus on the value and the ROI behind the work. Tell them about the impact you've made. Use emojis or bullet points to separate and draw attention to your achievement of things you want to highlight.
Of the many elements that make up a strong profile, two of the most important ones are your professional headline and “About” section, explain career experts at Harvard University’s Office for Alumni Affairs and Career Advancement.
Gijo, chief product officer at VTS, stands out because his summary have both great substance and style. Substance is the “what to say” and comes from the topics you cover. Style is the “how to say it” and comes from the tone and format of your words:
If you’re stuck, use this LinkedIn Profile Summary Formula:
Hi there! I’m [Your Name] – and I’m obsessed with all things ____. I’m driven by ____ and ____. I love impactful work, especially when it involves ____
Here’s a question: When was the last time you thought about ____ in your business?
As a [Position] for [Company], it’s my job to think about that every day. In other words, I ____ by ____. Since [Month + Year], I’ve been [Company]’s point person for ____. It’s my job to make sure ____. While at [Company], my biggest accomplishment has been:
Prior to this role, I was at [Company], where I spent ____ years building ____ for the business and its customers. This work resulted in ____. In a nutshell, I ____.
Professionally, I’m motivated by ____, ____, and ____. As a result of my work, I’ve been recognized by ____ for my ____, and received the ____ award in [Year]. These achievements are indicative of the work I put in to making ____ better.
Outside of work, I recharge by ____ or ____. What I appreciate about my job is being able to pursue both my personal goals and professional passions with equal gusto – honestly, I think it makes me a better ____.
I’m always happy to connect with like-minded [Industry] professionals. If you’d like to get in touch with me about ____, hit that Connect button and send me a message.
Project/ Experience description is an incredible feature of LinkedIn that allows you to give recruiters a snippet of your achievements, responsibilities, and learning in your previous roles. This should be a more in-depth description than that in your resume.
Example of a well-crafted Experience Section on LinkedIn
Try switching to first-person or taking up a conversational tone as your list your most important achievements. Put the most important information in the first couple of lines. And make your description easy to read, clear and concise. You don’t want recruiters having to fish for information.
Use keywords that are desirable and essential for that position. For this, you can go through job descriptions and pick skills/ tasks you’ve had experience in. Use action words, these are usually words ending in “-ed”. For example: instead of “in charge of” use “directed”; instead of “worked with” use “collaborated”. Use these action words:
“To be most successful in leveraging LinkedIn, ensure these things: optimize your profile; be targeted and focused with your headline and "personal brand" and engage, connect, comment and participate in the conversation.”
Shennee Rutt, Executive Rèsumè Writer And Career Strategist
Your contact info doesn’t show in the standard view of your LinkedIn profile, but it’s important to include so that recruiters or other contacts can easily get in touch with you. Here’s an example of how an optimized intro section on LinkedIn may look like:
You can also create a similar intro section of your profile by following these tips:
Your headline should communicate at a glance what you do and align with what your audience is searching for. It is your selling point in the search results, influencing whether the recruiter will open your profile or not.
Recruiters mostly search using keywords and so mentioning your top skills here will help. Mention relevant keywords in the headline to boost your profile in search results.
There are many different ways you can write your headline statement. One such great method is the Pipe Method, which starts with your current title or position followed by the pipe symbol and then a statement that includes keywords and specifics that help people understand and find you.
Title | Specific Achievement or Accolade
Example: UI Designer | Creating award-winning Mac AppsGood headline:
You can also simplify things and go with a headline formula like the one Dobson encourages you to try:
what you do + Using this, your headline could be, for example:
Visual designer who creates stunning digital branding to help small- & medium-sized companies grow their customer base
your creative value + your target audience + your proof point
Want to know more such career development insights and growth tactics? Book a 1:! session with our mentors now!
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