Having an updated, professional resume and LinkedIn profile are critical for today’s job market. With more companies utilizing applicant tracking systems and recruiters increasingly searching LinkedIn to find qualified candidates, it’s essential that your resume and profile properly showcase your skills, experience and accomplishments.
Follow these steps to successfully update your resume and LinkedIn profile:
Resume Editing Tips
Review and update contact information
Ensure your name, phone number, email address, mailing address, and links to any professional sites like LinkedIn are up-to-date and consistent across all materials and profiles.
Tailor your resume to the job description
Analyze the job description and note the key requirements and responsibilities. Integrate relevant keywords from the description throughout your resume. Highlight your related qualifications and achievements in a way that shows how you are uniquely suited for that particular role.
Lead with a strong resume summary
Your resume summary (or career objective) is critical real estate that should quickly communicate your most relevant qualifications and value proposition. Keep it concise, impactful and tailored to the target role.
Update your skills section
Include the most important and relevant skills for the position. Back these up with concrete examples of when you demonstrated these skills under your work experience section. Consider including both hard skills (like programming languages and tools) and soft skills (like communication and time management).
Refine your work experience descriptions
For each work experience on your resume, succinctly describe your responsibilities, contributions and quantifiable achievements. Use numbers and facts where possible to demonstrate your impact. Emphasize experience that is most applicable to the job you are targeting.
Remove irrelevant content
Cut out any outdated, irrelevant or extraneous information. This includes outdated work experience, old contact information, unnecessary details, repetitive content and unrelated skills or interests. Keep things lean, focused and compelling.
Check for consistency
Verify all dates, titles and other information are consistent across your resume and profiles. Fix any discrepancies.
Proofread for spelling and grammar errors
Carefully proofread every section of your resume. Check for spelling mistakes, typos, spacing issues or grammatical errors that could undermine your professionalism.
Update fonts, margins and styling
Tweak the overall styling and presentation of your resume for a clean, modern and professional look. Use an appropriate font and size, balanced margins and simple resume headers. Remove excess dividers or graphics. Let the content shine.
LinkedIn Profile Optimization Tips
Use a professional profile photo
Choose a high-quality, polished headshot of just you (no group photos) for your profile picture. This builds your professional brand and makes recruiters more likely to click on your profile.
Craft a compelling headline
Your LinkedIn headline appears right below your name and photo. It’s valuable real estate to capture someone’s attention. Include your current position and professional specialty or competitive advantage.
Summarize your background in your summary section
Briefly describe your professional background, capabilities, accomplishments and goals in your LinkedIn summary. Engage readers and make them want to learn more about you.
Showcase your experience
In your experience section, highlight relevant positions, responsibilities and achievements. Include details, facts, numbers and examples that convey the value you delivered. Follow a similar approach to your resume.
Expand your skills section
Thoroughly fill out your skills section with keywords related to your capabilities. This helps optimize your LinkedIn profile for searches and makes you more discoverable by recruiters.
Display your education
Add details on your degrees, majors, certifications and other education credentials. Include coursework and activities relevant to your target field.
Build your network and connections
Grow your LinkedIn network by connecting with colleagues, peers and professionals in your industry. Relationship-building can uncover hidden job opportunities and facilitate referrals.
Participate in industry conversations
Comment on posts, share content and join LinkedIn Groups around your professional interests. Thoughtful engagement shows your subject matter expertise and interest.
Recommend others and get recommended
Strengthen your profile with recommendations from managers, colleagues, clients or professors who can validate your skills and work. Offer thoughtful recommendations for your connections too.
Link to external media
Enhance your profile by linking to articles, websites, videos, SlideShare presentations and other content that showcases your work. Just be sure all external content reflects positively on your brand.
Matching Your Resume and LinkedIn Profile
For maximum impact, it’s important your resume and LinkedIn profile are aligned and consistent. Follow these best practices:
- Use the same professional headshot photo on both profiles
- Incorporate similar wording, phrases and keywords on both materials
- Have the same structure and sequence for presenting your experience, education, skills, etc.
- Include consistent dates, titles and companies for all of your roles
- Reference the same key achievements, projects and responsibilities
- Follow parallel formatting, style and visual designs
Presenting a cohesive personal brand across your resume and LinkedIn profile establishes credibility and demonstrates professionalism to employers.
Tips for Updating Your Resume and Profile
Here are some additional tips for successfully updating your resume and LinkedIn profile:
| Resume Tips | LinkedIn Profile Tips |
|---|---|
| – Use resume keywords applicable to your target job | – Completely fill out the LinkedIn profile, no empty sections |
| – Quantify accomplishments with numbers and data | – Include media like photos, videos and presentations |
| – Focus on achievements, not just job duties | – Optimize profile with relevant keywords |
| – Emphasize transferable skills gained | – Customize your LinkedIn profile URL |
| – Spotlight soft skills using examples | – Leverage all available sections (skills, publications, etc.) |
Additional resume tips:
- Keep it succinct – 1-2 pages maximum
- Use data, numbers, facts to quantify achievements
- Tailor content specifically for each application
- Place most relevant skills and experience at the top
- Format resume with ample white space for easy reading
- Match resume bullets with keywords from job ad
Additional LinkedIn profile tips:
- Include links to websites, online portfolios and other media
- Join relevant LinkedIn groups and build connections
- Follow companies you are interested in
- Publish your own long-form posts to share your perspective
- Engage with other posts through likes, comments and shares
- Recommend others and get recommended in return
Conclusion
To maximize your chances of landing an interview, it is imperative that your resume and LinkedIn profile are up-to-date and aligned. Use targeted keywords, compelling achievements and clear, consistent messaging across both platforms. Follow modern design best practices and showcase your unique background, skills and abilities. With these resume and LinkedIn profile optimization tips, you will stand out and impress potential employers.
