How should you position your LinkedIn profile?

LinkedIn has become an essential platform for professionals looking to advance their careers. With over 722 million users worldwide, LinkedIn is the largest professional networking site and continues to grow. As more hiring managers and recruiters turn to LinkedIn to evaluate candidates, it’s critical that you strategically position your profile to stand out.

But how exactly should you go about optimizing your LinkedIn profile? Here, we’ll explore best practices for profiling yourself in a way that attracts opportunities and gets you noticed by the right people.

Highlight relevant skills and achievements

The top of your LinkedIn profile features key sections like your headline, summary, experience, and skills. This prime real estate should showcase your strengths and accomplishments. Consider the following tips:

• Headline – Summarize your professional identity in just a few words, optimizing for keywords recruiters may search for.
• Summary – Expand on your headline with a short paragraph highighting your specialities, abilities, and career goals.
• Experience – Detail your employment history, focusing on achievements rather than just responsibilities. Quantify results with hard numbers.
• Skills – Include keywords that applicants search for. Showcase both hard and soft skills relevant to your industry.

By tailoring these core sections around your value as a candidate, you’ll engage recruiters and hiring managers scrolling through profiles.

Customize your LinkedIn URL

LinkedIn automatically assigns you a URL with a string of random numbers and letters. To make your profile URL more professional, customize it to include your name. Here’s how:

1. Click on the “View profile” button at the top of your homepage.
2. Your profile will open in a new tab. In the address bar, delete the random characters after your name.
3. Type in the custom URL you’d like using only letters, numbers, periods, and dashes. For example: www.linkedin.com/in/john-smith
4. Hit enter. LinkedIn will prompt you to confirm the new address.

A customized URL makes you look more professional and is easier to share on resumes or business cards.

Expand your network

The number of connections you have demonstrates your reach and relationships. To grow your network organically:

• Connect with colleagues from current and previous jobs. Coworkers often make great recommendations.
• Link with former managers. Their endorsements can validate your skills and experience.
• Join industry or alumni groups. Connect with members who share your professional interests.
• Follow companies you want to work for. This makes you visible when roles open up.
• Accept connection requests thoughtfully. Don’t connect with strangers if you want to maintain the value of your network.

Take the time to cultivate your list of connections. A focused network is far more meaningful than having thousands of random contacts.

Get recommendations

Recommendations from past managers and colleagues carry a lot of weight. They add credibility to your experiences and skills. Here are some tips for getting great recommendations:

• Personalize your request by reminding the person of projects you worked on together.
• Provide recommendation talking points or bullet points to jog their memory.
• Highlight specific skills or accomplishments you’d like them to emphasize.
• Offer to write a recommendation for them in exchange.
• Follow up if you haven’t heard back after a week or two.
• Show gratitude by commenting on or sharing the recommendations you receive.

Genuine recommendations boost your credibility and show you contribute value in a team setting.

Engage with content

Active engagement on LinkedIn demonstrates your interests and expertise. Here are some ways to participate:

• Like and share posts from influences and brands in your industry.
• Comment thoughtfully on posts with insights or questions.
• Create your own posts with career advice, industry news, or leadership thoughts.
• Publish your presentations, images, videos, and blog posts.
• Join LinkedIn groups focused on your field and take part in discussions.

This level of participation shows you’re invested in your professional community and have knowledge to contribute.

Complete profile sections

Leaving sections of your profile empty looks unprofessional and incomplete. Maximize these other areas:

• Background summary – Flesh out your work history and education.
• Featured – Showcase projects, publications, volunteering, courses, honors, etc.
• interests – Share hobbies, sports, and causes you care about.
• Media – Add presentations, videos, images to demonstrate your skills.
• Supported languages – List foreign languages you speak, read, or write.

Filling out these sections demonstrates well-rounded experience beyond your core resume content.

Use media for visual impact

Visually compelling profiles stand out. Incorporate relevant media like:

• Profile photo – Professionally taken headshot or picture of you speaking.
• Background photo – Showcase your industry, office, or passion.
• Certificates – Scan award certificates, training documents, etc.
• Presentations – Upload slide decks from speaking engagements.
• Publications – Share articles, images, brochures, or reports you’ve created.

Integrating photos, documents, videos, and presentations makes your profile more dynamic and visually engaging.

Track profile analytics

Take advantage of LinkedIn’s analytics to see who’s looking at your profile and refine it based on those insights. Here’s what to track:

• Who’s viewed your profile – This shows companies scoping out your background.
• Impressions – Check how many times your profile appears in search results.
• Search appearance – See keywords people use to find your profile.
• Spotlight – Discover experiences or skills drawing attention.

Analyze this data to identify opportunities for positioning your profile more effectively.

Conclusion

Optimizing your LinkedIn profile is an ongoing process as you evolve in your career. By regularly incorporating relevant experiences, expanding your network, engaging thoughtfully, and monitoring analytics, you can position yourself as a top candidate in your industry. With these best practices, your LinkedIn profile can serve as a valuable asset in advancing your professional goals.