How to Make LinkedIn’s New Profile Work for You!
LinkedIn has exploded from a glorified resume depository to a thriving online community in a short period of time. Having an active community of more than 259 million members and growing, and over 3 million LinkedIn business pages, if you haven’t started to market on LinkedIn, it’s high time you did!
By far the most profitable place to start is with your new LinkedIn profile. Hold on, you say; I already have one. Perhaps, but recently LinkedIn revamped your profile page, and the new version is a perfect opportunity for marketers to plunder, so let’s get to it!
- Use your headline, summary and contact info smartly! – These areas are the most important in the new profile layout. Know what keywords you would like to be found for, and include them in your headline and summary. You only have 120 characters to work with in your headline, so take some time to craft a compelling statement about you and your business. Because the summary is now positioned above the fold, this also needs careful attention. Make sure you put any ways you like to be contacted in your contact information, and don’t forget to link out to your site from here!
- Acquire and feature testimonials – It’s all about social proof nowadays, and the more people you can find to rave about you and your business the better. This will also grow connections like you won’t believe!
- Get a professionally done photo – Don’t publish your latest candid snapshot from your daughter’s birthday party (or worse!). This isn’t Facebook! Get a professional photo done that reflects how you look now, and how you want to appear to a new client, as a number of these people might up being! Resist the temptation to be creative here, or to use old photos, not matter how great they were. They don’t look like you do now, and that may come back to bite you in the wallet!