Hi, it's Linda Raynier of LindaRaynier.com
Career Strategist, Speaker and Coach.
And in this video, I'm going to teach you six tips on how to make a great LinkedIn profile,
so that you can get noticed by recruiters and hiring managers
and literally become a magnet for new job opportunities.
You may not realize this,
but aside from your resume,
your LinkedIn profile is being carefully reviewed by the recruiters and hiring managers for the jobs that you apply for.
So if your LinkedIn isn't on point,
you may not even make it to the first round of interviews.
So it's extremely important to pay attention to how your LinkedIn is being presented
and that it represents the best possible version of you.
All right so let's dive into LinkedIn tip #1 and that is to have a photo that sends good vibes.
So aside from your name,
your LinkedIn profile picture is one of the first things that recruiters and hiring managers look at
as soon as they look you up on LinkedIn.
So you want to have a photo that's recent and of high quality.
You don't want to be using any old or dark, grainy photos
and you definitely don't want to be deceiving anybody by using a photo from several years back.
So make sure it’s bright, it's clear, and that you’re smiling and looking professional.
So for the guys, perhaps wear a collared shirt and a suit jacket and if you can, a tie as part of your LinkedIn profile picture.
And for the ladies, I would suggest wearing a blazer or a nice fitted top that is appropriate for the office.
Also, try to have a LinkedIn-specific photo
instead of using a picture from a recent family wedding or some other occasion.
And the reason for this is because you want to give the sense that you're serious about your career.
So, using any photo from any situation and any setting can cause some people to potentially question how serious you really are.
That's why I say if you want to put your best self forward in your job search and career
then that also applies to your LinkedIn profile photo.
Tip #2: Use an appropriate headline.
So, I've seen different opinions on what people should put as their headlines.
I've seen people say that you should have multiple description words that are high value and high impact.
But to be honest, I completely disagree.
I feel that you should just put your job title as your headline.
So if you're a Senior Financial Analyst, put that as your headline.
If you are a Finance Manager, put that as your headline.
And the reason for this is so that recruiters and hiring managers can find you easily.
If they have a job opportunity and they're looking for someone with your type of experience, your title specifically,
then they'll be able to find you.
But if you put in all these complicated words and vague descriptions
in your headline, people don't know what your title is and they don't know who you are and what you do.
So I highly recommend using your job title as your headline.
All right, onto tip #3.
Tip #3: Have a "What I Can Do For You"-Oriented Profile Summary
A lot of people don't even write up profile summaries in their LinkedIn profiles
and I think that's a shame. Because when you do have a profile summary
it helps you get noticed by recruiters and hiring managers for buzzwords that they may be looking up.
So, in your profile summary you want it to be short and sweet, but
at the same time, you don't want to just be talking about you, you, you
and instead, talk about what problems you help to solve.
And an example of how you would write your profile summary would be...
So that's an example of one sentence that you would have as part of your profile summary
and you would have probably, I would say about 3 or 4 of those and that'll make up a full paragraph
and that will be your little intro for anybody that lands on your LinkedIn profile.
Onto tip #4, and that is to make your work experience short and sweet.
You don't want to lay out all details and your duties and your achievements
onto your LinkedIn profile because that's what your resume is for.
So your LinkedIn profiles should just have your job titles,
your companies that you've worked at,
the exact months and years that you've worked in each of those roles,
and maybe, maybe have one bullet point that kind of summarizes
the overall responsibilities within each of the jobs that you've held.
The reason why you don't want to lay out all your goods onto the LinkedIn profile
is because you want to pique the interest of the recruiter or the hiring manager.
If they see that based on the titles that you've held and the companies that you've worked at
that there's a potential fit for an opportunity they have on the go
there's a greater likelihood that because they don't know everything about you,
by just looking at your LinkedIn profile,
they will then reach out to you and ask for your resume.
So that's how you then become a greater magnet for job opportunities.
A lot of people seem to hesitate to ask for recommendations from their old managers or bosses,
but I say, get over that fear and ask for those recommendations.
Because that's one simple way that you can get your LinkedIn profile to truly stand out
from other profiles out there.
And you want to make sure that these recommendations are coming from people that you worked for
such as an old boss or manager,
as opposed to a peer.
And the reason is, getting a recommendation from a peer is fine, but
it's still not as effective as if you can have it from someone who you consider a reference.
And finally, Tip #6: Put out your contact details.
This is something that a lot of people forget to do,
but I say, always remember to include some sort of contact information
whether it's an email address, and if you're comfortable, a phone number
somewhere that is easily visible on your LinkedIn profile
so that any recruiter or hiring manager that really wants to speak to you right away about an opportunity
can easily find it and reach out to you.
So now you have it, 6 major tips on how to make a great LinkedIn profile so that you can become a magnet for new job opportunities.
Now you know how to approach your LinkedIn profile, but do you know if your resume is still up to par?
Feel free to download a copy of my 10 Ultimate Resume Hacks Cheat Sheet
located in the link below for free.
That'll show you 10 ways on how you can improve your resume to land more interviews and ideally job offers.
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Thank you so much for watching and I will see you in the next video.