As of September 2024, LinkedIn has over 1 billion members, making it one of the most powerful tools for job seekers. To Optimise your LinkedIn profile means you’re turning it into a page that persuades recruiters to reach out to you or consider responding to your outreach attempts.
Throughout this article, we will discuss how to make the most out of the LinkedIn platform, sharing straightforward, easy-to-follow steps that anyone could put into place to ensure their profile stands out to potential employers and recruiters.
Nailing the Basics: Profile Picture and Banner
Start by ensuring your profile picture is a professional and up-to-date image. If you don’t have a professional headshot, grab your iPhone and take a photo of yourself against a white wall background. This will only take 2 minutes and will make a huge difference to your LinkedIn success rate.
Your banner should be a personalised image that is relevant to your business. You can create this for free in Canva and source royalty-free images on websites like Unsplash.
Write a Strong ‘About’ Section (Your Career Story)
Your headline is there to summarise your offerings. Put yourself in your ideal recruiter’s shoes; after reading your headline, they should know immediately what your offering is and whether or not it is relevant to them — the more specific, the better!
For your summary, try to use short paragraphs — many people will only skim your summary, so don’t overwhelm them with too much information. Below are some key elements to consider:
- Hook readers with a strong opener.
- Tell the reader why you do what you do.
- Demonstrate your industry expertise.
- Share your specialities and skills.
Top tip: Adding skills to your profile is especially helpful for recruiters who are scanning profiles, as it helps to set you apart from other candidates with similar job experience. In fact, including at least 5 skills increases your profile views by 17 times and your chances of getting contacted!
Showcase Your Creativity and Expertise
Regularly publishing content for your page, such as innovative ideas, articles or short clips, will demonstrate your expertise in your field and position you as a thought leader.
By using the ‘Featured’ section, you can also pick and choose the content you’re most proud of and curate what other members will see. This might include:
- Articles and posts you’ve published on LinkedIn
- External links to your website or portfolio
- Documents and presentations such as your CV or case studies with previous work examples
Interact with the Company and Key People
Once your profile is up and running, don’t forget that interacting with other LinkedIn users can significantly increase your chances of getting noticed. This helps with building relationships and, ultimately, landing the job!
When connecting with key people, such as the hiring manager, remember to personalise your connecting request by mentioning something relevant, such as an article you wrote or a shared interest.
If you would like to speak with one of our Recruitment Team about your profile, or would like us to help you into your next job, simply Register with us today and we will then contact you to book a chat at a convenient time!
