Create a profile on LinkedIn: a comprehensive guide

What is LinkedIn

LinkedIn - a social network for finding and establishing business contacts, launched in 2003, Reid Hoffman (Reid Hoffman). Currently, the site registered more than 380 million members, representing 150 industries business. The resource is available in 24 languages, including Russian.

LinkedIn - unusual social network. This is not Facebook and "VKontakte". There are no seals, funny videos, "living" status and debate in the comments. This is purely a business space where you can To find a job, Find a job, to establish useful contacts with partners and customers, as well as just chat with the same interests - business interests.

Using a profile on LinkedIn, you can make a beautiful summary or create online business card. To learn how to promote your LinkedIn CV-we have wrote. Today we will focus on how to create a profile that allows you to present yourself as a super professional and earn respect in the business community.

Why fill profile

According to statistics, only 51% of participants LinkedIn profile filled to 100%. And in vain. The less information, the lower the efficiency profile.

Efficiency Profile - an indicator showing whether the information is sufficient for you and your professional qualities to establish new business contacts. An icon located in the right part of the profile, measured as a percentage from the initial to the "star" level.

LinkedIn search algorithm is such that the first to issue displays the profiles with the highest efficiency. Therefore it is recommended to fill in the page as accurately and in detail. Otherwise, recruiters and potential partners simply will not notice you.

For maximum efficiency, you need to install the photo (on the intricacies of her choice - below) and indicate:

• scope and place of residence;
• current position (the description);
• two previous places of work;
• information on education;
• skills (at least three);
• interest groups (at least a couple).

You also need to install at least 50 contacts with LinkedIn member. To learn how to shape their network and receive advice, read below.

basic settings

You want to stand out among the millions of users? Pay careful attention to completing your profile.

Name

LinkedIn - business network, there is no appropriate and humorous nicknames nicknames like "sales star" or "ninja development." Specify your real name, surname and patronymic.

professional Title

This is the most important element on your page. Its maximum length - 120 characters. Be brief, but creative. Of the title should be clear who you are and what you do.

Professional title, as well as the job description should be optimized for search engines. But do not nashpigovyvat these fields keywords like duck - apples: two or three of keywords relevant enough.

Use standard names of positions and professions not "gurus copywriting" and "copywriter". However, permissible to include in the title of your existing academic degrees. For example, not a psychologist and PhD in Psychology. It not only speaks of who you are working, but also indicates how successful you are in your field.

Be sure to specify the scope of your business to be more visible in the search.

Profile link

It should be simple and short, so people can find you easily. Your URL is in light gray box under the name and title.

Click "Change the settings of your public profile" and bring your LinkedIn-address palatable. It must contain between 5 and 30 characters.

Broken Link: linkedin.com/pub/james-seaton7342/7864.

Correct: linkedin.com/in/jameseaton.

Beautiful LinkedIn-address is not ashamed to place on your business card.

contact information

Be sure to fill out the contact information about yourself: your mobile phone number, e-mail, Twitter and so on.

Links to websites (personal blog, company website, etc.) can be further customized using the anchor. To do this, click "Web Sites", select "Other" and enter the name and address of the resource.

Overview

This unit briefly (max - 2 000 characters) Describe the career achievements, who are proud, and your business ambitions.

Education

This unit is the most important for those who may not have experience. Some HR-specialists interested in graduates from certain universities.

Profiles of participants with educational institutions browsing seven times more often. Be sure to specify the name of the university (up to 100 characters), the years of training and add a description (maximum - 1000 characters), that is, specify a few details. For example, "I graduated with honors", "defended a thesis on the subject ...", "published in the scientific journal... '.

experience

68% of participants use LinkedIn for networking with former business partners. Be precise in the description of past and ongoing projects.

Be sure to specify the position (up to 100 characters), company name and work period. Do not neglect and fields "Area" and "Description". Why miss an opportunity to emphasize your mobility and profit that you bring one or another company?

In the description of the post to avoid bombastic catchphrases and superb assessing levels. Less adjectives, verbs longer. Instead of writing, "I'm an excellent dealer", enter the awards and the effectiveness of their sales figures.

Loyalty to your profile and add media content. Add links to presentations, videos, podcasts, blogs, publications, citations and other materials. This will allow recruiters to understand who you are and what stand. In addition, the longer users view your profile, the better the chance that you start up between co-operation.

projects

Regularly updated information about the projects on which he worked. This is a great way to demonstrate your competence.

In fact, it is your portfolio. 66% of companies hire employees based on their past projects. Do not forget to put links (if any) on the project, which involved. Users who view your profile, it should be possible to get acquainted with them more.

Skills and their confirmation

Profiles of the participants with the skills scan four times as likely. Indicate that you know, and ask them to confirm the skills of friends from your contacts.

Monitored content

Keep track topics that interest you, to keep abreast of developments in your industry and join the thematic groups and companies community.

In groups, you can ask questions and give advice, chat with colleagues in the industry, or come from his alma mater. The group may be open, ie, it may enter anyone, and closed - you need to apply for and obtain approval of the administrator.

The group should not be confused with the page of the company. Many corporations, especially international ones, give birth to their own pages on LinkedIn. But, unlike other pages in social networks, this is not done for brand promotion. On the company's page you can view a list of its employees (maybe some of them are your friends?), To find out about her news. Tracking updates of the page, you will be informed of vacancies.

Profile blocks can be moved. Brings to the fore what the proud and that might interest potential employers.

Profile picture

"Meet on clothes" - this proverb is fully valid in respect to your profile image. That it feast for the eyes and loads quickly, even for users with slow internet, use high-quality images the right size.

background image Profile resolution should be 1400 × 425 pixels in JPG format, PNG, or GIF. Must be smaller than 4 MB.

Profile picture (Avatar) must be 400 × 400 pixels, a minimum - 200 × 200 pixels, the format - JPG, PNG, or GIF. Maximum size - 10 MB.

If you are the administrator of the page, look acceptable and recommended settings for images and logos. everything described here.

Particular attention should be paid to the selection of photos for the profile. Look at the avatars of other users in your industry and put the picture you will like it and your customers.

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a network of contacts

Without networking success is extremely difficult. LinkedIn-profile to be effective, you need to add at least 50 contacts in their network. It is generally recommended to have not less than three hundred, but no more than three thousand friends. Otherwise it will be difficult to manage communications.

So, how to fill up your network? First, import your contacts from your email address book. At the same time submit an invitation to those who can actually be beneficial to you in business.

In LinkedIn you can not only import but also export contacts: the menu "Network" → button "Export contacts" in the lower right corner of the page. This feature allows you to back up the contacts to protect their business relationships.

Second, to supplement the network of contacts searching. And it expanded version: so you'll be able to find people entering not only the first but also the second or third circle of acquaintances.

When your network will have the first contact, the system itself will offer you new friends. On the main page in the upper right corner of the block will be "people you may know." These recommendations appear on the basis of your profile. Most likely, this will be your classmates and colleagues.

How else to expand your network?

• Meet through friends of friends. Contact the second level - a friend of your friend. If you need to tie a dialogue with such a person, go to their profile page and see if you have any friends in common. If so, please send request for acquaintance or click on the "Ask to meet."
• Use possibilities groups. You can send messages to group members, which will take place even if there is no direct contact between you.
• If a participant profile is open, you can send a message - InMail. Perhaps you have to start up a dialogue, and then friendship.
• Check who viewed your profile. If these people are interesting to you, try to make contact with them.
• Monitorte news feed. It also helps to develop its network and interact with potential partners.
• Link your Twitter- and LinkedIn-accounts. Then your updates on LinkedIn will be published on Twitter.
• Do you want to attract the attention of any person? Mention it in your posts by using the @ symbol.

Finally, put a link to your LinkedIn profile-wherever they may be: in signatures e-mail, in the status in social networks, Twitter and so on.

How to request and provide recommendations

In the offline job in nine out of ten cases occur through patronage. Employers are asked to advise the partners sensible officer, and the latter, in turn, - to put in a word for them.

The role of the recommendations on LinkedIn is also very high. Do not confuse them acknowledgments skills (Endorsements). Recent simply stating the facts: "Yes, he can." Confirm one or another jurisdiction any person from your contact list just two clicks.

Recommendation same - it's unwrapped review your past and present colleagues, partners and customers about you and your work. The more recommendations, the higher the level of confidence in the data specified in the profile. Recommendations are displayed in the appropriate section of the profile (menu "Confidentiality and settings» → «Manage recommendations") and is available only to registered users of LinkedIn.

It is important to seek and provide advice competently.

• Between five and ten recommendations in the profile is enough to motivate the recruiters.
• Ask for advice from the most competent people in your network of contacts.
• Try to get at least two reviews of their work in that company that you think is most important.
• Recommending someone point where you know the person and give specific examples to demonstrate its strengths professional sides.

Express mutual respect. If someone has confirmed your skill or give you a good recommendation, be sure to thank him for it.

How to protect your profile

To use the LinkedIn features your best, your profile needs to be public, that is visible to potential customers and partners.

public profile It is automatically created when registering on LinkedIn and is published in the user directory. Google and other search engines periodically check the LinkedIn directory, so that the public profiles can be found on the Internet.

However, you can set individual privacy settings. For example, the cover display in the website profiles, current position and other parameters of the non-registered users.

Also on the menu "Confidentiality and settings" you can adjust the profile to suit your purpose. For example, if you are looking for a new job and do not want to present the bosses and colleagues were aware of this, exclude them from the list of those who can see your activity feed.

There you can specify who gets to see your contact list, information about your rank, your picture and so on.

To protect your account from hacking, you must:

• come up with a complex password (at least 8 characters, uppercase and lowercase letters plus numbers and other marks; the password must not include vocabulary words, and your name, and used on other sites);
• include a two-stage entry confirmation in: "Privacy and settings» → «My account» → «Manage security settings."

6 secrets efficient use LinkedIn-Profile

1. Create posts on LinkedIn. This is an excellent opportunity to demonstrate their professional skills and to present itself as a leader in its field.
2. The best time for posting to LinkedIn - Tuesday and Thursday, between 7 and 9 am local time.
3. Enter the self-censorship. Do not write on LinkedIn that would not say aloud in interview.
4. LinkedIn can be integrated with Evernote. Then your business cards, resumes and notes are in one place.
5. Users who regularly update their profiles on LinkedIn, receive offers of cooperation often.
6. Install LinkedIn button in his blog or on your website, to your subscribers and readers to share your publications in my LinkedIn-profile.