Does your LinkedIn profile need a makeover?

Studies have revealed that a compelling 90% of professionals are open to or are passively looking for other career opportunities. So, what does this mean?  LinkedIn (specifically your profile) is a prime space to be noticed, to seek out a new role or simply review the next best career opportunity.

Obviously not everyone is looking for a new role or to make connections, but at the end of the day social media is all about networking… right?

As recruiters, employers (look for amazing staff) and job seekers, the social media channel we spend the most time on is LinkedIn. Whether it is looking for a new role, building networks, gaining insights into the career marketplace or belonging to professional groups, it’s important we get it right with our own profiles.

This past month has again highlighted to me, that even though LinkedIn has a template format, LinkedIn profiles vary considerably. Sometimes creative licence is taken to the next level, sometimes very little detail is added, sometimes there is not even a picture and sometimes, just sometimes, people nail their profiles!   Trust me, I know it can be difficult to talk about yourself, your strengths and expertise in a professional format and then post it via social media for everyone to see!

In saying that there are some simple tweaks that job seekers, career changers and networkers could do to jazz up their LinkedIn profiles.

4 key points to tidy up your LinkedIn profile in under 20 minutes:

(From the profile top to the bottom)

  • Review your Headline.

Did you know the most neglected part of your LinkedIn profile is ‘the headline’? The headline, to most future employers, is the most important thing. This line is basically prime real estate, at 120 characters long you can promote what you do, your brand, your identity, your specialty and more.  Right here is your chance to tell your network why you are valuable, important and what you are about. It is good to note that LinkedIn’s default is to use your job title and company name but this doesn’t tell the network who you are. Remember you are more than a job title!  It is always good to consider your target audience when creating this line, what does that market care about most and what do I have to encourage interest!?

For example:

Headline: Media Manager. Planning and buying digital media for some of New Zealand’s most loved brands.

Would you read his profile after this headliner?

Or would you prefer:

Media Manager at Digital Agency

That’s what I thought…

  • 
The LinkedIn summary

Your summary is a chance to showcase your skills, experience and even a ‘little’ or ‘a lot’ of personality. In under 10 seconds the summary should give readers an overview of your capability and personality. Always aim to be memorable, the best way to achieve this is to imagine it just like a cover of a book. Ask yourself would you open the pages if you read your summary?

If you want to take your profile to the next level you could showcase your key achievements. For example; ‘winning salesperson of the year 2016’ or ‘employee of the year 2017’ or ‘successfully project managed the re brand of X company’ or ‘won digital marketing award for project X 2016′.  Remember, it is not bragging, it is just informing or reinforcing; a bit of credibility goes a long way.

  • Your current position.

I cannot stress how important it is to ensure you keep this up to date. With many job titles meaning different things, it is a great idea to add in an overall summary of your current role, maybe a few sentences.   Underneath this short summary, another (dot point suggested) summary of key skills/knowledge is also important and very user friendly. This is also a chance to show how experienced you are with certain tools or software. This space is crucial for a LinkedIn search to pick up any key words, making it easier for people to find your profile.

For example:

Title: Digital Campaign Manager

Responsible for planning, implementing, analysing and reporting digital media campaigns across enterprise level clients. Management of 3 staff.

Day to day includes:

  • Planning and buying digital media (using Double Click, Pegasus, Nielsen, Google search/display/retargeting and more)
  • Social media campaign management including; Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, Youtube
  • Client relationship management
  • Management of staff

At a short glance readers AND any potential employers should be able to see a snapshot of what you are capable of!

  • Key skills:

Many people may not know that the key skills area is one of the most used tools when searching for potential employees. Ensure to add new skills as your career progresses, even ask people for endorsements.

Always remember you profile is your brand, it is your chance to tell the marketplace who you are, what you do, reveal your personality and encourage engagement.

In summary, be memorable!

For more information regarding roles in the digital media, advertising, marketing or sales spaces in Auckland, please connect with us on LinkedIn or here Analog Recruitment website