Are you LinkedIn?

 

LinkedIn is recognized as the professional social network.  It’s a place where people in all industries can go to build relationships with their colleagues and demonstrate their experience and expertise.  You can establish connections with people who are in the same industry or an industry you’re interested in becoming a part of.  Here are a few tips to keep in mind while creating a personal or professional LinkedIn profile.

Keep it professional

Silly or risqué photos we often see on Facebook are not a good choice on LinkedIn.  Keep your headshot professional. Make sure that your profile photo is appropriately cropped.  Your profile picture is the first thing most people see so make sure you are giving your best first impression.

Update your contact information

It’s important to keep all of your information up-to-date.  You don’t want to make it difficult for people to connect with you.  With the LinkedIn app it is now easier than ever to maintain your profile and engage in important discussions.

Personalize invitations

When you invite someone to connect on LinkedIn, your request is accompanied by a brief note.  You have the option of selecting a standard boilerplate message that reads, “I’d like to add you to my professional network”, but adding a quick tailored note will enhance personalization.

Keep up with new tools

LinkedIn, along with all the other social media outlets, are constantly adding new tools to enable a smooth, user-friendly experience.  Make sure to educate yourself on any new tools offered.  LinkedIn recently updated their company page analytics.  With this new set of analytics, you can:

• Identify the updates that drive the greatest engagement.
• Filter engagement trends by type and time period.
• Get more detailed demographic data about your followers.
• See the growth of your follower base and benchmark it against similar brands.

Stay tuned for more tips to create an effective LinkedIn profile and network.