LESSON
TWO
OPTIMIZING YOUR LINKED IN
PROFILE FOR JOB SEARCH
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BY GAYLE M. HOWARD
disclaimer
01
Copyright 2011 Gayle Howard
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
This information is for your own personal use.
You do not have the right to reprint or resell this report.
You also may not give away, sell, or share the content herein.
If you obtained this report from anywhere other than
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http://www.theexecutivebrand.com
you have a pirated copy.
© Copyright 2011
[Gayle Howard, Top Margin]
LinkedIn® is a registered trademark.
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04
INTRO
LESSON 2
All Rights Reserved
Why Completing Your LinkedIn Profile Is Important
According to LinkedIn, users with complete profiles are 40 times more likely to receive opportunities through
LinkedIn.
Your LinkedIn home page includes a graphic that tracks your “profile completeness,” encouraging you to
add positions, include a summary, list specialties, add your education, include a photo, and ask for a
recommendation in order to complete your profile. LinkedIn considers your profile “complete” if you include:
• Your current position
• Two past positions
• Your education
• Your profile summary
• A profile photo
• Your specialties
• At least three recommendations
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Lesson 2
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In this lesson, I’m going to show you how to get your profile to 95% complete. (Recommendations are
addressed in a separate lesson, #7: “Requesting and Receiving Recommendations.”)
Why a Complete Profile is Important for Using LinkedIn For
Your Job Search
At this point, you’ve only begun to establish yourself on LinkedIn. Essentially, all you’ve created is a
LinkedIn web page with your name, email address, and current job title/company.
A well-written and complete LinkedIn profile is essential to maximizing LinkedIn’s application to your job
search efforts. Profiles on LinkedIn are structured like a traditional résumé. The words you use to
describe your work experience and education are used by LinkedIn as keywords. So by applying the
correct terms in your profile, you can show up high in the search results.
Search results in LinkedIn are also based on your connections. So while it is important to make a lot of
connections, you don’t want to spam people. (Don’t connect with people just for the sake of having a lot
of connections. That’s like giving your business card to everyone at a party.)
Look at other LinkedIn profiles for folks who have your same job title. See what they’re including in their
profile that is getting them ranked highly using LinkedIn’s search algorithm.
How can you find the profiles of individuals on LinkedIn who do what you do? Use a Google search as a
fast way to retrieve similar profiles.
1. Go to Google.com
2. Type in this search string: “Site:LinkedIn.com” “your job title.”
3. Replace the phrase “your job title” with your job title or keywords or terms related to your job or
industry.
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Leveraging Linkedin for your job search
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Initially you can focus on the top 10 search results (some of them
will be individual profiles; others will lead you to a category of
professionals). Visit each of the top-listed profiles and take note of
how they are representing themselves — in particular, the headline
they use to describe themselves, and the keywords they include.
Also, you don’t have to reinvent the wheel — a well-written
professional résumé will give you most of the content you need to
create a compelling LinkedIn profile.
Like on other social media sites, LinkedIn uses search to help
connect you with people you know — or people you should know.
For this reason, optimizing your profile (so it ranks well in search
results) ensures that you are being seen by searchers.
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Linkedin
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Editing/Enhancing Your Profile
Once you have a better idea of what you want to include in your profile, it’s time to add the
information. Edit your profile by clicking the “Profile” button and choosing “Edit Profile” from
the drop-down menu.
LinkedIn will provide prompts to help you build your profile, or you can click on the blue
hyperlinks for each field, which will provide an entry form for that field.
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Linkedin
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For example, click on “Add a current position,” and you’ll access this screen:
Clicking the “View Profile” tab at the top of the edit area enables you to preview your profile as
you make changes.
Uploading A Picture
Add personality to your profile with a photo of yourself. Be selective about the photo you use.
Pick one that is professional in nature, not personal. Lighting, attire, and overall composition are
all elements to consider when making your choice. Profiles without pictures are not as effective
as those with photos. Business headshots are best.
To attach your photo, select “Profile” from the navigation toolbar. Then click on “Edit Profile”
from the drop-down menu. Once on the editing page, choose “Add Photo.” (If you are still
building your profile, it may appear as “Add a picture” under the “Profile Completion Tips”
section.)
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Click the “Browse” button to find the photo you want to use on your hard drive. Then click “Upload
Photo.” LinkedIn provides a built-in photo cropping feature to capture your headshot.
After saving your photo, designate who should see your image. You can chose to have it viewable
by “My Connections,” “My Network,” or “Everyone.”
For maximum exposure in your job search, choose “Everyone.”
Creating Your Headline
Your LinkedIn headline is the most important part of your profile. How you describe yourself to
prospective employers and networking contacts is vitally important. When a search is conducted
on LinkedIn, a search box returns a listing displaying only photos, names, and headlines. This is
why it’s important to have a good headline. A headline filled with the right keywords is an effective
positioning tool.
To edit your headline, from your profile’s editing area, choose “Edit” next to your name.
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Linkedin
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It will open a new screen. Scroll down to “Headline” and edit this text.
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Linkedin
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The information you put in the “Professional ‘Headline’” field displays as the primary tagline at
the top of your profile and is what appears primarily with internal and Internet searches.
Creating Your Summary
After the headline, the most-often read section of your profile is the Summary. LinkedIn allows
you up to 2,000 characters in your summary. Use them wisely—and use them all!
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One popular format for Summary is the “Who/What/Goals” structure. Using this format, you
outline Who you are, What you have to offer or add (what is unique about you or your
experience), and what are your Goals for being on LinkedIn or your career.
There are also numerous sections you can add to your Summary.
Filling Out Your Skills
One of the sections you can include under “Summary” is “Skills.” (From the “Profile” tab in the
main navigation toolbar, click “Edit Profile.” Under the main box is a small section that says “Add
sections to reflect achievements and experiences on your profile.”)
This is a great way to include more keywords in your profile.
Don’t just include the keywords, though. Include your proficiency level and years of experience.
See this example:
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Other optional sections you can include in your Summary include: • Certifications
• Courses
• Honors and Awards
• Languages
• Organizations
• Projects
• Patents
• Publications
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Assignments and Power Tips
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According to LinkedIn, these are the 10 most overused words/
phrases on the site. Avoid using them in your headline and
summary:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Extensive Experience
Innovative
Motivated
Results-Oriented
Dynamic
Proven Track Record
Team Player
Fast-Paced
Problem Solver
Entrepreneurial
This Week’s Assignment
Get your profile to 95% complete by following the steps above to
write your headline, populate your profile with a summary and work
experience/education and skills, and upload a photo.
Coming Up Next ...
Lesson #3: “Privacy and LinkedIn”
LinkedIn is a great way to conduct a “passive” job search — that is,
you’re not actively applying for positions, but you’re open to
opportunities presented to you. The next lesson will outline
LinkedIn’s privacy settings and how you can use them to increase
your visibility with an active job search — or keep them just open
enough to be available to prospective employers and recruiters
looking for new talent.
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