I’ve been talking with a lot of folks lately about their experiences with LinkedIn for networking. Most people tell me they created a profile because they received an invitation and then didn’t do much after that.
There’s so much more to it! Let me help you maximize your profile, articulate your brand and connect with the people who can help you reach your career goals.
In today’s world, your first interview can easily happen without you present! Use LinkedIn as a tool to reinforce all the good messages that should come through in your resume, cover letter and interview. Let it project to your network your greatest assets and ways you will add value.
Here are 3 things to do right now:
- Customize your URL to easily share it with others. Click on your profile and on the right side choose Edit Public Profile and URL. Then select Edit your Custom URL. You’ll get the green checkmark when it’s available. Make it as close to your name as is available. Add a credential if it needs to be more custom. Some folks will include a middle initial or a job title at the end of the name to further customize. This can be copied and put on your resume, your cover letter signature, your email signature, etc. to drive people to it easily.
- Use your headline to your advantage. This doesn’t need to be your current job title. It can be edited to include keywords and focus on your industry or niche – even if that isn’t evident in your current job title. Example: Instead of “Director of Student Support Services” use “Fosters student success in higher education through evidence-based best practices, collaboration, and innovation”
- Customize your message to a potential contact. Found someone you want to connect with? LinkedIn provides a space to write your own invitation to connect. This can be quick and simple. Here are a few examples:
- “Thanks for talking with me last night at Tyler’s during the student affairs roundtable. I hope we can stay in touch.”
- “I ran across your profile in my search for others in this field. I hope we can connect via LinkedIn”
- “As a fellow alum of X University, I wanted to expand my network and connect with you.”
- “We went to high school together. Let’s connect here on LinkedIn and if I can help you – let me know!”
- “We do similar work and I’d like to connect with you.”
Great job! You’re on your way to maximizing your online presence with LinkedIn!
Want to do more? Feel free to reach out to me via LinkedIn and we can talk about how I could help.
This first appeared on LinkedIn