Just when you thought you were getting used to LinkedIn’s career and social network system, they decided to do yet another upgrade to make user profiles even smarter. Have you taken the time to update your profile yet? If you are a job seeker, now is a good time to sign into your LinkedIn account and start making some simple updates that can help you attract more hiring agencies this year.
Let’s get started with the things you need to do now to optimize your LinkedIn profile.
Improve your image. One of the first things you will want to do to maximize your LinkedIn profile is to update both your photo and your description. Upload a professional, high resolution image. Create a powerful personal headline to inspire others to contact you, in 100 words or less.
Add a list of highlighted achievements. In addition to a standard resume format, LinkedIn now also provides a summary section where you can create content that highlights your main achievements and talents. Make sure you list a few of your top skills, achievements, and a good description to let others know you are an expert.
Update your work history. Take a moment to browse through your work history and update it with any additional assignments or volunteer work you’ve completed this year. Then republish it, an action that will send an update out to your networks.
Add new educational information. Additionally, now is the time to include any new learning initiatives you are engaged in or plan to attend this year. Update with the name of any colleges or universities you will attend, or certificate programs you are taking.
Ask for endorsements and testimonials. Take the time to write testimonials for others in your network and then ask them to do the same for you. To save time, LinkedIn now also offers one-click endorsement panels where you can perform a similar task and have others rank you on your knowledge.
Link your professional blog or portfolio. If you haven’t already done so, make sure you have your RSS set up to keep your blog or your portfolio connected to your LinkedIn profile to take advantage of the new content feed. Your new posts will appear in the reading list for your followers.
Join new LinkedIn groups. There have been a great number of new industry and recruiting groups to get engaged in LinkedIn connections. In addition, companies now also post company pages, which you can follow and add to your groups. These companies very often post unadvertised job openings directly onto their LinkedIn profiles.
Try connecting with Advance Temporary Staffing Solutions on our very own LinkedIn company page, for updates on new assignments in Ohio and Michigan!