What are the best practices for creating a professional and engaging social media profile?

I might be biased, but I think nothing beats LinkedIn when it comes to engaging on social. This said, if you are in industries which require demonstrating your creative work, YouTube and Instagram are where you want to be. An approach I suggest is creating a strong LinkedIn profile that includes a link to your online portfolio. When you activate Creator Mode, you are given the ability to display a link to your most prominent social media sight. This sits below your Contact Info area. In terms of Contact Info, you can also share links to your social media sites, but not everyone thinks to open it.

I would also add asking for recommendations from your network to add credibility to your online profile. Also be a “giver” and provide recommendations to others in your network.

Sharing original content on LinkedIn is a great achievement. However, I've come across very few job seekers who really engage with the LinkedIn community. If you're a job seeker and find this daunting, the very least you should do is comment on what others share. This gets you on influencers' radars, who might be decision makers. There are many recruiters who are influencers. Once you are comfortable sharing your own content, you must do it consistently. Don't be discouraged by low reaction numbers and a few comments; keep at it. Eventually you will be seen as a thought leader. Once you land your next role, continue to share original content on LinkedIn.

Sharing valuable content is especially helpful for making a career change or pivot, when you can demonstrate knowledge and unique insights in areas that are not obvious in your background. Ideally share things that are specifically relevant to roles you want to play (e.g., if you want a marketing role, share insightful pieces about branding, customer acquisition or other marketing-specific issue).

I believe that engaging with others’ posts is essential to building a professional profile and brand on LinkedIn. I set aside time weekly to like, comment, and share. I enjoy seeing the amazing accomplishments of those I am connected to and I want them to know that. Sharing someone’s job posting, congratulating a colleague on a job well-done, or simply liking a post that resonates are simple ways that I let my people know I see them and I celebrate them!

I am now learning the value of monitoring my online activity by tracking my metrics, feedback, and analytics. It is important while building your professional and engaging social media profile to understand what are the interests of your followers, what topics engage further discussions, and what job opportunities are available. In addition, it is important to recognize any threats to your profile.