5 Mistakes I see people make with their LinkedIn?? profile

With a membership of over one billion, LinkedIn?? is a great opportunity to create and grow your personal brand. But despite it being around for many years, I still see people missing the opportunity to create that all-important first impression and grow their network. Here are FIVE mistakes I see people making and how to avoid them.

Post and Ghosting

Some of the magic happens on LinkedIn?? in the comments section, so when you share a post and your network comment and you get involved the magic can happen, and new connections can form. If you post your content and then disappear (known as posting and ghosting) you are missing out on all that gold.

During the summer months, it can be tempting to schedule content to keep active, but if you are not around to engage then it's a waste of your time. It’s ok to take a break over the summer let your network know.

Joining an Engagement Pod

It’s a bit like buying friends. There are no quick wins nor any magic formulas with LinkedIn and hard work and consistency pay off. The best way to grow your audience on LinkedIn (if that is what you want to do) is to be consistent and show up, don’t just post you need to be having conversations in the comments and the DMs.

When I’ve talked about engagement pods in the past I’ve had some DMs asking me what they are. In short, it’s when a group of people (connected or not) spend time engaging with each other’s content. On the face of it, it might seem like a quick win, to drive up those KPIs however you are teaching the algorithm that you like that content.

Just stop and think, unless these people are your ideal clients, or can introduce you to your ideal clients you are wasting your efforts.

Ignoring the featured section

This section of your profile is where you can showcase your accomplishments and passions. I like to think of it as a highlights section or showreel like a rugby player has. You can include posts, images, videos and other rich media and it helps to make your profile more interesting and a way of telling a story about the best bits about you and how you help people all in one handy section. So make sure you are using it.

The featured section used to ONLY be available if you had creator mode switched on but is now available to every profile.

Keeping The Bland LinkedIn??-Issued Background

One of the best ways to help your profile stand out is to add a bespoke background don't just stick with the default blue and grey one. It’s the first thing people see when they’re checking out your profile. Using a background that reinforces what you do, helps you to stand out and create that all-important first impression.

There are templates in Canva you can use (better than nothing) create your own or work with a graphic designer. Don't be bland.

Not Including Keywords In Your Profile

To help your profile show up in search results (critical if you are job hunting), you need to include the keywords you want to be associated with in your profile. Without a keyword strategy, your profile will just be lost in the crowd! Remember there are now over 1 billion people on LinkedIn. Please make the most of it.

What next?

I hope you found those FIVE mistakes to avoid helpful, they are easy to fix so don't worry. Create some time and work through them like a checklist.

Work with me

If you want to build your self-confidence with LinkedIn??, I can guide you through how the platform works and how to get the best out of it. Drop me a message and let’s chat about what you need.

P.S. I am also the LinkedIn?? coach for TechPixies so you might see me there if you are one of the upskilling in social media on the Social Media Management Certification Programme

Marianne Avery

#LinkedInWith Maz

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