6 LinkedIn Secrets You Need to Know

01. Make it STUNNING.

Put simply people will stay on your profile and read for longer if the page is aesthetically appealing. Think about it, when you land on a web page and it’s ugly, how long do you stay for? Now compare this with a sleek, professional, nicely balanced site, with a good balance of visual and written content..are you more likely to stay, read and possibly engage?

Simply customise your header, look fantastic and approachable in your profile pic and fill your profile with great visual representations of your work! Doing these items alone will have you standing out from 50% of your competitors. Ideally, you’ll also include video content. This really ups the game.

The best LinkedIn profiles run with the “a picture tells a 1000 words” approach and contain great images. These images can be pictures of branding work, of construction, of you at an event. the options are endless. Please simply ensure that all images are professional and relevant. A picture of you drunk at the races is obviously not a great choice. However, a picture of you accepting an award at a ceremony is absolutely a great choice!

If you have any video case studies or if you can present well, pop in a quick video! With video case studies, simply upload the YouTube link into the rich media link. Alternately, if you can present well, a quick video where you expand on your summary and outline your personal proposition to the world quickly makes your profile world-class.

And don’t forget the header. Google free LinkedIn Header images or, better still, create your own on Canva www.canva.com with a custom image.

Don’t have a professional photographer on call to take your picture? No problem. You can even take a selfie if you do though ensure you use an iPhone stand. In terms of pose, don’t stand dead-on but rotate your body slightly. Ensure your head and shoulders are in the frame. Wear something appropriate to your industry, you don’t need to wear a suit if that’s not what you’d wear to work. In terms of background, work with a background that is not too “busy”. It could be a plain wall, a wooden fence, a brick wall or some greenery. Then stand about a meter away from it. Ensure the lighting is solid enough and there is no shadow. Now, for the all-important expression, remember to look directly at the camera, extend your chin slightly out to avoid a double chin and try to relax! A gentle “half smile” is often the best approach to create a relaxed, yet professional look. Done!

02. OPTIMISE yourself.

First, let’s start with ensuring all the nuts and bolts are in your profile. You need to have all sections of the profile completed, projects and volunteer experience included. Have 5 relevant tailored testimonials. Have 50 connections. Add your skills and awards.

Once you have the basics done it’s time to get a little savvier. To increase the likelihood of your name appearing in wider search listings, be sure you include the keywords you want to be found for, in numerous sections of your profile. Your summary, specialities, job title, career history and personal interests are all good areas to optimise. For example, you might want to ensure you have the words “Business Development Manager” “Sales Leader” or Freelance Consultant” in there.

Don’t forget your headline. The LinkedIn algorithm puts a lot of emphasis on the words used in the headline also when ranking people, so check that it includes your key attributes, your company, or your geographic location if you only serve a specific area.

The headline is also the first thing people see when they go to your LinkedIn profile. Unless you change it, your headline will appear as your current or last position by default. Since this headline appears in various places on LinkedIn, such as when you make a comment, or show up in search, you want it to be descriptive. Make your role and position clear. You have 120 characters to work with here, use them wisely.

03. Get incredible TESTIMONIALS.

When a contact reaches out for a testimonial, on a scale of 1 to 10 how motivated are you to complete the request? Even if, you are keen to assist and write a glowing reference the question can plague all of us, “What to write?”. The best way to obtain a great testimonial, beyond asking the most relevant person to comment on your brilliance, is to be clear in what you’d like the person to outline in their testimonial. If it’s important for your next employer or client to understand your capability in say strategy development, leading teams through change or social media marketing, make sure you ask your referee to comment on this specifically. Not only will the end result be a higher quality relevant testimonial but it’s likely to come through in a more timely manner.

04. BRAND yourself.

Who are you? What do you stand for? What are your personal values? How do you like to present yourself in person? What is your message to the world? You’ll need to answer all these questions to gain clarity on your personal brand and then ensure that your profile is a truly authentic and professional representation of who you are. People connect with someone who is real, consistent and honest. Once you’re clear on who you are and what you stand for, you can ensure that your profile reflects this. Are you credible, trustworthy, professional, friendly? If so, does the tone of voice in your profile represent this? Do the image reflect this? Perhaps you’re fun, vibrant, creative, extroverted. Does your summary reflect your energetic nature and do the images demonstrate your creativity.

Your LinkedIn profile is your opportunity to speak to your audience in the first person, and not just about what you’ve done in your career (like in a standard CV) but about who you are. You want to ensure that the visuals, header, profile pic, images, video truly reflect who you are. The written content needs to have a tone of voice that is also consistent with your brand. 

05. CUSTOMISE your link.

Click on your LinkedIn URL (listed in the drop-down from contact details). Does it contain numbers or random letters? Click again, and change and customise your URL. You can keep it nice and simple but putting in your full name and perhaps an initial or two to make it unique or you can get creative and name yourself aligned to your area of expertise. For example : https://www.dhirubhai.net/in/steviethesalesguy . Again the options are, almost, endless. This is a nice, subtle and simple way to come across as professional and tech-savvy.

06. PERSONALISE your contact requests.

Personalize your connection request and tell the requested person why you want to connect. You could be flagged as spam if you don’t do this. If you’re flagged too often, you’ll be required to add an email address to each connection request you send.

Ensure that you carefully tailor your communication. A great first impression with your prospects on LinkedIn is intended to leave them with an interest in you/your service and a willingness to continue communication.

It’s important to act natural. Start by greeting the person by their first name and be clear and concise in your body paragraph. You want to ensure you give the person a reason to click “Accept“. 

PERSONAL BIO

Hey, I’m Kylie. I have built a life and a career on empowering both individuals and businesses alike to find lasting happiness through career and business success. I am a Career Coach, Talent Attraction & Employment Branding Strategist and Co-founder of numerous online businesses.

I divide my time between coaching and consulting to businesses on their Talent Attraction & Employment Branding strategies. With my hat still in the recruitment game, I am in the best possible position to give you career and LinkedIn advice. Do you know the careers sites that you apply for jobs on? I help devise the strategy that makes them select your CV or LinkedIn Profile for an interview, or not. I am also a Branding Specialist and work with global communications businesses and Australia’s most successful Start-ups.

During my 15+ year recruitment and HR career, I held a number of senior roles including Head of People & Culture and Talent Director. My experience spans training and development to generalist HR and my expertise is in Talent Attraction strategy and Employment Branding, the more creative side of the industry. I have poured this creativity into the training programs for our team of LinkedIn writers ensuring that all Standout LinkedIn profiles truly do standout.

When it comes to the more personalised Standout LinkedIn writing services and working with me directly, my many years of recruiting across the Marketing, IT, Finance, Telco, Pharma, Media and Advertising industries assists greatly. I understand an incredibly broad spectrum of roles and what it takes to be successful in each of these career paths.

I developed Standout LinkedIn profiles in response to a need from my clients to have stronger profiles that would see them found online for work they love. I am also a huge advocate for LinkedIn as I contribute a great deal of my personal success to the platform. As a Business Owner, I personally have been, and continue to be, found via my LinkedIn profile for exciting new projects, consulting work and speaking assignments. I know just how powerful a great LinkedIn profile can be for the Job Seeker, Business Owner and Professional.

If you'd like to talk to Kylie or one of the team drop us a line at [email protected]