SEO Marketing Hacks on LinkedIn

In today’s business world, having a professional presence on LinkedIn is a business necessity. What many professionals don't know is that being found in Google Search ranking as a result of your LinkedIn profile is even more critical. Out of all the sites Google indexes, LinkedIn sits in fifth place, after YouTube, Wikipedia, Facebook, and Twitter. 

Consider this: if you can harness the power of LinkedIn to make your personal profile more accessible to a new network, what impact will this have on your own credibility as a professional?

LinkedIn – just like YouTube, Twitter, and Facebook – has its own set of indexing rules. So, before you embark on creating a more searchable LinkedIn account, you need to make sure you tick all their optimization boxes. One of those crucial rules for LinkedIn search optimization is having the right keywords on your page that will allow potential employers or customers to find you more easily on Google. There are so many online tools you can use to establish your keyword list for LinkedIn, like Moz.com or SEMrush.

Here are 7 ways you can use keywords to optimise your LinkedIn page for Google search:

1. Give your headshot, banner and image name some thought: It’s widely known that Google pays close attention to images and with LinkedIn such a highly indexed platform, you can’t afford to ignore the importance of naming your images before you upload them to your LinkedIn account. Do some research and include keywords and phrases that you've found your market responds to the most. For instance, if you sell a corporate cleaning service, you want to make sure your images are named "corporate cleaning services" to make that image, and therefore your page more searchable. Don't expect a rapid influx of traffic; it takes time for Google to index images, so give it a few weeks. 
2. Include the right keywords and phrases in your headline, summary and job description: even though this might seem like an obvious thing to do, you won't believe how many professionals we speak to who simply ignore the value of this function. Make sure you include keywords and phrases in these sections that describe the value you bring to businesses. 
3. Use the Skills section wisely: The Skills section was made for employers to find job seekers more efficiently, so Google tends to favour this section. You should include your primary skills at the top of the list as this is what viewers see before clicking "see more". To help boost the power of your Skills section, ask your colleagues and other industry professionals to endorse you! 
4. Use these researched keywords and phrases in your posts: Pulse, LinkedIn’s blogging platform, combines two of Google’s favourite things; content and LinkedIn, so this section is a win-win when it comes to optimising your page. Having said this, you'd be surprised how many professionals don't use this section to their advantage! Posting consistent blogs gives you that competitive edge. Just make sure you adequately label images and including your keywords at high density to ensure you're making the most of the time spent writing the blog.   
5. Naming your images: Make sure you name your images correctly before you upload them to your newsfeed. It might not lead viewers to your personal account, but they have more of a chance of being found in Google's search results, so tag these images with your LinkedIn handle, name and even your logo to help you reap the rewards. 
6. The Contact Information section: Go against the grind and choose “other” when setting your contact information on your page. Most professionals will choose “company website” but tailoring your contact information section gives you the option to include your chosen keywords and phrases.  
7. Use the Projects and Publication section to your advantage: When you upload your past works, portfolio samples and other projects you’ve completed, you can include your chosen keywords and phrases in the title of the document and the description to maximise your exposure. 

Organic search is extremely powerful in holding long-term value for your LinkedIn page. Capitalising on such a vast and (for the most part) free online resource as a serious business owner or professional is a no brainer. So, our closing piece of advice is; put in some effort! Doing your research and finding out what keywords and phrases your desired market respond to the most, could be the catalyst that propels your business to new heights.

Utilising the right keywords and phrases is just one of many ways to optimise your LinkedIn account for Google. Talk to us about how you can further capitalise on LinkedIn for business development here.

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Check out some of the other useful tips and tricks by clicking here.