There is so much to learn-but, every journey starts with a first step.
How to start your LinkedIn journey
What is LinkedIn?
LinkedIn is the world's largest professional network on the internet. You can use LinkedIn to find the right job or, connect and strengthen professional relationships, and learn the skills you need to succeed in your career.
LinkedIn by the numbers
Step 1: Upload a professional photo and add your title.
ALWAYS add a professional-looking photo
The “no photo” on LinkedIn yells out, “either I have no clue what Linked In is, or I’m ignoring it on purpose-- Why would anyone want to connect with someone who says that?
Make sure your photo:
Is hi-resolution, has no emojis or kids, Santa hats, or group shots, no wedding photos or sunglasses (unless you are a sunglass manufacturer)
As for your title... no rule says the description at the top of your profile page has to be just a job title. Use the headline field to communicate more about how you see your role, why you do what you do, and what makes you tick.
Step 2: Add your Industry and Location-
Did you know that location is one of the top 5 fields LinkedIn prioritizes when doing a keyword search?
If you are curious, the five fields are Name, Headline, Location, Summary, and Experience.
Step 3: Write a summary-
Make sure to use words that people in your industry will search for. This is also a great chance to tell your story and build out your “brand.”
Step 4: Feature section -
This allows you to share blogs and presentations that explain who you are and what you do.
Step 5: Describe your job experience-
Be specific about where you worked, what you did, and your successes.
Step 6: Add five skills or more-
Again -use search-friendly words...you can list up to 50 skills on LinkedIn, and I strongly recommend you strive to list 40-50. Simply put, the more skills you list, the better your chances for coming up in search.
Step 7: List your education-
Do not list your high school-college and grad work only. List specializations that help you feature (repeat) your keywords.
Step 8: Connect with 50+ contacts, then keep going and going-
Tip for an easy start to building your network- You can start to grow your network by scrolling through the "People you may know" section. This is a way of jogging your memory and finding people you know you and are sure to connect.
Step 9: Ask people you have worked with for recommendations...the more specific, the better!
