Optimize your LinkedIn Profile
We’re all unique, and for the most part we want to stand out, be noticed, appreciated for who we are, what we’ve accomplished as well as for our potential. And if you’re on LinkedIn, this is in the context of business and career – if you have a business, a job, or are searching for your next opportunity, LinkedIn is a “go to” platform for many – almost 900 million users worldwide. Employers/recruiters post jobs, look for candidates, salespeople prospect, marketing people use it as a vehicle for promoting, positioning – the list goes on.
And your LinkedIn profile page is THE key element – if you write a post or article, people can click on the header to see who you are/your background, experience, etc.. Recruiters/potential employers built lists of potential candidates for open positions using the data in profiles; salespeople built lists of potential companies and decision makers in those companies to reach out to. And what generally happens in those cases is that the individuals profile is visited/read – before I have a session with a client, I always visit their LinkedIn profile. And in a prior life in sales/marketing, I always wanted to see who I was meeting with and what their background was.
Spending time to insure your LinkedIn profile highlights the best of who you are, your experience/aspirations, etc.. is important even if you’re not looking for a job as people will always be checking you out. I’ve heard stories about managers checking out their staff’s LinkedIn profiles when considering re-organizations, promotions, etc..
Studies have shown that the human eye is immediately drawn to images on a page before text (try it sometime!), so when someone visits your LinkedIn profile, the first thing they will see is your profile picture, and that creates an immediate (in as little as 80msec!) first impression. That first impression then serves as a “filter” thru which the rest of your profile is viewed. You want that first impression to be the right one for you and what you want people to think when they see your profile.
Matt came to me via the Portraits for Patriots program – PFP is a US nationwide group of outstanding headshot photographers who donate their time and skill, providing complementary headshot to transitioning military service members. His original profile picture is on the left – it’s “OK” and actually is a fairly common look I’ve seen on LinkedIn – he looks friendly, the lighting is OK – but it doesn’t look “professional” particularly when compared to the image on the right. Professional doesn’t mean stuffy –it does mean that the various elements (lighting, background, expression, clothing, and so on) that make a headshot have the greatest impact were carefully used to help the person look their best – and stand out from the crowd!
