The How of a LinkedIn Profile – How to Build a Great Profile

The steps:

Step 1: Go to LinkedIn.com and start filling in the blanks for a new profile.

Use your common email address as secondary and use your business email as primary (you don’t want business contacts to find you at your university email address at [email protected]), but you need to have a registered email that you can always access.

Step 2: Upload your photo. Many people won’t accept connection invitations if they don’t see an image. They may not recognize the name among the hundreds they met at a recent convention without a photograph. The image must be appropriate for business. LinkedIn photos don’t have to be overly formal, but they should be something better than your best gym photo.

Step 3 – Add a tag or description to your name if you have a very common name. I have a very common name, so I add “Leadership Expert” after my name. It sounds a bit pretentious (I was uncomfortable doing that until a friend of mine told me there were thousands of Mary Kellys out there (thanks mom and dad) and he couldn’t find me), so I added the tag to my last name and voila! My connections increased because my friends and contacts found me.

Step 4 – Use your resume and background to create great content. Fill in the blanks for your education and work experience. To be interesting. Bullet points for your summary are a great way to provide concise and compelling information.

Side note: I do not recommend starting a profile (or a website) with a video. Two reasons: 1) it takes time to load and most people won’t wait; 2) Unless you’re very interesting (like Henry Kissinger) or very funny (like The O’Shea Report), no one wants to spend that time watching you present yourself.

Step 5: Get some high-quality recommendations. Go to the recommendations tab at the top and ask some of your trusted colleagues for specific recommendations for you as a professional. For example, comments like “Maria is great!” Prayed “Maria was wonderful!” They sound good, but they don’t describe what I do or the value I provide to a business customer.

“Mary provided timely economics expertise and leadership advice that allowed us to immediately increase productivity. Mary’s advice saved us $567,000 per year” is a much stronger recommendation.

Ask your recommenders to focus on the results you provide.

If you are a roofer, ask customers to describe your GREAT service as a roofer. “Ken’s prompt response and accurate estimate indicated the fast, quality work your company delivered. He and his team were on time, courteous, and reliable. They got the job done on time and under budget.”

If you are a lawyer, ask your clients to describe the characteristics that make you a GREAT lawyer. “Cris is smart, responsive, personable, and knows the law. She drafted a will and trust package that covered all of our family’s problems, AND it was affordable! She earned our trust.”

Step 6: Join groups of your peers. In the upper right corner there is a search box. To the left of that are options with an arrow. Click on the groups, and then search for your business interests, your alumni organizations, and your business colleagues. Join groups to allow you to connect with the other members of those groups. Increase your engagement in LinkedIn groups and see what others are doing in your field.

Step 7: Join the groups your customers join. This allows you to understand the concerns of your customer base and can then provide solutions in group discussion areas, increasing both your presence and credibility.

Step 8: Use the apps. My favorites are the book list and the slide sharing features. The book list allows you to type the name of a book, select the book cover, and comment on the book. I also like this feature to introduce some of my favorite authors and friends. The slide sharing feature is an easy upload for large presentations. This allows people to share presentations and notes that would otherwise be too large to email. There’s also a travel app that lets your network know where you’re going, making coordination easier and more opportunities for meetings.

Step 9: Be the expert. Please use the replies function in the top right box. Click on the answers and write your topic of specialization. When the questions appear, provide an answer and include your website. You become a well-known subject matter expert, and others gain the benefit of your wisdom.

Step 10: Enjoy your online connections! Thanks to social networks, we can connect with people from all over the world. LinkedIn is a great way to find lost friends and keep in touch with new ones.

I hope you have fun with social media!