Since its inception in 2002, LinkedIn has served as a digital hub for both professionals and businesses alike. In fact, 154 million American workers have LinkedIn profiles, and at the end of 2020 the platform clocked in at nearly 700 million active users worldwide.
Needless to say, LinkedIn has expanded from your run of the mill social media site to one of the most influential career professional networking sites on the Internet.
Despite its growing popularity, however, users aren’t spending long blocks of time on the platform which means you have to make an impression quickly and effectively.
So, what can you do to ensure you get noticed?
Just a few small improvements can have a significant impact.
What is LinkedIn for Business?
LinkedIn for business is more than a social network for recruiting and hiring top talent. It offers an unparalleled opportunity to tell your brand story, build credibility in your niche, expand your network, and educate users about your products or services.
As a small business owner, LinkedIn should play a big part in your marketing strategy. You represent your business, and for that reason, building your personal brand is a must-do. And, when you know how to navigate LinkedIn effectively, you can quickly and authentically elevate your brand.
Steps to Optimizing Your Profile
Creating a robust personal LinkedIn profile is your chance to stand out from the crowd and showcase your areas of your expertise in your niche. Here are 4 ways to ensure you’re set up for success:
- Craft a compelling headline and summary
You have up to 120 characters to populate your headline field, so consider using an appropriate tagline that includes a healthy dose of keywords describing yourself and your areas of expertise. For the summary section, make sure to style it as a professional, conversational first-person story versus a dry online resume — tell both your personal story and brand story in the same vein as an “about” page. Your LinkedIn summary should include bullets and a few sentences rather than big blocks of texts about:
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- The years of experience in your industry
- Your area(s) of professional expertise
- The organizations (or types) you’ve worked with
- Your skills and professional knowledge
- Some fun facts about what you do in your free time
- Use a professional headshot and create a custom banner
Your profile photo should be a high-quality headshot, and your banner photo (also called your background photo) should be an image that reflects what your small business excels in.
- Set your visibility to “public”
Making your profile public means that you’re more accessible — you’ll appear in more search results and potential clients, customers, and leads can put a face to your business.
- Be strategic about your endorsed skills
Research shows that listing your skills can give you a 13X boost in profile views. You can add up to 50 skills to your profile, and skills with the most endorsements are listed first; skills without endorsements are displayed according to the date they were added.
Promoting Your Business
- Create and share expert content related to your niche
Posts with images get twice as many comments, and video posts are five times more likely to get comments. And the better your natively published content performs, the more it boosts your search visibility. - Use and follow hashtags
Research hashtags that are specific to your industry or niche, then add them to your posts, updates, and published articles. - Be thoughtful in your responses
Search topics that are relevant to your industry, read the published articles and posts, then respond with engaging, thoughtful comments. - Find groups relevant to your industry & interests
Joining groups with other like-minded professionals in the same industry is a good way to share insights and experiences, ask for guidance, and build valuable connections.
Don’t have the time or energy to invest in building your LinkedIn profile? We can help. Contact us today to find out how to leverage LinkedIn and make 2021 your best year yet.