Easy Steps On Linking Your Powerful Personal Brand

Whether you are a professional, a job seeker, an entrepreneur or someone who is happily employed, a LinkedIn profile could be a wonderful asset for your career. This social networking site lets you connect to over 43 million professionals worldwide. LinkedIn functions as curriculum vitae, reference document, cover letter, and an efficient database for your professional and business contacts for a lifetime. Here are easy steps to help you build a powerful profile to magnet the jobs you are passionate about while fostering a social network that can leverage your career to its heights.

Branding your profile

Your LinkedIn profile should be flawless since you will most probably be judged by recruiters who are assessing if your qualifications will meet their company needs. There is no room for spelling and grammatical errors and it should be completely filled out.

  • Headline. Try to brand yourself with the job you want and not what you currently have. Instead of placing “Marketing Specialist for Apple,” you can put “Internet Marketing Specialist for Fortune 500 Companies.”
  • Custom URL. Edit your LinkedIn profile to appear something like http://linkedin.com/in/fullname. You can edit this at the public profile tab.
  • Summary. The part should summarize your work experience. Spice up this section with some of your distinct skills and abilities such as industry honors and awards.
  • Experience. List every single job you have ever had that is related to your current work. An easy way for you to do this is to copy and paste the bullets that you have on your resume.
  • Keywords. Flood your profile with keywords since most recruiters will use LinkedIn as a form of talent search engine. Sprinkle keywords on the headline and on the rest of your profile page.
  • Applications. If you run a blog, then make sure you take advantage of the WordPress app. List two to three of your blog web pages so you don’t overwhelm readers.
  • Websites. You are given the chance to list a maximum of three sites. Select any webpage you own, your company’s site or a page on your blog.
  • Recommendations. When recruiters search for talents, they usually view profiles with the “thumbs up” graphics on them. Ask for recommendations from previous employers, managers, colleagues, teachers and managers.

Developing your LinkedIn network

Now that you have finished writing a compelling profile, it is time to grow your network. The LinkedIn network is your professional network graph. If you are new to the site, you can import contacts from your Yahoo, AOL, Gmail, Windows Live and Hotmail accounts. Be open and available to everyone by accepting their requests and responding to questions. Make sure you leave an email address on your profile so other professionals can add you. Promote your URL by placing them on your site, presentations, and maybe on your business card.

Position yourself as an industry leader

Start a group covering topics that are relevant to your career. It would also be wise to interact with other LinkedIn professionals by asking/answering questions.

Picture of Maria Elena Duron

Maria Elena Duron

Maria Elena Duron, is managing editor of the Personal Branding Blog, CEO (chief engagement officer) of buzz2bucks– a word of mouth marketing firm, and a professional speaker and trainer on developing social networks that work. She provides workshops, webinars, seminars and direct services that help create conversation, connection, credibility, community and commerce around your brand.  Maria Duron is founder and moderator of #brandchat- a weekly Twitter chat focused on every aspect of branding that is recognized by Mashable as one the 15 Essential Twitter Chats for Social Media Marketers.

TRENDING AROUND THE WEB

7 ways life in the ’80s built character whether you liked it or not

7 ways life in the ’80s built character whether you liked it or not

Global English Editing

7 traits of men that are highly attractive to women

7 traits of men that are highly attractive to women

Global English Editing

7 traits of people who re-read their own texts to make sure they sounded normal

7 traits of people who re-read their own texts to make sure they sounded normal

The Blog Herald

People who have a difficult time saying ‘no’ usually had these 7 experiences growing up, says psychology

People who have a difficult time saying ‘no’ usually had these 7 experiences growing up, says psychology

Parent From Heart

9 phrases narcissistic parents use to maintain control over adult children

9 phrases narcissistic parents use to maintain control over adult children

Global English Editing

7 traits of people who don’t wait for the green light before crossing the street, according to psychology

7 traits of people who don’t wait for the green light before crossing the street, according to psychology

Global English Editing