Pen the perfect LinkedIn profile

Business networking site LinkedIn has expanded rapidly and is proving to be a valuable talent pool where jobseekers and recruiters can connect. In fact, as of August 2, 2012, LinkedIn boasted 175 million members in over 200 countries and territories. The California-based operation says LinkedIn members carried out nearly 4.2 billion professionally-oriented searches on the platform in 2011 and are on track to surpass 5.3 billion in 2012.

This activity includes a vast amount of companies searching for suitable people to hire, and of course, marketing professionals are busy jostling to be seen in the hope of being approached with job offers. In the marketing recruitment industry, LinkedIn is deemed a highly valuable tool for marketing company HR departments and search and selection agencies. Marketers know how to sell themselves perhaps more than most sectors, so the quality of LinkedIn profiles is rising all the time, and marketing companies are rapidly learning how to target talented people on LinkedIn.

Who to connect with?

The big advertising agencies and marketing specialists have a presence of course. For example, Saatchi & Saatchi, McCann Erickson, Ogilvy & Mather, and BBDO are active and talking about their staff and job requirements.

And there are countless discussion groups for marketing professionals – all great places to build your marketing career profile and get noticed. For instance, marketers are rapidly signing up to www.simplymarketingjobs.co.uk LinkedIn forum, and the discussion groups of leading trade bodies such including The Chartered Institute of Marketing, and The Direct Marketing Association

Debate and discussions are on-going here that are helping marketing professionals connect with influential people, understand their markets better, and become prominent voices in their specialism. Can you afford not to have a polished LinkedIn profile, with the power to catch the eye of potential recruiters in the marketing jobs market? Are you vocal enough on industry LinkedIn discussion forums, or could you do more to show you are active and engage, in your particular law specialism?

Experts say that LinkedIn is ideal to supplement your job-hunting efforts. By all means perfect your CV, sign up to specialist job boards, and receive email and SMS job alerts. Then used correctly the business-geared social networking site is a powerful addition to these job-hunting stalwarts, connecting you to the relevant hiring companies and recruitment agencies, and raising your digital profile in the marketing job market. Employers who have already interviewed you will check your LinkedIn profile to see what recommendations you have, and how active you are in your sector.

Whether you’re looking for an internship, your first marketing role, want to be head-hunted, or are progressing your career to become a marketing director, a LinkedIn profile is well worth doing. “Becoming a member is easy. The challenge is getting your profile right as this takes a lot more patience and thought,” says David Welsh, a senior partner at Richmond Solutions the personal career advice company. “Having a poor LinkedIn profile may mean you aren’t approached for marketing job opportunities that would be ideal for you, and in this job market, no-one can afford to be overlooked.”

So as you put together a LinkedIn profile, here are five questions that Richmond Solutions suggests you consider:

Am I projecting the right image?

Unlike many other social networks, LinkedIn is very much a business network. So how do you want to be seen professionally? Your photo is a major part of this image, so ensure it is a good quality head and shoulders shot, dressed as you would be for work. Save your holiday and party photos for other networks. More and more people are choosing to use a professional photograph – so think about whether this is worth investing in this for your LinkedIn profile.

Does it tell people what I want to do?

Tell the truth, but make sure the truth works for you. Most people put their current job title into the ‘professional headline’ but you don’t have to. Especially if your job title does not describe what you do, you may be better off offering a brief description of the type of work you do. If you are job hunting and particularly if you are currently out of work, it may serve you well to say ‘seeking’ or ‘looking for’ in the professional headline, so that you show up on any searches against these words. If your skills are technical be sure to describe what you do in layman’s terms. Your professional headline should also include your unique talent and be very specific to you. You can use the “|” symbol on your keyboard to separate different parts of your headline.

So for example:

John Smith, Senior Digital Media Strategist at XYZ Co| Marketing and Advertising

It’s vital to include at least two personal recommendations from people you have previously worked with, and of course make sure you are using all the relevant keywords that will make you stand out in the marketing jobs sector.

How will people find me?

LinkedIn is heavily search optimised and people will generally look for potential job candidates using keywords. Make sure you have filled in all the sections fully. Also, think about whether there are additional sections you can add. These might include ‘Languages’, ‘Volunteer Experience and Causes’ or ‘Publications’ to name but a few of the options on offer.

Most of all, make sure you make the most of the skills section. You can list up to 50 skills, so think about all the skills, hard and soft, that you can offer an employer. Get this right so that you show up in the right searches.

Who am I writing this for?

In reality, you must write your LinkedIn profile for everyone. If a CV is about offering a tailored document to a specific audience, you should bear in mind that an online profile may be seen by anyone. So it needs to speak to all your audiences. This does not mean it should be all-encompassing – if anything, it should be punchier, conveying the key highlights of your career clearly and succinctly. Remember, too, that ‘everyone’ also includes your boss, so if you are employed (and wish to remain so), bear this in mind.

Am I proud of this profile?

Would you be happy for someone, a potential employer – perhaps someone who could offer you a top account management or marketing executive role – to look at your profile? Would you be happy to send the URL to someone by way of introduction? If you cannot truthfully answer ‘yes’ to both of those questions, then it is time to get to work.

Richmond Solutions can offer a FREE LinkedIn profile review.

Other LinkedIn tips:

• Social media is based on developing relationships, so be as ‘social’ online as you can.

• To make sure you stand out from everyone else out there, work hard at building relationships and this should get you noticed over time.

• Send out at least one recommendation a week. Friends, colleagues, ex-colleagues, anyone relevant that you know. Over time you will see your own recommendations build up.

• Use discussion forums to ‘like’ other people’s posts, make intelligent comments, and instigate discussions and polls. See what your connections are up to, are up to and try to be of service.

• LinkedIn groups can lead you to fantastic marketing jobs. If you are seriously seeking a new job make sure you are receiving regular discussion updates from any recruitment-focused groups you are a member of. These emails will keep you in touch with the industry and allow you to spot jobs as they become available. Simply adjust your group settings to receive these useful communications.

• Invite others you know to join LinkedIn and encourage them to sign up to the groups you think are useful.

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