MEMORANDUM
To: Smells Like Team Spirit Members, ENGL 301 Writing Team
From: Jobina Tamminga, ENGL 301 Student
Date: October 19, 2019
Subject: LinkedIn Best Practices
For this week’s lesson, I have compiled a list of best practices for using LinkedIn as a professional networking site. Here are my findings below:
- Use a professional profile photo – your photo is often the first impression people will get from your profile, so it’s worth investing in a professional looking photo.
- Use a headline that stands out– it is worthwhile to add additional information to your title instead of just your job title. Mentioning your industry, specialty, important keywords and location in your headline can make your profile more relevant.
- Include a concise but informative summary – use your summary to present important details about yourself that showcase your talents and experiences, but don’t include too much. Keep your target reader in mind when describing who you are, what you do, what you have to offer.
- Complete your profile – LinkedIn has many fields you can fill in, allowing you to showcase much more than just past jobs. Utilizing features such as languages, courses, awards and publications make your profile stand out more and let readers know what you are capable of.
- Add connections – adding people that you know on LinkedIn is a great way to make more connections. The more connections that you have makes it more likely that a potential opportunity will come up, since more people will see your profile. Friends, family, and coworkers are a great place to start.
- Ask for recommendations – recommendations are a great way to show your character and work ethic from another perspective. Common recommendations are from past coworkers or employers. Don’t forget to fill out recommendations for others as well!
- Only include relevant information – it can be tempting to write every job that you have ever had, but these can sometimes drown out your experiences that are relevant to your current goal. Share meaningful work history and achievements that may be important to a future employer.
- Use a professional tone – Always be professional on LinkedIn. LinkedIn is not used the same at other social media websites and must be treated as you would with any company website.
- Keep it updated – Make sure that you are updating your profile as you change. New jobs and achievements should go on LinkedIn even if you are not looking for a job. Letting your network know your experiences might bring more opportunities your way that you may not have even been looking for.
- Stay active – An important part of any social media site is making sure that you are aware of what is going on, and letting others know what you are looking for.
I hope that my suggestions were useful and help you improve your LinkedIn profile. LinkedIn can be a great tool to expand your professional network and to open yourself up to new opportunities. Please let me know if you have any other questions.
Works Cited
LinkedIn Corporation. “LinkedIn Pages Best Practices”. LinkedIn Marketing Solutions, 2019, https://business.linkedin.com/marketing-solutions/linkedin-pages/best-practices. Accessed 19 October 2019.
Fleming, Jane. “17 steps to a better LinkedIn profile in 2017”. LinkedIn, 13 February 2017, https://business.linkedin.com/en-uk/marketing-solutions/blog/posts/content-marketing/2017/17-steps-to-a-better-LinkedIn-profile-in-2017. Accessed 19 October 2019.
Dodaro, Melonie. “LinkedIn Etiquette Rules and Best Practices [20 Do’s and Don’ts]”. Top Dog Social Media, 2019, https://topdogsocialmedia.com/linkedin-etiquette-and-best-practices/. Accessed 19 October 2019.
Zantal-Wiener, Amanda. “29 LinkedIn Tips for Professional Networking, Business & Marketing”. HubSpot, 21 August 2017, https://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/23454/the-ultimate-cheat-sheet-for-mastering-linkedin.aspx. Accessed 19 October 2019.
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