Best LinkedIn Practices

MEMORANDUM

To: Last but Not Least…
From: Lia Slager, Last but Not Least… Team Member
Date: February 09, 2019
Subject: LinkedIn Best Practices Assignment

Team,

Below are ten suggested practices on creating and maintaining your professional online profiles on LinkedIn:

1. “A picture is worth a thousand words”   Blogger Jason Seiden recommends choosing a profile picture that shows yourself in action as  “a photo can go a long way to convey passion, energy, charisma, empathy, and other soft skills that are hard to write about”
2. Get a Custom URL A customized URL (ideally linkedin.com/yourname) makes your profile easier to publicize and find in comparison to the combination of numbers and letters that LinkedIn automatically assigns.
3. Consider Your Audience Generally speaking this will include recruiters, HR professionals, or hiring managers. But another important “audience member” to consider is search engines.
4. Always Include a Current Job Entry, No Matter What  Most recruiters or hiring managers exclusively use the current title box in their search for job candidates
5. Use Keywords, Not Buzzwords A number of websites recommend filling your profile with keywords that might be looked up in a search engine but to shy away from overused buzzwords which become meaningless. Every year, LinkedIn releases a list of the top ten most overused buzzwords on LinkedIn profiles
6. Request For Recommendations  Make a point to request for a recommendation from previous colleagues or mentors to build credibility on your skill sets. One site suggests setting a personal goal of requesting at least once a month.
7. Add Multimedia Instead of writing about your work, you can show examples using slideshows, videos, hyperlinks and images
8. Showcase Past Achievements Recruiters are looking for high performers, outlining past achievements help market yourself as such.
9. Personalize your Page Be professional, however, keep in mind ultimately LinkedIn is a platform designed for interaction.
10.  Put in the Time Ultimately the more complete your profile is and the more you interact with the platform the stronger your profile will be. One site recommends putting in at least half an hour a week

I hope you found my recommendation helpful in building your own LinkedIn profiles and I look forward to connecting with you soon.

Works Cited

Editor, The Muse. “The Best LinkedIn Profile Tips for Job Seekers.” Free Career Advice, The Muse, 1 Nov. 2015, www.themuse.com/advice/the-31-best-      linkedin-profile-tips-for-job-seekers.

Han, Ed. “Tips for Writing a Great LinkedIn Profile Summary.” The Balance Careers, The Balance Careers, www.thebalancecareers.com/good-linkedin- summary-with-examples-4126809.

“What Profile Photo Works Best on LinkedIn: A Real-Life Experiment.” Business Solutions on LinkedIn, business.linkedin.com/talent-                      solutions/blog/2013/08/what-profile-photo-works-best-on-linkedin-a-real-life-experiment.

“17 Steps to a Better LinkedIn Profile in 2017.” Business Solutions on LinkedIn, business.linkedin.com/en-uk/marketing-solutions/blog/posts/content-marketing/2017/17-steps-to-a-better-LinkedIn-profile-in-2017.

“5 Tips for Picking the Right LinkedIn Profile Picture .” Business Solutions on LinkedIn, business.linkedin.com/talent-solutions/blog/2014/12/5-tips-for-picking-the-right-linkedin-profile-picture.

Sincerely,

Lia Slager