Assignment 2.2: Memo – Ten Best Practices for LinkedIn

To: The Writing Technicians
From: Tamar Tucker-Harrison
Date: February 12th, 2019
Subject: Ten Best Practices for LinkedIn

I have summarised ten key practices to effectively using and curating a user profile on LinkedIn.

1. Your profile picture will be the very first thing that is noticed on your LinkedIn profile, ensure that you have a professional and relevant profile picture if possible, displays you as having a positive and friendly demeanour.
2. You cover photo should hopefully demonstrate you in some element of your professional activities or occupation.
3. Close to, or at the beginning of your summary space, offer a quick synopsis of the industry or educational program with which you currently identify most. This will enable viewers to quickly grasp what your focus and capabilities are, many users do not have a lot of time to view profiles and it is important to quickly communicate what you represent. This is especially important if you are working in a sector which might be unfamiliar to the general public or those not in your field of work/study.
4. If you have official documents that detail your responsibilities, or perhaps a letter of recommendation, be sure to attach this to the relevant job experience to reinforce its legitimacy.
5. If you have any appropriate photos of yourself operating in a professional capacity, attach these to the relevant job experience to provide a better idea of your character.
6. Reinforce your key strengths and attributes, Not only will it be easy to keep reemphasizing a point but it will also reassure any readers as they progress through your profile as they see that you have constructed robust knowledge and experience in a specific area.
7. Use the endorsement function to create a positive relationship with other LinkedIn users, do not be afraid to reach out to contacts to ask them to consider endorsing you for skills and behaviours for which they consider you to be competent.
8. Follow companies or organisations which pertain to both your personal and professional interests. Doing so will not only present new opportunities but will also introduce you to the profiles of users that you will have a personal or professional connection to.
9. Change your LinkedIn profile URL to be some variation of your name, or perhaps if your name is taken, consider adding the title of your profession or industry to the end of the URL. If you have a unique name, you may be able to lock down a very simple and identifiable URL. As well, if previously visited by a user, then your profile will be more identifiable if it appears as a suggestion in their URL address bar rather than a irrelevant string of random characters.
10. Use keywords in your profile to increase the likelihood of users connecting with and comprehending your profile.

Works cited:

Kim, Larry. “22 Great Tips for Enhancing Your LinkedIn Profile.” Medium, Marketing and Entrepreneurship, 20 Feb. 2018, medium.com/marketing-and-entrepreneurship/22-great-tips-for-enhancing-your-linkedin-profile-c72e5b2a8cbc.