The Importance of LinkedIn
Creating and maintaining a LinkedIn profile is one of the first steps to a successful career path. That may sound like an exaggeration, but this professional networking platform is one of the number one ways to find job opportunities and connect with others in your field.
Four Reasons to Use LinkedIn
- LinkedIn hosts 660 million members, according to Influencer Marketing Hub. Each person is a potential professional connection.
- LinkedIn offers learning courses for members at reasonable prices, including ones for graphic design, web development, writing, and marketing, to name a few. Once you complete a course, you receive a certificate you can display on your profile.
- It’s easy to create a professional profile, portfolio, and resume on LinkedIn with built-in templates and tools.
- A LinkedIn profile helps rank your name on Google, as stated by TopResume. That means when a potential employer searches for your name, one of the first things to pop up will be a professional profile and portfolio.
How to Get Started on LinkedIn
First, search LinkedIn on Google and click “sign up.” Then follow the prompts to create a barebones LinkedIn profile. At the very least, your LinkedIn profile should have the following:
- a professional photo of yourself,
- your educational background,
- your current job position,
- several previous job positions,
- your industry and location, and
- three of your top skills.
Along with these minimum requirements, you should add an engaging summary about yourself. A LinkedIn summary allows you to tell potential employers and connections about who you are, what you do, and how you bring value to a team.
Next Steps After Creating Profile
Creating a profile is only the first step. Next, you need to find connections. Search for people you already know from previous and current jobs and send them an invitation to link in. Fifty is the fewest number of connections you should have.
Once you’ve made connections, you can reach out for recommendations and skill endorsements from your network. Recommendations and endorsements get displayed on your profile for potential employers to see.
Is Creating a LinkedIn Profile Hard?
LinkedIn is user-friendly, and its built-in tools and templates make creating a professional profile simple, in theory. However, crafting an engaging summary and optimizing your profile to rank on search engines may get complicated. The process of refining and editing your profile is time-consuming, and full-time workers may find themselves overwhelmed by one more thing added to their to-do list.
Do you need help creating or editing your LinkedIn profile? Do you want to grow your connections and contact list? Braathe Enterprises can help. Book a call with career expert Robert Braathe today.
Citations:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescoachescouncil/2020/09/10/the-importance-of-networking-online—now-more-than-ever/?sh=8a9da627d5eb
https://www.topresume.com/career-advice/why-linkedin-is-important
https://business.linkedin.com/en-uk/marketing-solutions/blog/posts/content-marketing/2017/17-steps-to-a-better-LinkedIn-profile-in-2017
https://contentmarketinginstitute.com/2016/08/linkedin-profile-tips/
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/20140708162049-7239647-16-tips-to-optimize-your-linkedin-profile-and-enhance-your-personal-brand/
https://influencermarketinghub.com/linkedin-stats/#:~:text=There%20Are%20660%20Million%20Members,to%20over%2030%20million%20companies.
