Did you know two new people join LinkedIn every second?
Over one third of the planet’s professionals now have a LinkedIn profile. With so many worldwide users, it’s easy to see why this social media platform has become a top choice for professionals, job seekers, recruiters and b2b marketers alike.
No matter what stage you’re at in your career or your business, if you’re not taking advantage of LinkedIn you could be missing out on amazing opportunities.
Here are a 7 simple actions you can take to get the most out of LinkedIn:
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Complete Your Profile
One of the biggest mistakes people make on LinkedIn is not completing their profile.
Adding a professional-looking photo (no selfies, please!) will increase your visibility. Your professional headline, which appears below your name, is prime real estate in the LinkedIn world. Use this space strategically to capture people’s attention. Also, make sure you take advantage of the various information fields to showcase your experience and your skills. There are even opportunities to upload project files, which further enhance the visual appeal of your profile.
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Connect With More People
The more your network grows, the more opportunities will open up to you.
Do you have any pending connection requests? Make sure you accept those! Every so often peruse your list of “people you may know” and invite those you know or would like to connect with professionally. Another great way of finding and adding existing contacts is to upload your email list.
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Promote Your Profile
Make it easier for people to find you on LinkedIn by promoting your profile.
There are many ways you can go about doing this using your existing communications and marketing channels. One quick and easy option is to include a link to your profile in your email signature. Another great way would be to promote your LinkedIn profile on your other social networking platforms as an update or in the bio or about section.
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Update Your Profile
Don’t let your profile go stale.
Make sure your information is accurate and up to date. Every once and a while it’s good to change up your profile photo, your professional headline and your summary. This keeps your profile looking fresh and engaging.
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Engage With Others
If you want to see more engagement on LinkedIn, you need to take a few minutes on a regular basis to engage with others.
A few ways you can engage with others is to like, comment and share updates, congratulate people on new jobs or work anniversaries and endorse others for skills. All of these actions take only minutes and can make a big difference on the amount of engagement you receive.
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Ask For Recommendations
It’s one thing to tell people you are great to work with or are an expert in your field, but it’s always better to hear it from someone else.
Asking for LinkedIn recommendations only takes a couple of minutes to send out and is worth every second. Having those testimonials on your profile adds value and credibility to what you do. Remember to reciprocate the action if people ask you for recommendations.
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Share Your Expertise
Position yourself as a thought leader and an expert in your field to increase visibility and enhance your personal brand recognition.
There are many ways to share your expertise, many of which only take a few minutes. A quick way to showcase your knowledge is to provide insight or share industry news and trends in the form of a status update. Another action you can take, which requires a bit of initial research, is to join industry or community groups. Once you’ve joined a few groups, you can start creating and participating in discussions. If you have a bit more time to dedicate to your LinkedIn efforts, try writing and publishing posts about your industry on LinkedIn Pulse.
What other actions do you take on LinkedIn to increase engagement and visibility?
For more on how Lifeblood Marketing can help your business, contact info@lb.realtylabsmarketing.com.