When it comes to business networking; LinkedIn has won the social media battle when it attracted 259 million professionals from over 200 countries with 178.4 million visitors monthly.With the various features it provides for business networking and marketing,an increased number of professionals use LinkedIn everyday to make important connections that help them and their companies grow.
So what can you do to market yourself and your work using LinkedIn?
1.Have a %100 completed profile
You can follow LinkedIn’s Profile Completion Tips when editing your profile. Add a profile picture of your face looking professional. A smile is a plus but stay away from Facebook-like profile pictures. Make sure your title is how you present yourself to people and not your current job title. For example, your title could be “Professional Business Writer” while your job is a content manager at Xycompany. The title is the 1st thing that people see so it’s really important that it tells your story. You can use it to tell everyone that you’re seeking opportunities but be careful not to actually state that you’re looking for a job. This might upset your current employer as well as make you sound desperate.
Complete all the fields on your profile as this will help you appear in search results when someone or some company is looking for skills, experience or keywords used in your profile.
2.Endorsements are important
This feature allows anyone who is viewing your profile to quickly see your top skills based on how many endorsements you have for each. While a single endorsement taken in isolation may not provide a ton of insight, if someone is endorsed for a single skill 99 times, that becomes a very powerful way to understand their key strengths and the strength of their network.
Another benefit is that LinkedIn’s algorithms actually take your skills and endorsements into account. Let’s say you’re a computer engineer living in Saudi Arabia and have been endorsed for your communications skills 140 times; LinkedIn algorithm will use that combination of factors to show you jobs you might be interested in.
Remember, the more people you endorse, the more you will be endorsed.
3.Ask for recommendations
The best way to get a recommendation on LinkedIn is to ask for one. Make sure you personalize your recommendation request to each person specifically and refrain from asking people that can’t directly speak to your work ethic. Never send a mass message asking all of your connections to take some time to rate your work. No appreciates that.
Likewise, recommending others in return is a great way to get them to recommend you in return.
4.Make great connections
You can make as many connections as you want on LinkedIn but it will get you no where; unless you’re interested in viewership of the links you share or the posts you write. Search for people you have already met and re-introduce yourself. LinkedIn also has a “People You May Already Know” tool that’s great for making meaningful connections, but use it sparingly and do a little research on your own.
Likewise, it’s important to keep up with the LinkedIn contacts you already have by updating your contact page and consistently updating your business page as well. Once your LinkedIn connections increase, you’ll have to search for laptop deals because your business will grow so fast you’ll need computers for all your new employees.
5.Join and Create Groups
Within LinkedIn’s like-minded professional bubble, there are specific interest groups for certain areas of focus within the business arena. Joining a LinkedIn group is an effective way to network and demonstrate your expertise within your field of interest by posting and commenting.
Likewise, taking the time to create your own interest group will boost your LinkedIn presence as one of the leaders in your industry or at least someone the group members will turn to for help and advice. It will also help keep your name and your picture remembered. But before you start a new group, search groups to see if a similar one already exist and join it.
Linkedin is the number one social network used by employers and job seekers alike. Even if you’re not yet looking LinkedIn is a great tool to build your personal brand and connect with other professionals.
(Source: Arab News)
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