Expert Job Search &Personal Branding Tips

Using LinkedIn

Why is it so important to have a complete profile on LinkedIn? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

What LinkedIn subscription is best for me? Will the free subscription suffice? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Do Privacy Settings Matter? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Build Your Personal Brand on LinkedIn Using a Top-Down Approach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Additional Tips and Best Practices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Why Leap With Us . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

C O N T E N T S

3

WHY IS IT SO IMPORTANT TO HAVE A COMPLETE PROFILE ON LINKEDIN?

Stay Visible and Relevant » Not having a LinkedIn profile tells people you don’t care about the current business landscape, you don’t see value in networking, or you are socially reclusive .

» Haphazardly creating a LinkedIn profile is a hindrance to your success and online reputation .

» Staying visible to your professional network is crucial, as well as having exposure to a broader online community .

Attract » Attract recruiters and hiring decision makers searching for someone with your background .

» Attract and connect with like-minded professionals to build or expand your professional network, share information, gain knowledge, or create pipelines of talent for your future job openings .

Branding » Create a compelling personal brand and identity that positions you as an expert in your field, a thought leader, or a person of influence .

» In our interconnected world, your personal brand is your primary currency . Your personal brand equity is the value and goodwill developed and monetized over time .

Impressions » Generate curiosity about what you do and why you do it .

» Develop an online persona that differentiates and captures your authentic value proposition .

Compete » Savvy professionals and executives are competing for the opportunities you want and have already embraced and capitalized on LinkedIn’s tools .

» Most recruiters and hiring managers will view your LinkedIn profile, immediately after reviewing your resume and prior to inviting you in for an interview . This vetting mechanism can have both a positive and negative impact on your job search .

Control » Limit the information people find about you by controlling their attention . A complete profile will feed a viewer’s appetite for meaningful content and reduce the motivation to search additional online sources .

4

WHAT LINKEDIN SUBSCRIPTION IS BEST FOR ME? WILL THE FREE SUBSCRIPTION SUFFICE?

Start small…but don’t stay small » If this is your first time creating your LinkedIn profile or your first time enhancing it, stick with the free subscription until you have followed all the steps recommended in this eBook .

Upgrade to LinkedIn Premium

» Your profile listing is more prominent than the free subscription because more of your information is displayed in search results .

» The premium subscription provides more analytics, such as who viewed your profile over the last 90 days, and how they found you . The free subscription only displays the last five people .

»Additional analytics include industries and locations of visitors to your profile and search terms used to discover your profile .

»Align your subscription option with your commitment level . Explore all available options (e .g ., Premium, Job Seeker, Business Plus, Executive, etc .) and maximize the benefits of the selected subscription .

5

DO PRIVACY SETTINGS MATTER?

Maintain Control » Safeguard your account by using privacy settings to control how your profile information is accessed .

» Turn Sharing Profile Edits to “No” while updating your profile (e .g ., adding jobs, etc .), but change them to “Yes” after updates are completed, so your followers can see your updates and engage in the conversation .

Optimize Visibility » Your “Public Profile” should be set to display full profile information so it’s accessible to all search engines .

» Under Notifying Connections When You’re in the News toggle to “Yes” so your followers are notified when you are mentioned (tagged) in newsfeed posts on LinkedIn .

Increase Ranking » Optimize keywords and content to ensure your information is properly indexed by various search engines .

» Turn on How You Rank settings to receive tips on improving your visibility .

» By ranking your profile against other similar profiles, you will get more visits to your page .

Protect Your Followers » To protect your connections and prevent

them from receiving unwanted messages or sales pitches, select “Only you” in the Who Can See Your Connections area .

» Savvy job seekers and sales professionals scrub high-ranking LinkedIn profiles for Followers’ contact information .

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Photo » Avoid selfies! If possible, hire a professional photographer to take a professional grade headshot .

» Since this is the first thing people see before they even open your profile, make sure you select the right image .

» Use an image that has a professional tone and complements your personal brand in the context of business . For example, if you are in the banking or real estate industry, wear a suit or conservative attire . If you are in the action sports or another casual sector, select the appropriate attire and an image that reflects your personality .

» Based on published research, people are critical of profile pictures and sometimes view profile pictures discriminately .

Name » Use your full name and avoid initials like “Joseph S . or J . Smith” .

» Use the extra space after your name for items like credentials or descriptors . For example: “Joseph Smith, MBA, CPA or Joseph Smith, Certified Public Accountant” .

Professional Headline » Since your professional headline follows you everywhere like the license plate on your car, use it to your advantage!

» Unlike a license plate that only allows seven characters, LinkedIn allows 120 characters which is enough for a concise yet compelling marketing slogan .

» Use relevant key words that are searchable and resonate with your target audience .

» Note that unless your headline is changed, it will appear as your current or last position held .

» Additionally, most algorithm rankings are determined by headline keywords .

BUILD YOUR PERSONAL BRAND ON LINKEDIN USING A TOP-DOWN APPROACH

Which headline do you think COMMANDS ATTENTION or is more searchable?

A. CFO – XYZ Company

B. CFO – Business Transformation Expert | Internationally Successful CFO with a COO Mindset

A. IT Director – XYZ Company

B. IT Director | Global Strategy | Innovative Technology | Flawless Execution

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Public Profile URL (located above the Summary section) » Your default URL is usually a hodgepodge of letters and numbers . Personalizing or customizing your URL will optimize its searchability .

» If you have a common name or if your name is already taken, try using your middle initial, last name then first name, or first and middle initials . Do your best to use your first and last name .

» Try to keep it short and simple so its easy to share with others .

Summary » You are given 2,000 characters to offer a snapshot of your career and value proposition .

» Your summary should start with a compelling header or tagline such as your value proposition or branding statement .

» You can borrow blocks of information from your resume . For example, grab your executive or professional summary and paste it in this section .

» A few short value-driven statements from your resume will suffice .

» Keep your summary simple yet elegant and focus on your professional milestones, expertise, and areas of passion .

» Avoid lengthy paragraphs by using concise, brand-focused value statements .

» Avoid using technical or military jargon, slang, acronyms, cliches, obscure terms or any terminology that is unclear or confusing .

» Use this section to embed your resume, published articles, videos, professional presentations, or other relevant media .

Experience » Your experience shapes your personal brand! As such, list your experience thoughtfully and strategically .

» In the Experience section, enter the appropriate information but list your achievements first .

» Each role should articulate how the experience helped you and/or the employer .

» If you have limited professional experience, don’t be afraid to include jobs prior to your professional caeer . Varied experience can be an asset as it shows grit and a determination to succeed .

» If you have extensive career movement that could be scrutinized, remove the months or specific dates and just list the years .

» Use gaps in employment to strengthen your brand by including statements like, “Took time off to travel, which strengthened my problem solving skills and allowed me to gain a global perspective .”

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» If you’re unemployed, create a placeholder that includes the job title you are targeting—“Aspiring Accountant” or “Candidate for Human Resources Generalist,” followed by a phrase like “Seeking New Opportunity” or “In Transition .” It is important to include a placeholder when you’re in transition because most recruiting professionals exclusively use the current title box to search for prospective candidates . If you you do not have a current title listed, you will not show up in search results .

Education » LinkedIn allows users to reorganize and reorder sections . To that end, if you have a freshly-minted degree, you may want to list your education after your summary (before Experience) .

» Add completed degrees and universities attended . Include whether you graduated with honors, fraternity memberships, or any extracurricular activity worthy of mentioning .

» If you have not attended a college or university, simply leave this section blank . Refrain from listing things like “Graduated from the school of hard knocks .”

Certifications » Include all certifications relevant to your career path . For example, if you are a CPA or CFA, list these certs in this section . Conversely, if you have certs that are not relevant to your career path, do not list them .

» Employers value certifications as they demonstrate mastery of skills and a commitment to professional growth .

» Certifications also help hiring managers and recruiters find you as they show up in search engines .

Volunteering, Causes You Care About and Organizations You Support » Volunteer experience demonstrates leadership qualities and a purposeful commitment to help and connect with others .

» Volunteer experience differentiates you from your peers as it shows a commitment to making a difference in your community and exemplifies your core values .

» Employers know that volunteers develop valuable skills .

» List the causes you care about as it shows you take social impact seriously .

» Research from LinkedIn shows that one out of every five hiring managers in the U .S . agree they have hired a candidate because of their vounteer work experience .

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Additional Info/Interests » This section will optimize your profile as each interest listed is hyperlinked . When users click on hyperlinked interests they are directed to a group of professionals who share your interests .

Skills » This section will enhance your profile and optimize it for search engines . This section allows you to list 50 different tags that describe your skill sets and experiences .

» Your followers will both see and endorse your skills .

» The more skills you list, the better your chance of getting contacted by hiring managers and recruiters .

» LinkedIn reports “Members with five or more skills listed are contacted (messaged) up to 33 times more by recruiters and other LinkedIn members, and receive up to 17 times more profile views .”

» The skills you list should match the job responsibilities in your profile and on your resume . Don’t allow employers to identify a mismatch!

» If you are in job search mode include the skills that align with the job you are seeking .

» You can also list skills that align with your professional interests and goals .

Endorsements » Endorsements provide the opportunity to showcase your skills . The key is to keep your skills current and remove those that might be outdated or superfluous .

» Endorsements are votes of confidence that send a strong message about your abilities to accomplish specific tasks and excel in certain areas .

» When you receive endorsements from followers, you will be prompted to thank the person who endorsed you via email . This is a great way to stay engaged to your network .

» Additionally, when you receive endorsements from others, reciprocate by endorsing their skills as well .

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Recommendations » LinkedIn recommendations improve your chances of getting hired, getting promoted, and gaining more followers .

» Identify the people you know very well and who can best speak to your reputation, expertise, leadership or management skills .

» Ask for a recommendation that highlights some of your best accomplishments or provides examples of your abilities .

» Hiring managers and recruiters carefully review this information as it gives people a better idea of what it’s like to work with you and where you really excel .

» A good rule of thumb is to cultivate recommendations from colleagues, superiors and clients who appreciate the work you have done for them .

» Another rule of thumb when asking for recommendations is to reach out personally by picking up the phone and sharing your request .

Groups » Groups are great for job searching and show that you’re committed to your field .

» Groups allow you to dialogue with like-minded professionals .

» According to LinkedIn, your profile is five times more likely to be viewed if you join and are active in groups .

» Experts recommend becoming an active participant in at least two groups .

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ADDITIONAL TIPS AND BEST PRACTICES

»Meaningful status updates make a huge difference in the visibility and attention you receive .

»According to research published by LinkedIn, if you post every weekday you will reach 60 percent of your unique audience .

»LinkedIn also found that job seekers who updated their status weekly were ten times more likely to be contacted by hiring managers and recruiters .

»At a minimum, you should commit to updating your status on LinkedIn at least twice a week .

»Meaningful updates allow you to remain top-of-mind and build a strong personal brand .

»By adding valuable and actionable content on a consistent basis, people in and out of your network will view you as both an expert in your field and a “go-to” resource .

»The status updates that get the most likes and views are insightful and informative and pertain to specific industries, companies, and new products or services .

»Other status updates that gain attention include motivational or inspirational quotes, infographics, videos, articles, and information about upcoming events .

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»Commenting on someone’s status update shows up in your network feed . As such, your comments should be professional with a positive tone .

»Another easy way to add activities to your network feed is by Liking updates . Be strategic and purposeful by liking updates that align with goals and get you on the radar screen of your targeted audience .

»Publish an article and share your perspective about current developments in your field including recent developments and trends .

» In the Advice for Contacting section, make sure your phone number and email address is listed .

» If you want to keep your job search confidential, adjust your privacy settings so your followers do not see your activity .

»Look for typos and poor grammar that can discredit you . A good rule of thumb is to have someone else proofread and edit your profile before posting .

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