When you think about LinkedIn, what words come to mind? Possibly “professional”, “networking”, “advancement”. All of these things are true but that sometimes makes people shy away from the platform and underutilize it. When it comes to LinkedIn, many only engage on the social network when it comes time to hunt for a new job; or similarly, if you are running a business, when it’s time to hire a new employee. You can definitely use it just during these periods of time, however, as a person who wants to continue to advance professional and especially as a business owner or entrepreneur, you can better tap into the opportunities that LinkedIn provides on a regular basis.
We’ve compiled a list of tips for you to optimize your profile on LinkedIn. These go for those career hunting or business owners looking to use the social network to expand their business.
1. Finish filling out your profile/page
Not only will this help people learn more about you/your business when they land on your profile, it also helps boost your discoverability.
Fill in the information about past work experience and go into detail about your roles and accomplishments. Treat your profile as an extension of your resume where you can add additional awards, certifications, job experiences that didn’t quite make the cut for your resume but still deserve some attention.
2. Add hashtags
You can add up to three hashtags to your page. Use the hashtags that are associated with your business to get an additional boost in discoverability and track community engagement.
Choose hashtags that are relevant for your business or work that you do so people can be directed to your profile looking for something you have to offer.
3. Add a CTA
A call to action tells the visitor what they should do next. Be clear about what they should do. Tell them to visit your online portfolio, or book a quick consultation call. Add a UTM parameter to your call to action URL in order to track traffic being generated by that link.
4. Write Articles and Post Videos
Be frequently posting on LinkedIn. This can be in the form of article posts (re-purposed from your blog) to increase credibility and show thought leadership. It can also be in written or video posts. If you’re doing a video grab attention with more than just audio; remember the viewer won’t be able to hear the first few seconds of video because on LinkedIn the video will auto-play without sound as they scroll past it.
5. Link your profile/page
Link your personal profile to the businesses where you work or have worked. This brings in traffic to your profile from another source. In addition, for your business page, encourage your employees to connect themselves to the business. It increases trust with your page when other people come and can see who else works there.
6. Be social
LinkedIn is still a social network. It might err on the professional side of being social but in order to squeeze out every opportunity on LinkedIn you have to be interacting with other people. Use the main feed to like, share and comment on other’s posts. You can also see what people you want to connect with are doing and use a recent post of theres to start up a conversation in their DM.
Keeping in contact with connections you have made will keep you top of mind should they have an opportunity you would be a good fit for. Making a comment on their recent post/article/video or even a job change for them is an easy way to start a conversation more organically.