From the General Sessions: A Match Made in Professional Heaven
Recruiters search LinkedIn profiles to find premier talent. So how do you write a winning profile and engage with members so that recruiters find you? Conference attendees learned what action to take to help capture the attention of recruiters during Friday’s General Session, "A Match Made In Professional Heaven." Charlene Narcelles, customer education specialist for LinkedIn, reviewed four key areas members must address: identity, credibility, thought leadership and persistence. Professional identity can evolve over time. LinkedIn provides a space where you can tell your story, she said. UPLOAD A GOOD PHOTO The first step is to add a nice photo with a clean background to your profile. With a photo, ideally a professional one, there is "a 40 percent increase in the likelihood of someone responding to your messages," Narcelles said. A strong profile says who you are in a way that commands attention. Start with the headline. Adding a job title under your name is not a best practice. A creative headline and a compelling story are critical because recruiters spend an average of one to two minutes reading profiles. WRITE COMPELLING NARRATIVE "The summary is a great space to tell your story, especially if you are a career transitioner. Tell how you got from point A to point B, why you made those choices," she said. A summary should not read like your resume. Talk about yourself in the first person. Avoid overused words. Allow recruiters to learn more. "Fill in the blanks. If there were gaps in your career... use it as an opportunity to tell more about yourself," Narcelles said. "Take creative liberties, but make sure key words are in there. I teach recruiters to search by key words. You can say my specialties include and then list key words" so you can be found, she said. Also, edit your URL so that it closely matches your name. Add it to business cards and drive traffic back to your profile. Review your profile on mobile devices, she said. MAKE THESE MOVES Tips to improve creditability include: • Add rich Media to showcase your work, personality and interests. • Beef up your experience and focus on strong recommendations. • Join groups. Add a comment, like something, start a discussion or form a group. Position yourself as a thought leader with these actions: • Follow relevant content, companies and influencers to understand industry news and trends. • Stay engaged. Update your status. Tag people. Share content. • Write a blog post. Share your expertise, interests or opinions. Ways to demonstrate persistence and be viewed as pro-active include: • Search for quality connections in your industry or targeted companies. • Personalize your connection requests. • Share an article with existing connections. Find ways to stay in touch. Most of all, be active on a consistent basis "to leverage the network you already have," Narcelles said. |
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