Workshop - Create a Stellar LinkedIn Profile
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This document summarizes a workshop on creating an effective LinkedIn profile. The workshop covered optimizing different sections of a LinkedIn profile like the headline, summary, experience section, skills, and recommendations. It provided tips on using keywords, telling a story, and using visuals. The workshop also discussed growing one's network on LinkedIn and using LinkedIn for job searching and networking.
![The (Almost)Perfect Meeting Request
Dear [name],
I found your profile through the [name the common LinkedIn Group or
network] on LinkedIn. I have been working as a [name last position] at
[name last company], and I am in the process of making a career transition.
It would be helpful for me to find out about your experiences as a [name
role] for [target company]. I promise not to take more than 15 minutes of
your time.
!
I am not expecting to discuss a particular job opening, but I would
appreciate being able to talk with you on an informational basis.
!
What is the best way to reach you this week? Do you have any availability
this coming Thursday or Friday? I thank you in advance.
Regards,
[your name]](https://image.slidesharecdn.com/linkedinworkshop3915finalforssupload-150309224630-conversion-gate01/85/Workshop-Create-a-Stellar-LinkedIn-Profile-61-320.jpg)
Workshop - Create a Stellar LinkedIn Profile
- 1. WORKSHOP: CREATE A STELLAR LINKEDIN PROFILE ! SAN FRANCISCO, CA 3/9/15 presented by Robin Frank
- 2. Yours Truly Social Media ! I work with companies large and small to help them build and tune-up an engaging online presence. ! I’m known as a dynamic speaker and speak regularly at national conferences, companies, and events. Personal Branding ! I help individuals in many fields create powerful personal brands. ! My personal branding strategy is featured in the recent book “Digital Marketing” written by Larry Weber and endorsed by Reid Hoffman (Chairman, Founder/LinkedIn) and John Donahoe (CEO/ eBay). Reboot Camp ! Innovative program to help Moms confidently re-enter the workforce after a break. ! Six inspiring and pragmatic sessions cover topics from networking and interview skills to social media and personal branding, plus two hours of one-on-one coaching. Mom ! Twin 8 Yr old boys ! Live in Mill Valley
- 3. Today’s Workshop • LinkedIn - compelling numbers • Profile Creating/Updating • Best practices - organizating, SEO, & more • Networking using LinkedIn
- 5. LinkedIn is Networking Nirvana 5
- 6. LinkedIn is a Major Traffic Driver 6
- 7. Just How Important is Your LinkedIn Profile? 7
- 8. It’s a No-Brainer • Update your profile ▫ Keeps you top of mind with your friends and connections ▫ Particularly if you post updates as well ▫ Most people have no idea on what they are missing out on 8
- 9. Customize Your Profile URL • While on your LinkedIn profile page, your URL has some strange characters and looks funny - this is not the URL you want to share • Click the Edit icon next to the URL link under your profile photo • First come/first serve • Use it below your email signature, blog, business card, etc. 9
- 10. Use a Good Image • Your photo sends a strong message of who you are • Use a head shot with a clean background, a smile and a clear view of your eyes • Best photo is a smiling face and a little bit of your shoulders • Make sure it isn’t blurry, or grainy 10
- 11. Not this 11
- 12. But This! 12
- 13. Optimize Your Headline • Most people only look at your picture and headline • Craft a compelling headline, even if you are not employed 13
- 14. Your Headline = Search Keywords • You have 120 characters to play with – maximize it ▫ Keywords used by ideal clients to search for what you offer ▫ Look at others in your industry ▫ Use Google Adwords Keyword Planner ▫ 3 keywords that represent your job history and ideal job ▫ Use "Show examples” 14
- 15. "See what others in your industry are using" 15
- 16. 16
- 17. Who’s Viewed My Profile? ▫ Watch “Who’s viewed my profile” to see if changes have an impact on views 17
- 18. Skills/expertise • Others endorse you for skills - and it shows up below your work experience on your profile • You can add, remove,and reorganize skills 18
- 19. 19
- 20. Your LinkedIn Summary • Similar to an Objective on a resume • NEVER be dry and dull ▫ It’s a first impression ▫ Project some personality • Reflect your professional brand ▫ Why you got into your industry ▫ What you love about it/why you do what you do! ▫ What kind of professional you are • Beware of buzzwords ▫ Banish the beige word speak 20
- 21. Beef Up Your Summary Section • Contact info first (or easy to find) • Use first tense - I was…. • 3-5 paragraphs - bullets in the middle • Walk through your work passions, key skills, unique qualifications, and industries 21
- 22. Have a Clear Call to Action • Tell your reader what to do once they’ve finished reading your summary ! • Tell them how to reach you! 22 To learn more about my dog grooming services,! • Visit http//www.robeensdoggrooming.com! • Email me at [email protected]! • Call me at 1-800-345-DOGS
- 23. Be Found to Be Hired 23 • Keywords for job search ▫ Used on LinkedIn (by recruiters/ employers ▫ Used to describe job or job skills • Develop your keywords – look at specific words in descriptions of jobs you want! • Top categories • Job titles, skills, tools/software, certifications, education, employer categories, professional/technical acronyms or industry insider terms, etc.
- 24. Storytelling For Your Audience • Write for the desired audience ▫ Craft the tone/content accordingly ▫ Communicate job-seeking interest, if seeking a job • Tell an ENGAGING story ▫ Lure the reader in/sell yourself! ▫ Conversational, fun, lively • Achievements, not tasks 24
- 25. 25 Content Strategy, Online Community Manager
- 26. Business Operations I Strategic Planning I Digital Marketing I HR Program Management 26
- 29. Lawyer 29
- 30. Summary Section Template • What you do - what problem do you solve and how? • How you are different? • Why you do what you do? • Personal brand, your passion • How did you get where you are today? • Explain concisely in a way that makes you look interesting and motivated. • What do others say - credibility • End with a call to action 30
- 31. Your Experience Section • Stand out from the crowd 31
- 32. Complete Experiences, Keyword-Rich • A POWERFUL profile includes past experiences • Highly sensitive to SEO • Include keywords people are using to find someone like you • Ensure YOU WILL BE FOUND 32
- 33. Keywords for 2015 OUT • Results-driven • Hardworking • Innovative • Exceptional • Good communication skills • Effective • Outstanding • Highly motivated • Effectual leader • Has talent for • Go-to person • Team player • Strategic thinker • Think outside of the box 33 ! IN • Improved • Achieved • Managed • Trained/mentored • Resolved • Created • Increased/decreased • Volunteered • Influenced • Under budget • Won • Ideas • Launched • Negotiated • Revenue/profits
- 34. Effective Phrases - Suggestions/Ideas • Acquired five new clients • Started a new procedure to cut costs • Created a new orientation program for employees • Ranked number-one in sales in my department • Negotiated new contract for department successfully • Increased sales productivity by 15 percent • Was named employee of the year • Created a new incentive program for employees 34
- 35. Don’t Just Say It, Display It ! • Portfolio feature - you can add photos, videos, documents, linked articles with images, screenshots, audio recordings, and SlideShare presentations • Highlight work samples, client work, launches, special projects, press, and tweets from speaking engagements. • Not many are using this yet 35
- 36. 90% of information transmitted to the brain is visual, and visuals are processed 60,000X faster in the brain than text
- 37. 37
- 38. Volunteering Can Be Just as Powerful as Work Experience • Include organizations support and projects you have worked on as well 38
- 39. Organizing & Moving Sections • DEMO • Can move larger sections like Experience, Volunteer, Skills, etc. • When in edit mode, simply hover your mouse over the double-sided arrow next to the Edit link for each section. • Your mouse will turn into a four-arrowed icon, at which point you can click, then drag and drop to another position on your profile. • Within a section - can rearrange current positions - that is all 39
- 40. Projects • Move your cursor over Profile at the top of your homepage and select Edit Profile • If you've never added a project before, click the Add Projects beneath your profile summary • Note: You can click View More to expand your selection of sections • If you've previously added a project, scroll down to the Projects section on your profile and click Add project 40
- 41. Character Limits • Professional Headline • 120 characters • Company Name • 100 characters • Summary • 2000 characters • Public Profile URL • 30 maximum characters • Position Title • 100 characters • Position Description • 2000 maximum characters • Skills • Up to 25 skills using 60 characters per skill • LinkedIn Status Update • You can use up to 700 characters 41
- 42. recommendations • 10x increase of your ranking • Add a personal message when you ask for a recommendation • Be strategic - your recos should emphasize different talents and aspects of your skills • You can choose to hide/ display any recommendation 42 Recommendations
- 43. Be Strategic About Recommendations • Look at jobs you want - map your skills to those required by the job and strategize • Which of your managers can speak to each skill? • Ask each person to discuss three skills - and provide those • Ask them to include: How long they’ve worked with you, background on how they know you, description of the three skills you asked them to discuss, and at least one specific success example • Offer to write it for their review • Find people similar to you and look for recommendations you find compelling 43
- 44. Get Noticed By Your Network • Update your status • Like, comment and share your connections’ status updates • Make a change in your profile (add a new skill) • Write a recommendation • Get recommended (ask) • Endorse someone’s skills • Join a group • Follow new company • Follow new thought leader • Make a new connection 44
- 45. SEO Checklist for LinkedIn • 100% profile completeness • Target Keywords in Profile Heading • Professional and natural in Summary (with keywords) • Job descriptions with bullet points for easy scanning/SEO • Optimize Skills for keywords • Vanity URL – also helps outside LinkedIn • Connections and Groups also drive search rankings 45
- 46. Your Connections Strategy - Go Big! • The Network Effect – larger networks are more valuable (e.g., the telephone) • Swarm Theory – large numbers of trends more accurate (basis for LinkedIn Endorsements) • Recruiters – search results in order of connectedness • Theory of Weakest Link – biggest leaps don’t happen with first degree connections • Fear/downside? – can always remove connections if spam 46
- 47. Getting a Job is 60% Networking • 20% - Applying directly to a job • 20% - Great resume, online brand, LinkedIn, social • 60% - Networking
- 48. How to Get a Meeting with Someone You Don’t Know • Networking - forwards and backwards • Maximizing your use of LinkedIn
- 49. Networking: Quality not Quantity • Deepen your connection ▫ People you have just met or may have known your whole life ▫ People in our networks serve a variety of purposes – they can stimulate our thinking, expand our options, help us make better decisions, provide insight into our careers • Be a people hub ▫ One of the most valuable things you can do for someone is connect them with the right person ▫ Facilitate a mutually beneficial connection
- 50. Be Strategic: The direction of your network is in your hands
- 51. Weak Links are More Powerful • Account for most of the structure of social networks in society as well as the transmission of information through these networks • More novel information flows to individuals through weak rather than strong ties • Our close friends tend to move in the same circles that we do – and the information they receive overlaps considerably with what we already know
- 52. Network is a Verb Not a Noun • Care and feeding of your network ▫ Give something of value in every interaction ▫ Send a message with an update or article or interesting event
- 53. Why Don’t We Follow Up? • You’re one connection away from getting the job of your dreams • Sometimes you MEET that one connection. You know it’s right for you. And you know it’s right for them. But for some reason, you NEVER follow up. Why? ▫ We forget ▫ Negative thoughts prevent you from taking action ▫ Networking can feel forced, unnatural, and sleazy
- 54. The Key to the Successful Follow-Up • Calendar reminder 5-10 days away - email • How to make sure they read it? ▫ Say: I’ll email you in a week or two ▫ Email content: offer a potential solution, data, research you think they would be interested in and/or ask a question that demonstrates some knowledge - Are you going to XYZ event or do you think competitor ABC's new launch/positioning will be impactful?
- 55. Getting Referrals and Introductions • Increase your chances of being interviewed and getting a better job by 5-10X over applying directly • Some connections you make along the way will surprise you, and put you on a path you never even considered
- 56. Networking Forwards with LinkedIn • Target 10 people who can vouch for your past performance and future potential (goal is 4) ▫ Professors, advisors, or social connections • Reach out - ask if they would be comfortable recommending you to connections in companies or industries of interest to you ▫ Get the names of 4 people and an intro ▫ Look at their LinkedIn - have specific people in mind ▫ Track everything in a spreadsheet
- 57. LinkedIn Introductions - Trusted Connections • Look at a job/company you are interested in • Find who you're connected to (1st Degree) who knows someone in the company (2nd Degree) and ask to be referred/introduced
- 58. Networking Backwards – How to Find Your Ideal Contact
- 59. InMail – When You Have No Connections • You can send an inMail to anyone • For pay (avoids spam) • If you don’t receive a reply, LinkedIn will refund your credit automatically
- 60. Talking to Strangers • Lead with something in common ▫ Contextualize the conversation - mention how you found them • Get to your point fast • Reassure the person that you’re not asking for a favor ▫ Be firm that you are just looking for a meeting • Talk about what makes you qualified - your brand pitch here! • End with a strong call to action with a time limit ▫ Mention that you need only 15 minutes of their time. • Be respectful = Show appreciation for their time
- 61. The (Almost)Perfect Meeting Request Dear [name], I found your profile through the [name the common LinkedIn Group or network] on LinkedIn. I have been working as a [name last position] at [name last company], and I am in the process of making a career transition. It would be helpful for me to find out about your experiences as a [name role] for [target company]. I promise not to take more than 15 minutes of your time. ! I am not expecting to discuss a particular job opening, but I would appreciate being able to talk with you on an informational basis. ! What is the best way to reach you this week? Do you have any availability this coming Thursday or Friday? I thank you in advance. Regards, [your name]
- 62. Change the Game • Offer value before you ask for anything ▫ How can I help this person? ▫ Do not discount yourself just because you’re young. Offer what you have based on what people need ▫ Add value - Offer to create a website, a video, or? • Do your research ▫ Know the basics - take time to check Google, Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, etc. so you understand what the person is all about ▫ Find the details - look for common hobbies or a hook - one of my mentors is someone I connected with because I reached out and mentioned we both like to dive
- 64. Brand me … Please Need Help? Hire an Expert • Personal Branding • LinkedIn Profiles • Social Media • Content Strategy • Website Optimization • Speaking • Reboot/Return to Work [email protected] robeenf.com GoRebootCamp.com