How to create a great LinkedIn profile: Impress recruiters & strengthen your brand

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HOW TO CREATE A GREAT LINKEDIN PROFILE: IMPRESS RECRUITERS & STRENGTHEN YOUR EXISTING BRAND MARK ANDERSEN MARCH 6, 2014

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Long gone are the days when your resume ruled as your single most important job search asset. Today your LinkedIn profile is critical in achieving multiple goals: generating inbound career opportunities for yourself or your business, being your public online face when you're doing a job search, and playing an integral role in your personal branding. Many recruiters now use LinkedIn as their first screening of potential candidates and won't even contact you to speak with you or ask to see your resume unless they're impressed by your LinkedIn profile. Plus, recruiters don't read LinkedIn profiles, they scan them, which makes having a great LinkedIn profile more important than ever. Make your profile passes the quick scan test of a recruiter or potential client, so you don't miss that next great career opportunity. Mark Andersen is the Founder/CEO of CareerNav (www.CareerNav.com), a leading coaching company based in San Francisco. He has over 1,300 connections on LinkedIn and landed his previous two VP of Marketing jobs by first receiving inbound inquiries via LinkedIn from executive recruiters he didn't know at the time. Mark is also the author of the new book "I Got the Job! 8 Steps to Getting Hired", which became the #2 best-selling career guide ebook on Amazon. This workshop will be based on the LinkedIn chapter from his book: Amazon.com/author/markandersen In this workshop, Mark will also cover topics like "How does LinkedIn's search algorithm work?" LinkedIn protects its search algorithm like a state secret, so nobody outside of LinkedIn knows for sure how their algorithm works and it's always changing. Nonetheless, there are best search practices to optimizing your profile that you can implement. These slides walk you and a colleague through such topics as how to: -Create a great LinkedIn profile that gets positive responses from recruiters and companies -Strengthen your personal branding: is your profile clearly and compellingly communicating your brand? You'll find out when you use the questions included -Optimize ("SEO") your profile: we'll cover keyword selection, natural use of keywords, connections, groups...

Transcript of How to create a great LinkedIn profile: Impress recruiters & strengthen your brand

Page 1: How to create a great LinkedIn profile: Impress recruiters & strengthen your brand

HOW TO CREATE A GREAT LINKEDIN PROFILE: IMPRESS RECRUITERS & STRENGTHEN YOUR EXISTING BRAND

MARK ANDERSEN MARCH 6, 2014

Page 2: How to create a great LinkedIn profile: Impress recruiters & strengthen your brand

AGENDA • Create a great LinkedIn profile that gets positive responses from recruiters and companies.

• Strengthen your personal branding: is your headline clearly communicating your brand?

• Exercise to find out

• Optimize ("SEO") your profile: keyword selection, natural use of keywords, connections, groups...

• Keyword part of exercise

• Avoid the cardinal sins of bad profile writing such as "Keyword stuffing", cliches etc.:

• Review of profile examples

• Test changes in your profile to increase your search results

• Understand what the "Skills and Expertise Endorsements" feature means for your personal branding

• What is it? How can it help or hurt your brand?

Page 3: How to create a great LinkedIn profile: Impress recruiters & strengthen your brand

OUTCOMES • Understanding of how to create a great Linkedin profile

• Understanding key drivers of LinkedIn's algorithm

• Feedback on how your LinkedIn profile is currently perceived

• Your most important keywords

• Improved LinkedIn headline

Page 4: How to create a great LinkedIn profile: Impress recruiters & strengthen your brand

HOW LINKEDIN HELPS MY CAREER

• Personal Branding: executives / clients viewing my profile...

• My professional database

• Last 2 VP of Marketing jobs I got: What resume? Only 20% on webinar have gotten a job/consulting project through LinkedIn, but that'll increase.

• How to impress recruiters: Following slides

Page 5: How to create a great LinkedIn profile: Impress recruiters & strengthen your brand

HOW EXECUTIVE RECRUITERS IDENTIFY CANDIDATES

• They know what they're looking for based on the job requirements and company culture

• Scan for possible candidates: they're a fisherman & your profile is the bait

• Summary paragraph & clarity critical to break through. This is what separates the "A" players from the rest

• Don't: add too much info, repeat useless facts, use jargon/cliches ("think outside the box" etc)

• Remember to have to have your settings "open to receiving inMails"

• The ideal profile recruiters are looking for, but most don't have (a) Skill set that shows you have the relevant, excellent experience; (b) quality of the companies you've worked at; (c) history of success that communicates your personal achievement at your company; (d) progression of promotions in every company you've been at; (e) stability still matters

• Search mechanics recruiters use: Keywords, Experience, Title, Education, Radius

Page 6: How to create a great LinkedIn profile: Impress recruiters & strengthen your brand

KEY DRIVERS OF LINKEDIN'S ALGORITHM (STATE SECRET)• Complete your profile!:

• Headline with targeted keywords

• Summary with targeted keywords

• List all jobs & descriptions you've had with targeted keywords

• Add a photo

• Include your education, postal code, industry

• 50 or more connections

• At least 5 skills (up to 50)

• LinkedIn rewards:

• Networks of connected people

• Value of a 1st level connection: your search lens

• Keyword-focused content:

• Don't just list your previous titles--list content from those jobs

• LinkedIn groups: Join Kellogg's, Northwestern's, affinity groups...

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IMPORTANT DETAILS• Review of keyword stuffing example:

• A bad idea; effect on personal branding

• "Skills & Expertise" section

• How to manage it

• Importance of recommendations

• If you're doing a job search:

• Photos matter (beer)

• Follow companies to see relevant jobs: "similar Jobs"

• Using advanced search

• Turn off "Activity Alerts"

• Should you upgrade to Business account ($25/mo when paid monthly)?

• 3 inMails (can purchase separately)

• 15 introductions versus 5 with Basic

• See full profiles of 3rd degree and group connections (not just 2nd degree)

• More advanced search filters

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"SEE HOW YOU STACK UP TO OTHER APPLICANTS": JOB SEEKER PREMIUM

• "The percentage rank provided is an estimate based on assumptions about profile info like experience & education, and how it likely relates to the posted job."

• Applications over time

• Who else is applying (anonymous)

• Seniority...

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CREATING YOUR CUSTOMIZED URL / RESOURCES & TOOLS

• Create your customized url:

• Include in your email signature & on business cards

• http://help.linkedin.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/87

• Resources & tools:

• Listen to Matthew Temple's webinars on Kellogg site: career resources section

• http://talent.linkedin.com/blog/index.php/2013/07/how-to-create-an-effective-linkedin-profile/

• Lnkd.in/jobsearchchecklist2013

• Lnkd.in/jobsearchblogpostpacket

• CardMunch

• SlideShare

Page 10: How to create a great LinkedIn profile: Impress recruiters & strengthen your brand

HOW TO GET INTRODUCED TO RECRUITERS, HIRING MANAGERS & CLIENTS • 4 steps to using LinkedIn for getting introduced for (a) business networking, (b) getting hired:

• Create an excellent profile achieving your goal.

• Send out your invites to build as many connections as possible.

• Create your short list of people you'd like to be introduced to.

• Send out introduction requests.

• To watch my video explaining these 4 Steps in greater detail go to: http://youtube.com/watch?v=wp6lusJtuRs

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HEADLINE & KEYWORD EXERCISE: DO YOURSELF

• What is your headline goal?

• Your unique value proposition?

• What's your credible "wow." Don't exaggerate or be shy.

• What are the most important keywords I should be using naturally in my headline & throughout my profile?

• New headline:

Page 12: How to create a great LinkedIn profile: Impress recruiters & strengthen your brand

GIVE PROFILE FEEDBACK TO OTHERS: EXERCISE

• What do you think my profile goal is (i.e., "find a marketing job in a startup...", "branding for my company"...)?

• What is my biggest area of expertise?

• How would you describe my personal brand in 1 sentence?

• Does my headline and summary clearly communicate what you think my brand is?

• If not, why not?

Page 13: How to create a great LinkedIn profile: Impress recruiters & strengthen your brand

WRAP-UP / Q&A • You should have a much better understanding now of how your profile is perceived

• You should know your next steps to creating a great profile

• Download ebook (free for next 24 hours): I Got the Job! 8 Steps to Get Hired: www.Amazon.com/author/markandersen

• 1month free Job Seeker subscription from LinkedIn (only new subscribers are available): http://lnkd.in/jssfriendsandfamily2014

• Kellogg provides free coaching to alumni

[email protected]

• Connect with me: linkedin.com/in/markdandersen

• @MarkAndersen

• Feedback for this workshop