I will be honest, at the moment this is not an income-producing platform for me but I think it is important to stay up-to-date with all social media platforms and it is super important to make sure it is set up correctly.  A badly setup profile can actually be detrimental to you and what you do. I would say set aside at least an hour to set it up properly – and when you have done that find me and connect with me. 

Here are some tips on creating a good LinkedIn profile.

Banner

The first and probably the easiest thing to do is to put your banner picture – Canva has got a LinkedIn banner template for you if you want to make your life easier.  Your banner should be something that catches a person’s attention, and it should be very clear on what it is that you do. 

Profile Picture

For your profile picture, it needs to be head and shoulders and should take up about 60% of that space. Very much like a passport picture. It should show your eyes and a smile, so no resting bitchface – It is not very professional. 

Headline

The next thing is your headline, which is your job title. The headline is your opportunity to put a little bit about you, your role and your why. Use that space as effectively as you can to promote yourself and what it is that you do. 

URL

Your URL is at the top and you can customize it. Remember; if you customize your URL do not use spaces, symbols or special characters. If you have linked your LinkedIn URL on your newsletter or website remember to go and change it if you customize that link.

Skills

You are allowed 50 skills so don’t be shy – add all your skills! Add everything you do now and have done in the past. There is also a section where you can do a ‘Skills Assessment’. So they will give you a set of questions about a particular skill and if you get more than 70% you will get a Skills Verification certification.  But, they are very particular and detailed. 

Education 

You can upload an image and you can add anything that is credible.  Don’t leave anything out, no matter how insignificant it may be to you.  Include every training course or program you have ever done.

Industry

You can select your industry, obviously, this is important because it goes all the way down to the algorithm, and whatever you input into LinkedIn is going to match you with whoever is looking for those things. 

 About section

Remember the first couple of lines are the most important. It must be clear and concise – no fluffy business and don’t ramble on.  Explain what it is that you do and how you do it. But don’t give too much away.

Featured photos

 Feature base documents in the media, you can go in here and add features that are going to give you credibility.

Privacy setting

For those wanting LinkedIn to expand your connection to non-friends, make sure your privacy setting is set so that people can choose to connect with you.  Much like Facebook you can accept or reject them.  I would say keep your LinkedIn public and get used to the tire kickers.

Sync your email

Periodically you need to you sync your email list. That’s just like on Facebook when you go invite friends to like your page. The platform picks up people that have a LinkedIn profile using their email address. 

Recommendations

This is a very nice feature, you can actually guide people as to what to say in their recommendation when you send the request, and in return, you can leave them recommendations. In business, it is good to scratch each other’s backs. Be sure to check your requests regularly. You can choose to ignore a request if you really don’t want to recommend that person. 

Skill Endorsements

These are important for credibility for your skills. They are kind of like testimonials so ask your connections to endorse you and you can endorse them in return. The more you have the better!

Hashtags

On LinkedIn, you can follow certain hashtags that you are interested in.  If you are going to use your own hashtags remember to check and make sure it is not taking people to the wrong place. Remember, do not leave spaces in your hashtags and with LinkedIn, you can use capital letters. Using capitals does increase the readability of a word. It is always a good idea to keep up to date with trending hashtags. 

Here are some steps to get your LinkedIn profile up and running – give it a go

• Join and share https://www.facebook.com/groups/avoidtheWOFTAM/ 
• Set up LINKEDIN Profile 
• Set up your personal URL
• Sync email addresses to connect with friends 
• Make Connections with your immediate circle of friends, clients and colleagues
• Give and get endorsements (me pls)
• Give and get recommendations (me pls)· Research 10 x 3 hashtags (Trending, Popular, Niche) and record for your posts. 
• Follow relevant hashtags · Connect with Industry leaders. 
• 1/week Post relevant content, comment & share other posts, add more friends, stalk competitors and prospects, reply to messages, and check recommendations and skills.