Partner Article

7 ways to give your LinkedIn profile a professional makeover

At TEMP-TEAM we want to do our utmost to provide you with the best job hunting advice to help you find your perfect role.

We understand looking for the right job can be very difficult and extremely time consuming. One important tool to find your dream job is social media, and LinkedIn in particular is the best platform.

Here at Temp-Team our recruiters love LinkedIn and use it at least once a day to search for qualified and keen job seekers.

According to a recent survey from Jobvite, 94% of job recruiters tap into LinkedIn to find qualified candidates and 89% of all recruiters report having hired someone through it.

If you’re currently looking for employment then we recommend you dust down your LinkedIn profile, give it a professional makeover and show it (and your hireable self) to the world! Here are some tips on how to do this….

Be professional…

Don’t let the “social” in social media fool you, LinkedIn requires professionalism! Whilst other social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter encourage you to branch out to anyone and everyone, upload photographs from the weekend and share inappropriate and comical content, LinkedIn requires more of a discreet and professional approach. Be wary of what you share.

Profile image…

According to LinkedIn, people with a profile image are seven times more likely to be clicked through to than those without an image. So, this is your opportunity to look as smart as you can. Don’t upload an image of yourself wearing clothing you wouldn’t wear for work.

“About me” needs to be work related…

Personal branding is vital when on the job hunt. How you portray yourself is important to how others perceive you. Try to avoid telling your life story, and be specific on your achievements and goals – dating the same girl for over a year isn’t an achievement you should list!

List your skills…

Don’t be humble. This is your place to blow your own trumpet and show the world what you can do. LinkedIn is a great way to showcase your skills, and as you build connections, more people will endorse you for the ones you’re great at. This will show how recommended you are in the industry – which is fantastic for those looking to employ you!

List your recent experience & duties…

Make it easy for future employers to read through your job history. If you write reams of text, future employers looking at your profile will get disillusioned and leave. By listing your duties and your recent jobs in an organised and minimised way, they will be able to scan through your profile with ease, and spot relevant information.

Start to make some invaluable connections in your field…

It’s important not to simply connect with people for the sake of it. LinkedIn is a place to meet other professionals, and groups in particular are a great place to do this. If you search for the ones in your field, make sure you introduce yourself to other members. This will help build your credibility and reputation with those in your industry.

Change your headline…

Make sure you change your headline to state that you’re looking for work. If recruiters are looking for potential employees, like us, they’ll search for those on LinkedIn. By changing your headline to “seeking opportunities in engineering” for example, your name will appear on a list and you’ll more likely be considered.

By following these steps you will have truly spruced up your profile and improved your chances at finding that perfect job.

LinkedIn requires a lot of attention and updating, so make sure you stay on top of it and keep it looking in top shape - we’ll be keeping an eye out!

Related blogs:

TEMP-TEAM’s top ten traits of perfect employees: http://www.temp-team.co.uk/index.php?content=TEMP-TEAM%92S%20top%20ten%20traits%20of%20perfect%20employees

Approaching an interview in the right way: http://www.temp-team.co.uk/index.php?content=Approaching%20an%20interview%20the%20right%20way

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Temp-Team .