Every week, I receive calls from professionals and executives who, in the midst of their busy lives, have either spotted a great opportunity, or who have received a call from a recruiter about a choice job.
No matter how it happens, the scenario is the same: they’ve been too preoccupied, too unsure of their value proposition, or just too confused to do more than leave a bare-bones LinkedIn Profile lingering online – and now they’re paying the price by rushing through a quick update.
If this half-hearted effort sounds familiar, consider that you’re not only neglecting an important piece of brand messaging by ignoring your LinkedIn Profile, but also leaving your digital identity to chance (not a good move in today’s competitive market!).
3 Reasons To Update Your LinkedIn Profile
Need motivation to update your LinkedIn Profile? Here are three compelling reasons to stop procrastinating, along with strategies to help maximize your efforts almost immediately:
1. No One At Work Will Know You’re Looking Elsewhere
Updating your LinkedIn Profile regularly is one of the best ways to throw
your boss and colleagues off track. By keeping the information current and even somewhat promotional, you won’t have to worry about hiding your tracks (the way
job seekers often do when they add a sudden surge of information).
But what if you’ve not started these LinkedIn updates yet? Won’t your team or co-workers notice new changes? They might, but there’s no law that says you have to add all of your relevant data on LinkedIn at once.
Start by adding a new paragraph under each job that describes your achievements. Then, a few days (or weeks) later, expand your Summary section. Add a new word or two to your Headline that represents your career level and goals. Keep updating your LinkedIn Profile until every visitor sees a consistent, well-documented story.
This slow-but-sure pace of updating your LinkedIn Profile will allow you to both populate it fully, and also watch your LinkedIn traffic to see the difference in results.
2. More Content On Your LinkedIn Profile Will Draw Better Visitors
Like a search engine, LinkedIn has an internal search algorithm that allows anyone to find you based on the terms you add to your Profile. However, most people don’t add enough data to be found on more than a few basic terms.
To change this dynamic, you’ll need to get serious about LinkedIn SEO strategy – the kind used by professional
LinkedIn Profile writers.
The easiest way to do this is by looking around at job postings that represent your ideal role. Pull out the skill sets and job titles that appear most often, and you’ll have a solid set of keywords to add in your LinkedIn Profile.
Where should you add these keywords? Your Headline and Job Titles will carry the most weight in LinkedIn’s indexing scheme, but you can also update your LinkedIn Profile to use these terms in your Summary, Experience, Skills & Expertise, Interests, and Projects. In fact, they’ll count nearly everywhere except the Contact section.
Still stumped for keyword ideas? Conduct some competitive intelligence by taking note of Profiles for LinkedIn users who already hold your dream job. You’ll quickly see some commonly used job titles and competencies that could make sense for your own LinkedIn Profile.
3. Recruiters Will Find It Easier To Source And Approach You
With recruiting activity on LinkedIn at an already hectic pace (and 93% of recruiters using the site, according to a
recent study cited by Forbes), it’s the place to be seen and courted.
Therefore, if your LinkedIn Profile looks like a wasteland of information, you’re missing out on the most obvious place to market yourself.
Recruiters spend considerable time and fees on high-end LinkedIn memberships, allowing them to scour the site for talent. Make it easier for them by including a robust set of skills, projects, job goals, and competencies in your LinkedIn Profile as a serious keyword strategy, increasing your ability to pop up in searches.
By doing this, you’ll also project a more welcoming demeanor, and are more likely to be contacted for an opportunity that fits your goals.
In summary, don’t expect your LinkedIn Profile to work for you unless you spend time getting it on top shape! By updating it now, you’ll be ready to not only pursue a great job, but could also be contacted by
employers seeking the ideal candidate.
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