How to Make Your LinkedIn Profile Stand Out?

LinkedIn is the professional platform where recruiters check profiles of candidates before hiring. Since not everyone has a LinkedIn profile those of you who do have an edge over the others. Use this opportunity and make such a profile that tempts the recruiters to know more about you. To make such an account you need,

• Good profile picture

We all know that one shouldn’t be judged based only on appearances. But merely knowing it doesn’t stop us from making snap judgments about people based on their caste, creed, color, race, language, sex and/or appearance! It matters all the more in a corporate world. You need to maintain a professional attitude everywhere. LinkedIn is not like other social media platforms. It is not Facebook. LinkedIn is a professional forum. You cannot put a casual candid selfie as your profile picture. Your photo reveals more information about you than you think. It should be a clear picture with subtle background and decent clothes that reflect professionalism.

• Customize your profile

Contrary to popular belief, throwing all the information about yourself isn’t going to impress recruiters. In a sea of profiles, they don’t have the time to read mundane details about your life. Keep the information precise. Include only relevant information that adds something to your profile and tells the viewer about the goal you are focused on.

• Remove the ‘people also viewed’ toggle

The ‘people also viewed’ toggle leads you to other similar profiles that might interest you and/or has been viewed frequently by others. This feature on your profile literally is an invitation for the recruiter to divert his or her attention away from you and check out your competition. This is something which you do not want and thankfully you can remove this feature from your profile by adjusting your settings.

• Change your URL

Each LinkedIn profile has it’s own URL which is by default a combination of your name and random numbers. You can change it and keep whichever  URL address you wish but remember to keep it simple and easy to remember and recognise.

• Be easily available

With so many people on LinkedIn it is not necessary that only your profile will show when someone looks you up. To make yourself more visible add relevant keywords in your profile so that when they search for them your profile too comes up. Make connections with the 1st, 2nd and 3rd degree connections features available on LinkedIn. Start making connections with people whom you know already, through work or otherwise.

• Get Recommendations

Getting a sure to set your profile apart from the rest. In your profile there will be an option named ‘ask recommendations’. Ask recommendations from your previous employers on what skill they liked the most in you. It will help other recruiters as it provides a proof of your abilities by other employers.

• Keep your profile up to date

Your resume and your LinkedIn profile are more or less the same as they provide similar information like your hobbies, interests, internships and previous work experiences. When you put the URL of your LinkedIn profile in your resume then do keep in mind to update the profile too with new information that you are providing in your resume because if someone looks up your profile and finds out a different version of you then you won’t be very much pleased.