Level Up Your LinkedIn: How to Use LinkedIn to Build a Personal Brand
Your linking is underleveraged.
Sure, LinkedIn may be the trusty toothbrush of social networking, getting biz done day after day without a lot of pizzazz. And while we like scrolling Instagram must-buys and memes as much as anybody, it’s not the place to master the universe. It took a recent session with LinkedIn devotee and copywriter Amy McGlinn to help us rediscover that platform’s personal brand-building magic. Her simple pitch? It gets results.
Level-up your Linkedin.
Maybe, like us, it’s taken you a while to get the virtual memo—but we’re here to tell you that LinkedIn is all grown up now, too. Now it’s a much more dynamic and engaging place to be, with stories and carousels bringing some much-needed verve and variability so you can content-create and share to your heart’s content. Suddenly, you’re your own brand ambassador (brag away).
Pick your pick-up line.
And by this, we mean your headline. Like us, you may have just plugged in your job title and called it a day. If so, you’re sleeping on a 120-character treasure trove (the app gives you even more characters). Amy schooled us on its algorithmic significance—read: people will find you more easily—and encourages you to fill that space to the brim with keywords. Which words? Try looking at other profiles of people who do what you do (or aim to do), and track the keywords that emerge. Like any good pick-up line, your headline should be more directed to your target audience than it is about you. For example, what problem do you solve for them?
Make it all about about.
Amy suggests approaching your About section like a newspaper, with an above-the-fold section and a below-the-fold section (which is separated and signaled by “see more”). You have 280 characters above the fold, so choose them wisely. Tell your succinct story, again using keywords—literally put your best stuff here, in case no one reads any further. Below the fold, Amy suggests including your email and contact information just to keep it top of mind. And, we can’t emphasize this enough, boldly use bold type and make it skimmable. Formatting’s your friend here.
Show your work.
Another prime piece of real estate you’re probably wasting? Your banner image. Reimagine how you could immediately display your authority through images: think pictures of your work, an article or speaking event you’re proud of, reference to a website or blog (while you can’t embed a link in the image, you can still put contact information in your banner). And think about changing it frequently. Your “role” is another keyword hotspot at your service, where you can tease out a progression of roles if you have stayed at one company. And, did you know: You can even drop links and photos up in there (a definite “do”).
