It’s been almost two decades since LinkedIn entered the professional networking scene. I remember it as a novelty at the time, just another social networking site… a Facebook for professionals. These days, it’s become an industry standard, a real-time business card, and not only for professionals, but everyone. If you make it to the vacancy shortlist, employers will take a look at your profile. It can be the make or break of you getting to the next step. Or if you are already in business, it can show your leadership presence, and gain you more respect in whatever you do.
Helping us once again, we have Elena Mellara, who has been sharing valuable job-seeking tips with Delft Mama blog-readers. Read further to get an insight into the workings of LinkedIn and how to make it work for you.
Boosting your presence
Almost everyone can benefit from a boost to their LinkedIn presence. By pumping up your profile, you become more visible to recruiters, as well as potential customers.
It’s all about the algorithm
Did you know that LinkedIn works with a “behind the scenes” algorithm which boosts the profiles of professionals using the platform? The more you use LinkedIn, the more the algorithm will work in your favour. With that in mind, you want to be recognized by the algorithm as “the expert” in your specific field or business. It’s just a matter of knowing how to do it.
Identify, follow, and tell
The strategy is quite simple and includes only 3 steps: Identify, follow, and tell.
Step 1: Identify who your audience is and where they hang out on LinkedIn.
Step 2: Follow your audience. Join the groups they belong to. Check out the hashtags they use. Take some time and put yourself into their shoes. Ask yourself: Where would I go? What businesses or people would I follow?
And finally, Step 3: Tell. Comment on posts of the experts in your field. Use full sentences, not just a generic “good”, “awesome”, or “great”. Full sentences work in your favour, as the more you post like this, the more people will read your comments, and recognize you as an expert. If you want to take this further, start creating your own content. Write a post, an article, or even a short video. Think carefully about what you want to publish. Remember, you want to be seen as an expert, therefore your content needs to reflect this.
A little advice
Be patient. The boost does not happen overnight. It takes a while, depending on how much time and effort you put into it.
It can be time consuming, so focus your energy towards a specific audience, and make sure anything you post is well thought out.
And finally, ask your friends and colleagues to boost your profile by liking, commenting, and sharing your posts. This helps increase the size of your audience, and further triggers the algorithm.
When to post
As LinkedIn is a professional platform, it is most active during standard office hours. Mornings are always a good choice. Consider any time differences and that posts have the lifespan of about 2 hours. After that, it is considered obsolete.
Biography
Elena is an Italian Career Coach & Facilitator working in the Netherlands since 2008. She offers hands-on packages for mid to senior-level expat professionals who are looking for a job, thinking of a career shift, or seeking professional development. She is the founder of the boutique agency Melly Consulting with 20 years of experience in corporate Business to Business and Business to Consumer companies covering managerial roles.