How To Build An All-Star LinkedIn Profile

“You don’t have the opportunity to make a first impression twice.” This is something our parents tell us when we’re kids, right? Or was that something Dumbo’s mom told him? In either scenario, the quote still stands. Whether it’s a first date, job interview or a recruiter looking at your LinkedIn profile, first impressions matter. In this article, I’ll cover some of the important steps that you can take to create an all-star LinkedIn profile.

You might ask why my advice matters to you – a fair question. I recruited for the first 3 years of my career by building and maintaining relationships with people just like you. I advised them on their resumes, interviews and how to stand out in a job market flooded with competition.

Be sure to have a profile photo and header image uploaded. You don’t need to go out and find a Groupon for professional headshots but be mindful to give yourself a profile photo that represents who you are. Same goes for a header image – I work within Recruitment Marketing, so my headers are always photos related to my organization, but you can put a header image of something you’re interested in. Remember, though, this isn’t Myspace or Facebook, so you can’t make your header some hilarious photo – find a balance of professionalism and your personality.

Your title is how people can identify what you do and what your role is. The standard format for your title is “[Current Job Title] At [Current Company].” Based on your industry and role, you can adjust that. For example: “Recruitment Brand Manager at Rock Central” is my standard title, but I edited it to read “Recruitment Marketing | Employer Brand | Talent Strategy” instead. This helps recruiters and other LinkedIn members identify what I do and what I’m interested in.

Remember how easy Cliffs Notes and SparkNotes made high school English class? You would “forget” to read the assigned chapter(s) in “The Great Gatsby” or “To Kill A Mockingbird” and just get quick summaries online. That’s what your LinkedIn summary is for – some quick hits and highlights of your overall career so that other LinkedIn members can scan through if they aren’t a first-degree connection. Make your summary digestible and to the point.

This is the main event. You have an average of 7 seconds to catch someone’s eye on LinkedIn. Members will decide your potential candidacy or connection worthiness based on job title, keywords in job duties and company history. Your LinkedIn profile is an online version of your resume. Add in keywords and job duty descriptors into these sections just as you would in your resume.

When you’re looking for a new restaurant or bar to visit, the typical pathway is to ask for a recommendation from someone you trust or go online and do some research to look for reviews and recommendations. The same idea applies to recommendations on LinkedIn. Now, this might not be the most vital part of your profile, but it can help you stand out among hundreds of other applicants and profiles.

Here’s a link with some templates on how to ask a leader, teammate or client for a recommendation.

This is easier said than done with how fast the world moves; put a calendar reminder to spend 30 – 45 minutes every few months to update your online profile. You must be your own best advocate and show your work. The longer time goes by in your role, the more you can forget how much you’ve done and learned. As a bonus, this can become a meditative process and be a reminder to your psyche of how much you’ve grown professionally and how far you’ve come in a short amount of time.

If you’ve got your LinkedIn profile polished, you’re ready to go get your dream job. Check out our opportunities at Rocket Careers!