In today’s working world, employers are putting aside the traditional resume and are instead looking up job applicants on LinkedIn profiles. Employers are even turning away from Facebook to discover more about their interested applicants. LinkedIn is a forum where professionals connect, interact and share interests. As a college student, it’s absolutely imperative to create a LinkedIn profile that expresses who you are and what experiences you’ve had. Here are a few tips for LinkedIn success:
1. Get personal!
Talk about your travel experiences, hobbies and activities that you enjoy to do. Show employers and other connections how outgoing, globally aware and engaging you are. Employers want to hire someone who is positive and full of life.
2. Get to know people you don’t know.
If you rely on the people you know and only make connections with them, it will be harder to find a job. By the time you graduate college, you should have at least 200 connections. Connect with others who share similar interests and can help you build relationships within your career field.
3. Learn to Keyword your LinkedIn.
Adding keywords to your profile’s headline, summary and descriptions will help other people on LinkedIn recognize you. This makes it easier for you to find other people, and for others to find you. The easiest keywords to recognize are your various locations, job titles and companies you have experience with.
4. Don’t stress over not having tons of endorsements.
When someone endorses you for a skill, it’s nice to show employers that you are good at that skill, yet you should have key people that attest to why you are a hard worker. Have other connections on LinkedIn write recommendations for you.
5. Join groups.
By joining groups, you can talk and network with other people who are interested in the same fields as you. There are tons of American University groups you can join and interact with current students, professors and alumni. If you’re a member of a group, you can message anyone in that group, opening up great opportunities to make connections.
6. Change your URL so that there are no miscellaneous numbers.
When you make your LinkedIn, you have your own personal URL. Make sure that you delete those random numbers and put something that is personal to your name. You can change this below your introduction, right next to the “Contact Info” button.
7. Brag in your descriptions.
This is a great way to show people how invested you are in your activities and past jobs. Make sure to either bullet or fully describe your responsibilities. Use active tense, not past tense. Also, use first person! Be personal with the people that are viewing your profile. Speaking in first person will make you seem more upbeat and open. Make sure when you are describing your responsibilities, give love to the numbers. The utilization of numbers will show employers that you are responsible and can manage a large workload.
8. Embed work samples.
If you are writing samples for newspapers or producing content such as packages, press releases or your own blogs, embed those files or links in your descriptions. This gives employers and other connections a direct view into your work.
Follow these steps and you are guaranteed to have an impressive LinkedIn profile!