Online networking & communication took center stage when the entire world was devastated by COVID. This new normal has entirely changed the game of networking & communication. As such staying active & connected on LinkedIn is going to stay. With uncertainty looming around & professionals & job seekers do not know what future holds for them, building & maintaining an active personal & professional network is the best foot forward to future proof your career.
The next few months are very crucial, before in-person meetings starts happening again, to be more proactive & creative on social media & further build our digital networking. Sharing knowledge & keeping the communication flow can make us emerge from this crisis is a better way.
LinkedIn is the most active platform with 700 million plus active users worldwide. Besides, it is also one of the most prevalent publishing platforms with huge content being created & peer-reviewed by its members. If you do not have an active LinkedIn profile & are not indulging in regular networking, interaction & discussion, you are considered a ghost- you do not exist for employers & companies.
Following paragraphs discuss how you can build your LinkedIn profile to reap maximum benefits:
- Building your personal brand: Professionals generally miss out on keeping their LinkedIn profile up to date including all professional accomplishments, acquired skills & summary. Just filling up a basic profile is not enough. Having an attractive & credible headline, a clearly articulated summary, 100% complete profile & keywords with give your profile a unique & competitive edge & encourage other professionals, headhunters & employers to connect & network with you. Focusing on your achievements including links to papers you have written, presentations, newspaper/article mention &/or awards/ accolades you have received, rather than just summarizing your career history goes a long way in building your personal brand. Sharing your views & expertise on a particular topic /industry through blogs/articles can help you expand your professional network.
- Actively engage with other professionals & discussion groups: Scout for professionally run discussion groups wherein you can engage with other professionals. You can subscribe to both generic groups & specialist sharing groups such as those run by industry or federation. Find out professionals in your network- may be in your current or previous organization & invite them to join groups you find worthwhile & educative.
- Knowledge Sharing: Network effects come into play specifically when you are engaging on LinkedIn. Share your knowledge, insights & expertise as well as interesting & relevant posts from your connections. These can also be related to a relevant job opportunity that someone in your network may be interested in. You can in fact tag them or send them a personalized message regarding an opportunity you came across. This is a good way to build credibility & further augment your personal brand.
- Portray yourself as a thought leader: Professionals who benefit from LinkedIn are those who are open to offer their mentorship & guidance & share interesting information & ideas. Just by guiding people towards relevant information, content, posts & articles is enough to showcase your expertise in a particular industry & thought leadership. Besides, you can publish your own article on LinkedIn along with relevant hashtags so that it reaches people who are interested in particular topics you have published.
If you are looking to further augment your LinkedIn profile & showcase yourself as a thought leader, we can help you with your LinkedIn profile to empower you to stand out among the huge LinkedIn member base. As the founder & executive resume coach at Careercle offering executive resume writing & LinkedIn profile writing services for modern day senior professionals, executives & C-suites, I would be happy to chat to help you meet your career goals. Sign up here: https://thesushantkumar.com/resume-writing/
