Whether or not you’re in the midst of a job hunt, now is a great time to update your online presence by polishing your LinkedIn profile. The site recently offered an updated app for job seekers, and continues to be the top choice social media site to connect hiring managers and recruiters with applicants and job seekers.
In addition, you should be using LinkedIn because IT professionals are expected to have a higher degree of tech savvy and a polished online presence. It just makes sense, when you consider that more people will have the opportunity to see your LinkedIn page than your real resume.
These days, employers across industries expect applicants to use leverage technology to demonstrate their skills and communicate their brand – not using social media can make applicants seem out of date. Oftentimes, employers are also using social media to conduct informal background checks. That’s why you’ll want to maintain an updated site, even while you’re satisfied in your current position.
What’s the best way to start polishing your LinkedIn page? Upload a good quality, professional looking headshot. You don’t have to have a professional picture taken, though. A simple, close-up quality resolution picture will do just fine. Wear clothing that you’d wear to work. Don’t cut and paste a headshot from a social picture. People can tell when you reuse casual photos, and it just looks sloppy.
Then spend extra time polishing the summary section of your LinkedIn profile. You want to be concise, but careful to make it complete and comprehensive. Don’t wait to update it until you’re actively job searching, either. It’s all too easy to forget things when you wait too long. Updating your page regularly also helps to generate positive SEO rankings for your profile – a bonus if a recruiter is looking for potential candidates, or if other professionals are searching for your page to network.
Ideally, you should update your site whenever you successfully complete a project. One approach is to map out a timeline of professional development. Whenever you complete of a successful project, it’s also a good time to ask for letters of recommendation, testimonials, and endorsements to post. That way, you have them ready before you need them (during a job hunt).
Testimonials and letters are also important because potential employers are focused on good recommendations to find great people. The old maxim about networking is true: It really is about people you know. You never know who will is viewing your LinkedIn site, or what opportunities could come out of your online presence.
You can increase the value of your LinkedIn network by opening a Twitter account with links to your bio on the homepage. Be sure to follow industry leaders, and anyone who you think might be helpful to grow a solid professional network.
If you use Twitter to stay active, be sure to post helpful, professional content. Don’t forget to comment on other people’s posts, and share their items. That’s how social networks begin and can lead to ‘real life’ networking.
Be sure to also use the LinkedIn app to search for jobs, and learn more about how your network might connect to job positions you’re interested in. You can find more great ideas for using your LinkedIn site to job search in this recent article posted at the site.
Then don’t forget to connect with the Market Street Talent network on LinkedIn, and through our other social media channels on on Facebook, Google+, Twitter. We’ll be posting more useful ideas for IT candidates. We invite you to get in touch if there’s anything we can do for you!