How to Leverage LinkedIn for Personal Branding

LinkedIn is my favourite social media platform for making meaningful industry connections and showcasing my professional accomplishments. It is a great medium to establish professional credibility and demonstrate your expertise. A well-crafted and optimised LinkedIn profile can help in connect with like-minded people and also land you your dream job. However, due to a lack of vision and strategy, sometimes career aspirants fail to create their mark on the platform. In today’s competitive world, having a robust online reputation is essential to attract opportunities for long-term sustainable professional/business growth.

Here are some common reasons why people go unnoticed on LinkedIn.

• Mundane Profile: A profile without a professional photo, designation, or basic career details fails to create an impression on viewers. Vague terms like “Marketing Professional”, “Sales executive”, and “Finance professional”, are not useful if you are looking to tap into specific industry circles. Not keeping a profile updated is one of the reasons why people fail to get visibility on LinkedIn.
• Inactivity: Having a LinkedIn profile is not enough and one has to actively engage in online conversation about relevant topics. However, it is not a platform to engage in conflicts or express strong opinions on politically, socially and culturally sensitive topics. Be mindful about what you post and respect the boundaries of online engagement.
• Limited Network: LinkedIn is a professional networking platform and hence it is important to actively look for relevant connections. Sometimes people send random connection requests and get tagged as spam. Be clear about your objective of connecting with fellow professionals. It is appropriate to send a connection request with a note explaining your intention to be part of their network.

Generating traction on LinkedIn is not easy and requires consistent efforts. It is important to know the algorithms and types of topics that get responses on this platform. Every industry has trendy topics which lead to online conversations. Here are ways to shine in a professional network with a proper strategy in place.

Build a killer profile: Your profile is your first impression and hence, invest time and resources to build a profile that reflects your brand. Add a professionally-clicked profile photo that covers about 60% face. Also leverage banner space as an elevator pitch to demonstrate your expertise, skills, career experience etc. The profile heading should sum up your professional experience rather current position. Your profile bio should include a career summary, skillsets and expertise highlighting how you can help businesses resolve their issues. Use short paragraphs, bullet points, keywords and a call to action to make a powerful personal profile. You may use keywords, and emojis to give a creative dash to your profile.

Active posting: Be consistent with posting content on LinkedIn. You may use different formats of content such as text, infographics, videos, listicles, polls etc. Having a topic bank and content calendar can help in bringing discipline and consistency. Your posts may not get visibility initially but with regular efforts, you may witness gradual engagement on your posts. Another way to participate in online conversations is to join relevant industry groups and forums.

Smart networking: Be clear about the kind of people you wish to connect with on LinkedIn. Avoid sending random connection requests, instead study profiles of people who are relevant to you. Be respectful and mindful about the personal space of others and do not barge them with reminders. Engaging in their posts is another way to get notice and increase the chance of acceptance of your connection request.

Demonstrate your value/skills: Regularly post about your career updates, accomplishments, learnings etc. to demonstrate your learner’s attitude and the efforts you take to stay relevant in the industry. Offer expertise and knowledge in relevant forums to build trust and credibility among peers. This is an effective way to attract the attention of industry leaders and recruiters.

Personal branding is a continuous process which requires discipline, consistency, and smart use of technology. Once one masters the skill, one can witness accelerated career growth.

The views and opinions published here belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the publisher.

Priyanka Pugaokar

Priyanka Pugaokar is a communications professional with expertise in internal and external communication, crisis communications, content generation and media relations. She holds over ten years of combined experience in communications and business journalism. She is currently associated with Rashi Peripherals Limited as Corporate Communications Manager and leads several strategic projects. She is an avid travel explorer. A lifelong learner, she holds interest in yoga, naturopathy, energy healing and crystallography.