An Entrepreneurs Guide to Make Your LinkedIn Profile Unique

An Entrepreneurs Guide to Make Your LinkedIn Profile Unique

LinkedIn is the perfect platform to use for networking, whether you are looking to grow your business or you are on the hunt for a new job! LinkedIn is different than other social networks because it is the only social network designed strictly for professional networking. It now hosts just shy of one billion users, so it’s important to make your profile unique enough to stand out.

How is this done, you ask? I can answer this question with one word – branding. The goal is to create a profile that shows your exclusive personal brand. From providing a professional photo to curating informative content, we have three ways to catch the eye of future business associates.

The Use of Photos in Your LinkedIn Profile

Did you know that LinkedIn gives you the opportunity to add photos to your profile in four different ways?

Let’s start with the most obvious, your profile photo. Though posting a profile picture can be a taboo concept, I want you to take a minute to think about a time with you clicked through profiles on LinkedIn or any social media platform. Did the individuals you came across have a photo? If a profile you viewed did not have a photo, were you inclined to pursue networking with them? Probably not. Branding is about creating an emotional connection, and photos are a surefire way to do this. As you choose a photo, make sure it is professional. Photos that you post on other social media platforms may not provide the professional look you should be aiming for on LinkedIn.

Next, I’d like to encourage you to have a banner photo. Your banner photo will be the image that shows up behind your photo. Updating your banner photo is just one more way to help draw attention to your profile and encourage your viewers to continue reading. For your banner photo, I would suggest using a photo of the city you’re in or a building such as your place of business. I would not recommend using a family photo or even a photo with individuals in it.

Another way to add eye-catching images to your LinkedIn profile is to upload work products such as PDFs. This can not just provide a pretty image to break up the text on your profile, but it also shows what type of work you are capable of.

The last way to put photos on your LinkedIn profile is by sharing articles. The main image that appears in your article will then be viewed from your profile. With that said, choose articles you share wisely. You want them to best represent your LinkedIn brand.

LinkedIn gives you the opportunity to not only have photos on your profile but add Alt Text to the images that are posted. Alternative text is meant to help Google understand what the image means because even though Google is all-knowing in many ways, it cannot understand an image without a little help. This gives your profile, and those images a chance to rank in Google Search Engine Result Pages (SERPs).

Make Your Headline as Unique as You

The second way to make your profile stand-out is to create an eye-catching headline. A headline is located at the top of your profile just under your name. LinkedIn provides you with 120 characters to work with. Consider your headline a tiny billboard that serves as an opportunity to intrigue your network.

Example: Digital advertiser helping clients create killer branding strategies.

This headline not only tells the audience what this individual does but also what they bring to the table. As you craft, this section of your profile, make sure to use keywords that are related to your niche or service to help you capture the attention of other professionals.

Shine Through Your Professional Summary

The last way I suggest that you make your profile unique is by crafting an interesting summary. Your summary is one of the most important tools for advancing your career because it is the first impression one is given about you upon clicking on your profile, and it’s the place where you can define your career in your own words. Make sure to start your summary with a hook so that your audience will want to click the option to read more.

In the summary section of your profile, you are given 2,000 characters to use, though we only recommend using around 1,000 because people have short attention spans. Please note, in this section keywords are crucial. Individuals can find your profile easily by typing in keywords into the search function. Be entertaining, quirky and intriguing. Just make sure your summary best represents you and the service you bring to the table.

Example: I love selling brands. I hate selling myself. So here are four quick things about me and my work. In, out, nobody gets hurt.

  1. I put the customer first in everything I do. I not only seek out fantastic companies to partner with, but I excel in helping them develop a brand to take their business to the next level.
  2. I’m a social media junkie with over 8,000 Instagram followers. I love EVERYTHING about the web!
  3. I am constantly learning because I never settle. Albert Einstein said, “Education is what remains after one has forgotten what one has learned in school.” Seeing as I am not a new grad, this remains my outlook on both success and my career.
  4. I’m a data-driven and an insightful (wannabe) Google Master who is passionate about how proper Google Analytics and Search Engine Optimization can help companies grow.

When I’m not at the office, you can find me parenting three wonderful kiddos. With that said, at the core, I am just a mom. I believe in my company, colleagues, and team, just like I believe in my children. I have faith in the goals we have for success, and like when parenting, I bend over backward for those I work for in order to make dreams a reality.

If you want to chat about how to use social media to help grow your personal brand or business we would love to get in touch!

When you use the techniques found in this article to create a truly unique LinkedIn profile, you are helping to differentiate yourself from the rest. We understand that creating an exceptional profile may seem like a daunting task and you find yourself with just that thought, talk to us! Our experts would love to help you raise your LinkedIn bar, and take your profile to the next level!