How a LinkedIn profile can increase your exposure

LinkedIn is a social networking website just like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. However, unlike these three, LinkedIn is exclusively for people in professional occupations. Launched exactly 10 years ago, it is mainly used for professional networking. What makes this website huge is the number of users you can connect with if you’re looking for a job or if you’re selling products and services. Currently, there are more than 85 million users in more than 200 countries and territories and this number includes executives from Fortune 500 companies.

Individuals can use LinkedIn for professional networking, job searching, and basically, increasing exposure in the online arena. Companies use LinkedIn to recruit and provide information to prospective employees. As a member, you are able to search for jobs, join groups, network with other members, and research companies. It doesn’t matter if you’re a photographer, an eBook seller, a real estate agent, or if you sell gadgets, you can increase your and your business exposure through this website. Here’s how you can do it.

Make your profile keyword-friendly. Just like Google, LinkedIn uses an algorithm where it shows relevant searches for each keyword used on the search button. Every year, there are about one billion searches on this website. Although most of these are searches for particular companies and individuals, a great number are done just with the use of keywords. This is why it is important that you use keywords on your profile and these should range from broad keywords to targeted keywords. However, ensure that all the keywords you use are directly related to your business and that you place them in a variety of different places. Specific keywords should be used in your company name, headline, name, job title, and skills rank highest. Keywords should also appear in your job experience section.

Take advantage of LinkedIn’s Professional portfolio. The professional portfolio allows you to showcase professional data using rich visual content. It doesn’t matter what your company is all about or what type of job that you’re looking for; adding an interactive, rich media experience to your LinkedIn’s profile can help you leverage the power of imagery.
Use a professional picture. When companies or buyers search for your profile on LinkedIn, the first thing they want to see is your face as this gives them that trust factor. It gives them a guarantee and comfort that you’re real and people appreciate authenticity. As you’re using your LinkedIn profile to win business or improve your current employment position, it is important that your picture looks professional.

Add endorsements. Once your target audience finds your profile on LinkedIn, endorsements are one of the first things people look for, so it’s vital that you work to build these. Endorsements, although they are not important for the search feature, they add credibility to your profile. This gives your target audience an assurance that you are good on those skills that you have set.

Request for recommendations. Just like in the real world, people are more likely to do business with you if you were highly recommended by other people who have worked with you. Recommendations are basically mini testimonials from individuals that you’ve worked with before. They are another way to build and strengthen your credibility to your and your work so be sure to ask for them.

Link your company page to your current work information. Cross-promote yourself with your business and vice versa.

Grow your network. One of the common complaints I get from clients is that LinkedIn isn’t effective in increasing exposure online. Well, this is only true if your network is too small. If you want to maximize your potential in getting your profile seen, you need to grow your network by inviting hundreds and thousands of people.

Ignition Media fully understands how important social media marketing is in terms of website marketing and promotion. However, we also understand that promoting yourself, your business, and your website on different social media platforms can be a time-consuming exercise. For this reason, we offer robust, highly effective social media services to help you increase your exposure and drive targeted traffic to your website.

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