As an experienced career coach and HR practitioner, I often have conversations with people in my network about the benefits of investing some time into your LinkedIn profile and activity. Often this is the product of a conversation that started along the lines of “Why would I bother spending time on LinkedIn? I’m not currently looking for a job.”
Read on to discover the 4 reasons why I think it is a valuable use of your time to put some effort into your presence and activity on LinkedIn, particularly if you are wanting to raise your profile within your industry.
Personal Branding
Often when you google your own name, your LinkedIn profile will be one of the first search results to appear. If it is out of date, or has a less than presentable photo, you are doing yourself a disservice. There are many reasons someone might search your name on the internet, including when they are looking to do business with you, are preparing for a meeting with you or wanting to book you as a speaker.
LinkedIn may even have replaced the business card when it comes to staying in touch with new business acquaintances. Rather than swapping cards, sending a personalised message inviting them to connect to stay in touch after a meeting is a more commonplace occurrence in the current business environment. This is particularly true due to so many meetings during the pandemic having been held virtually.
In a recent career coaching engagement, I had a discussion with a very senior educator who was keen to explore conference speaking opportunities. By spending time on LinkedIn demonstrating her subject matter expertise, she raised her profile gaining global reach and important connections. She is now fielding those speaking opportunities and enjoying the spoils of her efforts.
LinkedIn can be particularly useful at conferences, to research and connect with speakers and expand your relevant industry connections. Research and follow the conference hashtag to make sure you see all the updates in your news feed. Add thoughtful commentary where it is valuable, to posts from colleagues and continue to raise your profile.
Endorsements and Recommendations
Many internal recruiters will review a candidates LinkedIn profile when they are being considered for promotion. Having endorsements and recommendations from senior executives, key clients and suppliers add credibility and strength to your profile.
Networking
LinkedIn is a great way to stay in touch with former colleagues, clients, your business community and even competitors. By engaging on the posts of your connections you stay front of mind and relevant. Using the direct messaging feature is also useful. Note – do not use it to hard sell! It annoys your connections.
You can also consider joining relevant LinkedIn industry groups to swap advice, case studies and converse with other industry experts.
Industry Connections and News
By following your relevant industry hashtags on LinkedIn, you can ensure that articles and posts using these hashtags are front and centre of your news feed. This then allows you to comment on these posts and articles – highlighting your profile and value adding commentary for your connections to see. This helps raise your industry profile and to stay front of mind for your connections.
It is also useful to follow your business stakeholders, clients and suppliers to see their updates in your news feed. You stay apprised of the goings on and support their efforts online.
You can see there are many reasons why you would put time and effort into LinkedIn even when you are not currently open to or looking for a new role. Having an online profile is now an obvious part of doing business in a digital world. If you are new to LinkedIn, I encourage you to take a look at this starter guide from our colleagues at Think Bespoke.
Once you have taken the leap, reach out and connect with us here on LinkedIn. By following our Oxygen Recruitment and HR company page on LinkedIn, you will have taken your first step in following relevant industry pages!