What is your best tip for a creative way to stand out on LinkedIn?
To help you stand out on LinkedIn, we asked CEOs and social media managers this question for their best ideas. From correlating your banner picture to your profile picture to being your unique self, there are several creative tactics you can try to help you stand out on LinkedIn.
Here are 12 creative ways to stand out on LinkedIn:
- Correlate Your Banner Picture To Your Profile Picture
- Complete The Summary Section
- Keep Work History and Role Descriptions Easy To Follow
- Ask for Recommendations
- Promote Others’ Content
- Add Industry Terminology
- Post Regularly in The Feed To Boost Visibility
- Tell a Unique Story in Your Bio
- Use Visuals
- Be Creative With a Concise and Commanding Headline
- Create a Personal URL
- Be Your Unique Self
Correlate Your Banner Picture To Your Profile Picture
Many people understand the importance of having a professional profile picture, however, when one clicks on their profile their banner picture generally does not correlate to the profile picture. This is often a missed opportunity to really get your LinkedIn profile recognized. Make sure the Banner Picture matches in terms of color schemes with your profile picture, to provide a unified overall feel. This really makes you stand out from the crowd.
Mogale Modisane, Power Tools Blog
Complete The Summary Section
I have noticed that many people skip the summary area, but it’s a terrific place for you to tell your own story, so don’t use it to simply list work responsibilities. Your summary should be brief and to the point, describing your previous experiences and present job responsibilities. Highlight specific accomplishments that you are proud of that indicate your abilities or progress toward your goals. It’s best to think of it as your elevator pitch. You just have 30 seconds to get your main points across. You may also show off your personality more on LinkedIn, so don’t be concerned about it being too official.
Gerrid Smith, Joy Organics
Keep Work History and Role Descriptions Easy To Follow
A strong resume is one that shows the strength of one’s career, such as how long you’ve stayed at companies, your list of duties for each job, etc. LinkedIn should work like a strong resume and a strong social media profile, showing strength of a resume in a clear format. Recruiters and potential bosses want to be able to look through at a glance and know who you are and how effective you’ll be. A messy profile suggests a messy work ethic, so keep it clean, and be concise when describing your roles to make them easy to follow.
Brett Estep, Insured Nomads
Ask for Recommendations
Ask your connections for recommendations to strengthen your profile. These recommendations from colleagues allow hiring managers to understand who you are as a worker, and your team members can vouch for you. It helps them determine if the skills and experience is a good fit for any open positions, and they’ll be eager to reach out and get in contact after seeing the messages. Team members can highlight your leadership or communication skills, for example. Not only does this strengthen your profile, but also leaders recruiters to your page and move forward with next steps.
Sara Adam Slywka, Nestig
Promote Others’ Content
Share your connections’ content while including a thoughtful response in the post to acknowledge what others are putting out into the world. Shifting the focus from ‘me’ to ‘we’ helps to open others up to more meaningful conversations; most people want to feel seen so tipping the proverbial hat publicly often has a greater impact than if solely sharing about oneself on Linkedin. Posts from your network about achievements, new roles, articles, interviews, and the like are simple examples of what is already being shown in your feed that you can easily reflect on and share, tagging the original poster or connections you feel the content may benefit. Social media is made for fostering connection, so taking the opportunity to spotlight others’ work and commentary helps validate their unique take while naturally allowing you to stand out as a supportive, engaged connection.
Tommy Chang, Homelister
Add Industry Terminology
Add industry terminology to your intro. According to LinkedIn data, listing industry information leads to up to 9% more profile views and can help you get discovered up to 38% more in recruiter searches. Making the best out of your LinkedIn is much easier when you know who you are trying to attract. Know your industry and know what types of jobs you want to attract. That way you can craft your header and about me section with Keywords that match your industry.
John Cheng, Baotris
Post Regularly in The Feed To Boost Visibility
Posting engaging content in the feed is a great way to gain exposure for your business or personal LinkedIn. If your posts are truly interesting, your connections will like and comment, which will increase the chances of your content being viewed by more users. Even if it just means sharing progress about a current or future project, every little bit helps.
Gerald Lombardo, The Word Counter
Tell a Unique Story in Your Bio
You really stand out from the crowd if you take advantage of your bio section and have fun with it. Tell a story that sets you apart from the others, that gives you a unique point of view of the work or of life, that shares your sense of humor or creativity. Your resume is already listed on LinkedIn, so make your bio be the place where your personality and uniqueness shine
Staci Brinkman, Sips by
Use Visuals
Why not use visuals? Honestly, when I’m drawn to a LinkedIn page it’s because there are compelling visuals. When someone adds photos to their work experience or summary section they’re creating a more in-depth and unique introduction for themselves. They automatically stand out with visual components because it adds another aspect to their profile. And, as a potential employer, I’m able to see how they might be a good fit for our team both energetically and skillset-wise. Take advantage of the visual component of LinkedIn to stand out, and don’t underestimate how powerful it is to combine images with the written word.
Tony Staehelin, Benable
Be Creative With a Concise and Commanding Headline
Take advantage of the headline. The headline’s right below the headshot and it’s the perfect way to draw in a potential employer. It’s what I immediately look at. To me, a headline is your chance to be creative, concise, and commanding. It tells me if you’d be a good member of our team, what your personality is like, and what skills you have – all in one little sentence. Don’t be afraid to use your headline to show off and attract attention, its whole point is to intrigue someone to read further… so have fun with it!
Karim Hachem, Sunshine79
Create a Personal URL
Create a personal URL! A lot of people don’t think about it when they are editing their profile, but your URL is the first thing a recruiter sees on your LinkedIn when you attach it to your CV. A personal URL with your name on it instead of a series of random letters and numbers is a quick and easy way to seem more professional. It also tells people you care about details. A personal URL is easier to share, recognize and find. If you are in a creative industry you can even add some flare to it. It’s really easy and it has a ton of advantages.
Soji James, 1AND1 Life
Be Your Unique Self
Be yourself. It’s easier said than done. How can we stand out if everyone is trying to stand out? Aren’t we all the same? The straightforward answer is: Nope. You are unique. There hasn’t been anyone quite like you and there won’t ever be anyone quite like you, so use it for your advantage. Have you ever asked yourself, “How can I be successful even though [fill in the blank]?” Even though I’m a woman, even though I’m younger than others, or even though I am queer? I’ll treat you to a little secret.
Let’s flip this question and replace your “even though” with a juicy “because”: “How can I be successful because [fill in the blank]?” Because I’m not a native English speaker, because I am Asian, or because I’m new to this industry? All of a sudden your story becomes your superpower and your authenticity becomes the fuel of your brand.
Find your “even-thoughs”. Flip them to a juicy “because”. Watch your personal brand unfold, as unique and powerful as you are.
Manuel Schlothauer, HeyManuel.com
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