LinkedIn, the online professional networking tool, was a topic of two workshops I gave at the American Architectural Manufacturers Association 2017 National Fall Conference. Even if you’re not currently job-hunting, you should care about the state of your current LinkedIn profile. It’s always good to see what’s happening in your industry, how companies and roles are changing and who in your network might just be perfect for an opportunity on your radar.
If you’re looking for a new position, it’s even more important that a profile is up-to-date. A 2016 Jobvite survey found that 87 percent of recruiters use LinkedIn to vet candidates.
You are your own brand, and you need to be your biggest advocate for that brand.
So, make sure you have a good profile picture (there are plenty of examples of bad ones), and include your volunteer work and other interests on your profile. You also need to review your LinkedIn account settings that allow users to view the profile pages of others without detection. Keep competitors from poaching your client lists.
Keep your account safe. Change your password every few months and opt into two-step verification to add an additional level of user authentication.
With two-step verification, LinkedIn will text you a security code to enter along with your password. This is also a great suggestion for you to use with platforms like Gmail, Facebook, Twitter and other tools.
AAMA’s next social media workshop will focus on Twitter, which will take place at the AAMA Annual Conference in 2018. Hope to see you there!
