Have you ever looked at your executive LinkedIn profile and noticed a section or piece of information wasn’t there? You’re not alone. Like any social media platform, LinkedIn always makes changes to its website to enhance the user experience. Some changes may be minor like switching up the layout, while others may be more significant. When you’re actively searching for a job, it’s critical to keep your account updated as much as possible and ensure all the relevant information is present. You never know when a recruiter will be looking at your profile, so here’s what you should be aware of at all times.
View Your LinkedIn Profile Frequently
Most of the time LinkedIn won’t inform you ahead of time about changes being made, or even what changes will occur. This is why every LinkedIn profile writer suggests viewing your profile frequently and making mental notes about what was present yesterday and making sure it’s still there today. Sometimes the changes may be subtle, but if your SEO-optimized content has been removed or placed somewhere else, then your entire profile could lose some effectiveness.
Check Your Settings And Privacy Features
Any time you work on your LinkedIn profile development, it’s worth taking a peek at your settings and privacy features. It’s especially important to monitor them to make sure a box doesn’t get checked or unchecked when you don’t want it to. These features are always being changed with LinkedIn updates, so it may be beneficial to take screenshots when you have your setting how you want them, just to refer back to it periodically and ensure nothing has changed. You should always control what information people can and can’t see on your profile, and this is the place to do it.
Visit Help Pages or Groups if Needed
There may come a time when something on your executive LinkedIn profile looks different, but you just can’t put your finger on what it is. Some of the LinkedIn help pages may provide you with insight on what recent changes have been made to the platform. If not, then chances are someone has experienced a similar situation, which you can find out about in different groups. Many people learn about LinkedIn profile development changes from these groups, as well as learning how to fix any issues or what to look for. Professional Resume Services strongly endorses LinkedIn as being a valuable platform to use for your job search. Working with a LinkedIn profile writer can ensure all the information you need is present on your profile, as well as making it complement your actual resume. It’s always important to keep your LinkedIn profile up to date, and feel free to contact us at any time if you need any assistance in doing so.
Is Your LinkedIn Profile Ready for Today’s Job Search?
LinkedIn is a platform you can use for many different aspects of your career. One of the most important ways to use it is when you’re on the hunt for a new job. Whether you just created a new executive LinkedIn profile or you’ve had one for years, you need to make sure it’s updated and optimized for your job search. As much as your profile can help you, it can hurt you just as quickly if you don’t display the right information. Here are some tips to consider before you actively begin your job search.
Optimize Every Section For SEO
Recruiters and hiring managers have certain keywords and phrases they search for online. Knowing which words those are takes a little effort and research on your part, but you’ll have to do that anyway if you have a fully targeted resume. Any professional LinkedIn profile writer will suggest optimizing every section for SEO, since you don’t know which section a recruiter will place the most emphasis on. The more relevant keywords you have, the easier it will be for a recruiter to find you.
Balance Personal Branding With Hard Skills
Your executive LinkedIn profile is the perfect place to highlight your personal brand. Sometimes it’s not appropriate to demonstrate your personal brand in your resume, but LinkedIn can be used to build on the resume itself. You can still mention your qualifications and hard skills, while also showing who you are as a person and a professional. Having a balanced LinkedIn profile like this will help differentiate yourself and you’ll have a better chance of piquing the interest of recruiters or hiring managers.
Increase Quality Connections
Part of your LinkedIn profile development should be increasing the amount of quality connections you have. The more connections you have, the more credible you’ll seem. However, randomly asking people to connect with you won’t do any good. Quality connections can come from previous co-workers, classmates, people you’ve met at networking events or even people from common LinkedIn groups you’re involved with.
Be Active
Most recruiters will look at how active you are on LinkedIn and what your activity entails. Commenting in groups and sharing content are good examples of engaging activities. Not only do these activities demonstrate your interest in certain topics, but they also can show your expertise and leadership, depending on your interactions with the content. You don’t want to be overly active all the time, but commenting and engaging with a few pieces of content daily is just right. Professional Resume Services understands the importance of LinkedIn profile development in today’s job searching climate. In fact, many employers require applicants to include a link to their LinkedIn profile when they apply for a job, so it’s critical for you to have yours updated and optimized. We have a professional LinkedIn profile writer ready to assist you in this regard, so feel free to reach out to us if your profile is in need of a quality revamp.
How to Write and Get Great LinkedIn Recommendations
People have different opinions about LinkedIn recommendations. When you work with a LinkedIn profile development expert, they will likely tell you they are important to have from a quality standpoint rather than a quantity standpoint. Your executive LinkedIn profile should support your own personal brand in many different ways, and getting recommendations from your network can help. One tip to get the best recommendations is to write quality recommendations of your own. Here are some tips for doing both.
What to Include When Writing Recommendations
When you’re writing a LinkedIn recommendation for a connection, think about what you would want someone to say about you. Be specific when it comes to your experience with working with them, or how you know what they bring to the table. Grab the reader’s attention with the first sentence and be very clear as to why you think they will succeed in any given endeavor. And never hesitate to ask your connection what information they would like you to include in the recommendation as well, so it’s tailored appropriately.
Best Ways To Get LinkedIn Recommendations
Any LinkedIn profile development expert will say the best way to receive a recommendation is to give one yourself. People are more willing to write one if they receive one first, so go ahead and take the first step. Your executive LinkedIn profile includes a feature that allows you to ask for a recommendation as well. You can send a personalized message to your connection to request a recommendation, so take advantage of this feature. And be sure to send them a sincere thank you message when they give it to you. Or better yet, write one for them as well.
Don’t Just Hand Out or Accept All Recommendations
As we mentioned previously, quality is better than quantity when it comes to LinkedIn recommendations. LinkedIn gives you the opportunity to review your recommendations before they get posted on your profile. Don’t just accept every recommendation without reading them first. You want to make sure it matches your personal brand before accepting. On the other hand, you could harm your own reputation if you give out a recommendation every time you’re asked. Unless you worked closely with the person or know them very well, proceed with caution before writing one. Hiring managers and recruiters can tell a genuine recommendation from a fabricated one, so it’s not worth it just to make someone happy. Professional Resume Services is more than just a team of the best professional resume writers. We focus on many aspects of professional careers, from networking to relationship building to LinkedIn profile development and beyond. Being a well-rounded professional is difficult since there are so many aspects involved, but we are here to help. Feel free to reach out to us at any time if there’s anything we can assist with regarding your career aspirations.
Clean up Your LinkedIn Profile This Summer With These Tips!
While most companies are hiring professionals and executives throughout the year, the summer months tend to be a little slower. With people taking time off to go on vacation and spending time away from the office, the hiring process takes a little longer than usual. For job seekers, this is the perfect time to clean up your executive LinkedIn profile. Most people don’t spend enough time updating their profile, which could have a few downfalls. Here are some tips on how to clean up yours this summer.
Update Everything
Read your entire executive LinkedIn profile word-for-word and update anything that has changed. Chances are you’ll think about several skills or experiences you’ve developed or had since your last profile update. Having updated information about yourself is one of the keys to the best LinkedIn profile development.
Filter Through Your Endorsements
You may have gotten several LinkedIn endorsements from friends or family that simply aren’t relevant to executive jobs you’re looking for. The amount of endorsements you have isn’t nearly as important as the quality of the endorsements. Filter through all of them and remove any of the unimportant ones so a recruiter will see only the relevant endorsements.
Focus on Your Summary
The summary section is the place where you sell yourself to potential recruiters and connections. If you aren’t a strong writer, you can always reach out to a professional LinkedIn profile writer for assistance. The summary needs to be specific and straight to the point without a lot of fluff. Writing the best LinkedIn summary is an art, so seek help if you need it.
Keep Your Profile Straightforward
Your executive LinkedIn profile should be treated differently from your executive resume, but they do have some similarities. Don’t use a lot of filler words on your LinkedIn profile just to make it longer. Being clean and concise with your words will look more impressive to a recruiter than having to scroll down through blocks of text. If you’re actively looking for a job, make it clear. If you’re currently employed but keeping your options open, make that clear as well. Professional Resume Services is here to help you with your LinkedIn profile development this summer. Whether you need advice on tidying up your profile, or if you need a professional LinkedIn profile writer, feel free to reach out to us at any time.
The summer generally isn’t viewed as the best time of year to drum up new business or make new connections. With many people going on vacations and spending more time traveling, the networking events are much more rare during the summer. However, this presents a great opportunity for other avenues of networking that could prove to be even more valuable. The thing about personal branding for senior level managers is you can never stop improving your brand. Here are some reasons why the summer may be the best time for you to do so.
People Are Generally More Relaxed
Since many businesses hit their slower months during the summer, you’ll notice people are more relaxed than normal. This means they should be more willing to connect with you, whether it’s finally grabbing a cup of coffee or going to brunch. Taking a relaxed and casual approach when networking during the summer can improve personal branding for senior level managers more than you think.
Use Downtime to Improve Your LinkedIn Profile
Summer could also prove to be the best time to work on your executive LinkedIn profile. Companies may not be hiring much during the summer, but working on your LinkedIn profile development during the slow periods will help you be prepared when business starts ramping up again. This is also the perfect time to get your name out there by joining LinkedIn groups, reaching out directly to connections and sending out resumes. Utilize LinkedIn as much as possible now and you’ll reap the benefits later on.
Always Be Aware of Networking Opportunities
The summer months offer some of the most unique networking opportunities when compared to other times of the year. You don’t have to be dressed in professional attire in order to make a connection. Listen to conversations at the beach, at sporting events, kids events or anywhere else you may be. As much as people say they don’t want to think about work when they are at different places, many conversations will inevitably lead that way. You never want to miss the opportunity to work on personal branding for senior level managers. Professional Resume Services has plenty more networking tips like these to get you through the summer. Whether you need assistance with your LinkedIn profile development or identifying other networking opportunities, feel free to contact us at any time.
Some Important Things to Consider When Changing Careers
Most people have considered changing jobs or careers at least one time during their life, no matter how many years of experience they have. There are a wide variety of reasons why you may be looking for a career change. Money, time, stress and overall happiness are some of the main reasons people look for a change. But before you plunge into a different executive role at another company, consider these points.
1. Weigh the Long-Term vs. Short-Term Benefits
Sometimes you have to sit down and look at your executive experiences to see what you’ve accomplished in your current role. Look at where you started and where you are now. If you think you’ve reached the top at your current company, but want more, then another company could offer a better long-term solution. However, some of the short-term requirements may not be as attractive in a new role, such as increased travel or longer hours.
2. Look at the Pros and Cons of Each Career
Breaking out the pen and paper for creating your pros and cons on whether or not you want to change. You can do this before or after having your executive resume written, but most people do it afterward so they can generate more ideas. If you’re strongly considering a change, then the pros of a new career will likely be longer by default. However, focus more on the cons when you look at your current job and really think about how bad those cons really are. Sometimes you may overcook them just because of the frustrations of other aspects of the job as a whole.
3. Understand the Value of Your Network
It takes a good amount of time and effort to build a large executive LinkedIn profile with a lot of connections. Depending on how much work experience you have, it’s best not to drift too far away from your connections when choosing a new career. If you choose to do so, then you should always keep in touch with them in case the grass isn’t greener with your new chosen career.
4. Your Personal Feelings and Happiness
A career change is a huge decision. When you look at your executive resume bio and you aren’t happy with what you’ve done, it may be time for a change. Not even money can cover up unhappiness and negative feelings toward your job most of the time. If that unhappiness comes home with you at the end of the day, it’s time to seriously consider moving on from your current job. We know how difficult it is to even consider a career change. We are here to help you at any point in the process, so don’t hesitate to contact us.
Which Skills Are the Most Optimal for Any Job Search?
As an executive professional, you’ve undoubtedly picked up several skills throughout your career—so many, in fact, that you may not know where to start in listing them on your resume! However, if you’re looking for a new executive position, some skills are more beneficial to your hiring prospects than others. Here are a few skills that can help you with any job search.
1. Writing
You’re going to have to do some form of writing at just about any job you get. As a result, strong writing skills will benefit you no matter what job search route you take. If writing is your strong suit, you can showcase it on your executive LinkedIn profile by attaching some of your best reports to your page. Be sure to check that you aren’t bound by an NDAs before you do this, however; while you want to show off your strengths, you don’t want to divulge sensitive information in the process. To get around this, you can always draw up a mock report instead.
2. Project Management
If you’ve shown the ability to manage both large and small projects in the workforce, you’ll be putting yourself ahead of the game. The best resume writing services will ask you about your project management experience first because it’s a skill employers look at very seriously. Project management takes multitasking, the ability to rein others in and encourage teamwork to complete a task and much more. Listing this ability will prove you’re worth your salt as an executive.
3. Leadership
You will have a hard time finding an executive-level job if you don’t have any leadership experience. Employers want to hire someone who is independent and can help guide others on the team. If you’re able to display some examples on your executive LinkedIn profile, you’ll look impressive to hiring executives.
4. Advanced Office Management
A competent expert can ultimately help workflow improve the office by streamlining how the staff carries out their day-to-day activities. This skill ties in closely to leadership and project management, mentioned above. When you talk to a cover letter writing service, be sure and tell them what type of office skills you have so they can help you paint the best picture on your cover letter and resume. Anyone can say they have office skills, but giving concrete examples will make your experience stand out among the rest.
5. Multilingual
Speaking multiple languages fluently is great for business today. You may not have learned different languages in order to land your dream job, but it will definitely help you out in the long run. Companies looking to expand globally need multilingual employees and executives. Be sure to provide examples on your resume or cover letter. These are just some of the most optimal general skills to help with any job search. If you’re having a hard time coming up with your best skills, feel free to reach out to usand we can help you find your strengths.
Job interviews can be intimidating, no matter what level you are in your field. There’s a lot of pressure involved, as you’re faced with yet another situation where you have to make a positive impression on a prospective employer—with the added complication of having to speak practically on the fly. Unfortunately, it’s very easy to mess up under this situation. We’re here to inform you of some of the most common interview mistakes and how you can avoid them.
1. Revealing Too Much About Your Location
Remote work has yet to really catch on in today’s business climate. As such, the majority of employers are looking for someone who lives close enough to the company to commute on a regular basis. Needless to say, someone who lives too far away from headquarters to commute a reasonable distance or needs time to move across the country may not get chosen over the other candidates. It’s never worth it to lie on your resume about where you live just so you can land a certain position, nor is it worth it to try to haggle your way into a job by admitting you live too far away but your skills are so valuable they should tweak the position’s requirements just for you. Employers can see your location on your executive LinkedIn profile, anyway.
2. Lack of Post-Interview Communication
Your correspondence with the interviewer never ends once the interview is over, even if you don’t get the job. It’s important to consider the time the company has already invested in you, and respond accordingly. Be sure to send along a formal word of thanks to your prospective employer for the time they’ve spent on the hiring process, if only for the sake of maintaining a good impression. We know you’re probably extremely busy, b you’ll want to take the time to sit down and follow up with the company after you interview. Failing to give your thanks may leave a bad taste in an employer’s mouth, giving them pause as to whether to keep in further touch with you. As you may know, people in your industry talk, and that bad taste may spread to other executives and companies in your field. You can always turn to a cover letter writing service for help with your thank you letter, if you aren’t sure what to say. Your efforts will be appreciated, even if you don’t land the job! The company may keep you in mind when it comes to other openings, or pass your information along to another company who could use someone with your credentials.
3. Excessive Jargon
It’s a well-known fact if you’re going to be involved within a specific industry you have to know what you’re talking about. Some jargon is just going to be part of daily business conversation. However, you shouldn’t use so much industry speak that those around you will need a dictionary to figure out what you’re talking about! There’s such a thing as too much specialized language, even among people in your industry. While your coworkers may be able to understand what you’re saying, it’s possible that your interviewer works in another area in the company (like human resources) and isn’t as fluent. You can rely on the best resume writing services to help you tweak your resume and cover letter so that anyone in the company can understand what skills you can add to their executive team. There are many other ways you can help you land and succeed during your first interview. You can always turn to us for help with this or any other step of your job hunting process. And as always, reach out to us any time for job hunting assistance, executive LinkedIn profile assistance or answers to your questions!
