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.
Asking for advice when you’re struggling with making a decision can be valuable. However, when it comes to getting career advice, you have to be careful who you’re listening to. Most people you ask won’t intentionally give you bad advice, but it also may not be very valuable to you. The best executive resume services will typically offer different bits of information than you would receive from family, friends, co-workers or anyone else. Here’s how to know if you’re listening to bad advice and what to do instead of following it.
Set Realistic Expectations
One of the most vague things anyone can tell you is the ability to be anything you want to be. Better career advice is to take a look at your skills and desires and set a more realistic path for success. It’s never a bad thing to dream about being at a certain level in your profession, but you can’t overlook the work it takes to get to that point. Start by working on your c-level personal branding and achieving realistic expectations before reaching for the pinnacle of your profession.
Don’t Choose A Career Based On Money
You may have also heard to choose a career based on the salary if you aren’t sure exactly what you want to do. This may be great for a couple of years, but it will be short-lived excitement if you don’t like going to your job every day. Instead, focus on long-term happiness by looking at the values a company offers, the culture within the organization, the opportunity for advancement and growth and more. Believe it or not, the people who are motivated solely by money are typically the people who aren’t happy with their jobs and overall lifestyle, with some exceptions, of course.
Choose Your Network Wisely
Take a look at your LinkedIn profile and see how many connections you have. Many experts tell people to get as many LinkedIn connections as they can, because you never know who you will cross paths with. However, the quality of your connections is typically much more valuable than the quantity. Having a dozen or so quality connections on your LinkedIn profile will be more beneficial to you than having hundreds of connections you don’t even know personally.
Patience Usually Won’t Move Your Career Forward
There’s a time and place to be patient in your career. Too many times you see people getting passed up for advancement by people who were more aggressive. There was a time when the duration of your tenure with an organization played a factor in promotion opportunities. However, the times have changed and tenure isn’t quite as important. It’s more important to step up and ask for more responsibilities, demonstrate your leadership qualities and make it known you want to move forward in your career. You’ll likely have much better results compared to being patient and waiting your turn. Professional Resume Services provides the best executive resume services tailored to your specific needs and desires. We are always willing to offer career advice based on our years of experience, but will never provide advice to people who don’t want to hear it. Our goal is to help you find the job and career you desire, so feel free to contact us at any time when you need us.
With the busy lives everyone has, it’s easy to lose touch with people in your network over the course of months or years. Because of this, many people think it’s inappropriate to reach back out to reconnect for various reasons. The truth is your connections are likely just as busy and may even want to reconnect as well. You’ll never know until you try, but there are effective ways to reconnect while avoiding any awkwardness. Working with a LinkedIn profile service may be beneficial before you do so, though. Your connection may not completely remember where you were the last time you spoke, so having an updated profile can give them a refresher and increase the likelihood of them responding.
Reach Out Via LinkedIn
LinkedIn is a valuable platform for many reasons, and reaching out to past connections is one of them. If the connection was a cold contact to begin with, you can simply start out by re-introducing yourself and reminding them of where you met and what you talked about. When you use a professional LinkedIn profile writer, be sure and tell them all of your past experiences so you’ll have a profile that’s as complete as possible. Most of your connections will remember you, depending on how long it’s been, but it never hurts to give them as much information as possible on your profile to help them out.
Be Personal And Honest, As Appropriate
If you had a close relationship with a particular connection, starting out by saying it’s been too long since you last talked can be a good ice breaker. They will likely agree with you and respond back with similar feelings. You could even share a personal moment that recently happened in your life, such as a marriage, birth of a child, change of career or more. Simply sparking a conversation is all it takes, and you don’t need a professional LinkedIn profile writer in order to be genuine with your connections.
Provide Them With Value
When you look on a past connection’s LinkedIn profile, see what they’ve been up to lately and share something of value to them. This could be an interesting article or another resource for their career or personal interests. Any conversation that starts off with you providing value to them, rather than you trying to sell yourself, will usually end with a greater result. A LinkedIn profile service can help you sell yourself on your profile, but it’s not appropriate to do so when reconnecting with people in your network. Professional Resume Services does more than simply help executives with writing a professional resume. Networking is a huge part of any career, and doing so the right way can help you easily reconnect with people in your network. This is often times more effective than finding new connections, so it’s well worth the time and effort. If you’re ever unsure about how to utilize LinkedIn to reach out to your network, give us a call for more helpful tips and advice.
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.
3 Strategies for a Successful Executive Job Search
Going through an executive job search today is much different than it was a decade ago. The one thing that hasn’t changed is the need for a quality resume. With the competition and the tools used by companies to filter out resumes, many professionals rely on the best executive resume writers to help them out. In fact, this is one of the first things anyone should do to help get their job search started correctly. Once you have a perfect resume, you can incorporate these three strategies to give your job search efforts a boost.
Avoid Online Job Boards
It’s tempting to jump on online job boards after the best executive resume writers finish up your resume. However, even those resume writers will tell you it’s probably not the best idea. Online job boards often times have old job postings or inaccurate job descriptions, not to mention the hundreds or thousands of applicants they receive every single day. Your chances of even having your resume viewed with human eyes are slim-to-none. There’s nothing wrong with looking at online job boards to get an idea of what openings companies of interest may have, but actually applying for those jobs online isn’t usually the best option.
Incorporate Networking
Find local networking events and attend them regularly if you can. Start by brushing up your LinkedIn profile and connecting with people through it. You can even use your findings from online job boards to search for people who work at the companies that interest you. Many executives aren’t natural networkers, so starting off a conversation through LinkedIn is a great way to break the ice, make the face-to-face interactions much easier and define your c-level personal branding. Always have a business card ready and hand them out to the people you connect with the most.
Target Companies of Interest
Make a list of several companies you’re interested in working for, then do extensive research on them. The best executive resume writers will ask you what companies you believe you are a good fit for, so they can tailor your resume to them. Your list of companies can come from your networking efforts, online research, past co-workers and more. When you hand over a resume to a potential employer, they want to see what value you will bring to them. A general resume won’t give them the information they want to see, so targeting the company in your resume will yield the best results. Professional Resume Services is here to help executives have a seamless job search. We understand going through a job search can be stressful, time consuming and sometimes frustrating. Whether you need tips on improving your c-level personal branding, updating your resume or anything else related to your search, always feel free to contact us at any time and we would be happy to help.
Feeling Distracted? Follow These Easy Productivity Tips
Distractions are always plentiful, no matter where you work or what you do. Sometimes distractions can get to the point where your work day has ended and you realize you hardly got anything done. This is a real problem today, especially with the technology we have available to us. If your productivity takes a significant dip, then you may have to work with executive resume writing services pretty soon to help you find a new job. But before it gets to that point, here are a few tips to help boost your productivity and eliminate distractions.
Identify Distractions And Eliminate Them
The first step in eliminating distractions is to identify them. You may be surprised at how much time you spend on your smartphone throughout the day. Some apps are available to help you track what you view on your phone and how much time you spend on it. The results can be astonishing sometimes. When you realize how much time you spend on social media, your LinkedIn profile or other apps, you can work to decrease it. If it means leaving your phone with a co-worker so you aren’t tempted to pick it up, then do so.
Become Task-Oriented
Some people work better when they have a list of tasks to get accomplished, and they can’t do anything else until each task is completed. This can help you stay focused on what you need to get done, and the list can be revised if you complete the tasks more quickly than you thought. Becoming task-oriented may take some time and effort if it’s not your current personality, but it can lead to more productive days at work.
Take Occasional Breaks
Sitting at your desk for several consecutive hours at a time isn’t always ideal. You’re bound to find something to distract you as you’re working, and those distractions may take up more time than you think. Instead, take a five or ten minute break every hour to simply walk around and clear your mind. Find someone to talk to in the breakroom or elsewhere to just have a friendly conversation, and maybe even work on your c-level personal branding. Breaks can help the mind refocus on the task you’re working on and be more productive as a result.
Change Up Your Routine
It’s easy to get into a daily routine if you have a 9-5 job. The same distractions could pop up every day, and if they are part of the routine, then they become part of what you expect to happen every day. Changing up your routine can be valuable to eliminate the usual distractions. If your routine is to check your email, social media accounts or other apps at a certain time, try disconnecting for a bit. You may find even subtle changes can help you become more productive overall. Professional Resume Services provides executive resume writing services to help people land the best jobs possible. However, we are more than just that. We also enjoy helping people work on their c-level personal branding, optimize their LinkedIn profile and more. If you’ve been feeling distracted at work lately and don’t know how to become productive again, give us a call and we may be able to help you get motivated and back on track.
Why You Need Both Personal SEO and Personal Branding During an Executive Job Search
Getting discovered online is a critical component of any job search. In fact, the best executive resume writers will sometimes tailor your resume to incorporate more SEO (search engine optimization) terms to help your name show up more frequently in search results. But what about c-level personal branding? This is also an important piece of a job search that can’t be overlooked. Here are some reasons why you need both personal SEO and personal branding when searching for your next job.
Personal SEO And Personal Branding Go Hand-In-Hand
In order to optimize your personal SEO, you need to incorporate keywords and phrases relevant to the particular job you’re searching for. These keywords typically involve the hard skills and technical expertise required to do the job. From a personal branding perspective, employers want to know about your personal qualities to determine whether you will be a cultural fit within their organization. This could include leadership experience, how well you work with a team and individually and other personality traits. When your online presence includes both personal SEO and c-level personal branding, you’ll have a better chance of being discovered by the top recruiters and employers.
Use Both To Differentiate Yourself
While both are needed to be discovered, you can also use them to differentiate yourself from other job candidates. You may choose to work with a LinkedIn profile development expert to incorporate certain keywords to make yourself stand out, while still using proper SEO terms to be discovered. It’s a fine line between being just like everyone else and differentiating yourself online, but it’s possible to find the perfect balance when you incorporate both aspects.
Never Sacrifice Authenticity
When you think about your LinkedIn profile development and how to incorporate personal SEO and personal branding, it can become easy to fall into the trap of writing content to be discovered rather than being authentic. Sacrificing authenticity is never a good idea for your long-term job prospects, since employers will almost always ask you to validate any of your claims. When you have all the soft skills and hard skills required to land the job you desire, sometimes it just takes working with the best executive resume writers to tweak the wording to help you become discovered more naturally. Professional Resume Services understands the challenges executives face in the digital world we live in today. One minor mistake or omission can derail your executive job search, so we are here to help ensure all of your bases are covered. Whether you need a LinkedIn profile development expert or someone to proofread your resume, we are here for you. Never hesitate to contact us at any time if we can be of any assistance with your job search.
Identify Distractions And Eliminate Them