Profile on linkedIn is as important as your resume but taking your resume along every time is becoming little obsolete now days. So, the recruiters and the professionals in the field refer to the profile of individual before contacting personally and if your profile does not match up to what they expect from you, then you may loose the goal this time. So, here are some of the ideas that one can get maximum good out of the linkedIn profile:
Great LinkedIn Tips for CPAs to Improve Online Profile:
1. Make your profile professional:
Your profile should not look like kids workbook, it should be professional enough, that if seen by any professional buddy, it puts a great impression and your chances of getting hired increases to great level.
Professional profile means to make use of the good accounting, technical words while you fill all the details in the profile.
2. Your photograph:
It’s not your facebook profile, it is something which will give you recognition in the corporate and the work field, so the profile photograph that you upload should be professional and not so casual.
Keep your fun making or the stylish photographs for the facebook and whatsapp use and not for the linkedIn. Your holiday and the selfies should be kept for fun purpose only, do not mix them with the professional life and work.
3. Complete your profile fully:
Your profile should be 100 % complete. Do not leave anything or your profile will be left incomplete and if your profile will be incomplete, the serach results for your name will not be higher.
So, make sure to complete your profile with all the details of education, skills, knowledge, interest, experience and so on. do not be one liner, but give proper detailing of everything.
4. Be open and give details:
When you just mention in one line regarding your skills and the education, you may not get noticed. So it is essential to write everything with proper details and by making use of the important keywords.
The keywords will help you in getting notice at a quicker rate. Fill all the sections without leaving any of them as readers will only like to go for the accountant who has portrayed himself well on the professional front.
5. Give a strong headline:
The headline you give above should be very professional and strong. Headline will present you professionally infront of others and will know your potential with just a single line.
Do not write a company’s name or do not put a simple title regarding you, instead give a very attractive headline as it will magnetize number of uninterested people for you.
6. Give a summary:
Of all what you have written in the sections is always right but you will have to provide a small summary of everything you have done and still you are doing. The summary should be crisp and short.
It is basically written for those who do not like to spend maximum time on such professional sites and just want to go through the profile of the individual within a short span of time. Do not leave even a single chance to lure anyone by your creative skills. You should not leave even a single stone unturned to prove your potential, whether it comes to writing summary or anything in detail.
7. Technical jargon should be included:
Do not write in a simple manner; instead make use of the technical jargon or the words that are highly used in the accountancy field. It will give an impact of the knowledge you possess to others and will also build trust among others.
So, do not let your profile be plain, just add spices of technical accounting terms in your profile.
8. Join various groups:
There are number of groups formed on LinkedIn and those groups are professional one. By joining groups, you will build and expand your connections. You must also start conversation with the group members, ask queries and also give answers to the questions that you are sure about.
It will also put a good and positive impression on others. Also the chances of getting hired will extend, so go ahead and join the groups you are interested in.
9. Build your connections:
LinkedIn provide will help you build number of connections. You must start connecting with the people you know personally. The colleagues, classmates, friends, and the people you meet on the course of the events, can be invited to your profile.
Whenever you ask someone to connect with you, make sure you leave short personal information so as to help identify you properly.
10. Make use of referral tools:
Your profile should be elastic enough to add any number of known contacts in it. In order to enhance the contacts, you can make use of the referral tools like ask your clients to introduce you with the people they are connected. This way you are promoted of your own with the help of the referral groups.
So expand your social connections by making use of the social media and exploit it fully for your vested interest.
11. Go for the advance search:
There is an option of search, you can go and search every possible individual by typing the position and the name of the company along with the name of a person. Advance search is for the purpose of right people at the fastest speed. This is one of the important tools in LinkedIn so make use of this tool as much as you can.
Advance search is used in case the search option fails to identify the person you want to connect with. This option is given in the extreme right on the top of the site, so make use of it.
12. Be regular and updated:
Once you made your profile on LinkedIn does not mean your work is done. You will have to be regular on the profile to show your activeness. The way you are active on the other social networking sites like Facebook and all, you need to get active on this too. This will help you in getting noticed.
If you will be a dormant member, you will be considered unprofessional. So, it is your duty to be updated and regular on the profile. It has to be done by you only and no one else will do it for you.
13. Give status on regular basis:
You should write status on regular basis to show that you are not a passive user but an active one. It is important for you to remain updated as it will help you in answering the queries in the group you have joined.
You also need to be updated to make yourself knowledgeable up to the brim. You should share new blog post and can also link various articles related to accountancy on your site. Other than this, promote your seminars and the webinars, recruiting for new team members and sharing your as well as other’s success stories.
14. A different company profile:
Apart from giving your own profile, make your company’s profile also. Having your company’s profile on LinkedIn is very important. It will tell your profile through company, building a trust worthy and reliable image of yours.
In the company’s profile also mention the type of company, its working and every detail about the company. Every section of the company must be mentioned in it and also give a small video regarding your company and yourself, which will attract more viewers towards your profile and will give you an added advantage.
15. Do not beat about the bush:
You are asked to write in detail but writing the essay sort of things is not acceptable and brings boredom to the reader. So, whatever you write, write with full detail but nothing irrelevant should be there. Be crisp, true and write what you are in real.
16. Be true to you and others:
You are making your professional profile so be true in what you write. You should write exactly what you are. Your mirror image should be reflected in the profile as that profile will decide your future of getting selected for job or something.
Do not write the skills which you do not possess. For example, if you mention writing as skill and everything you wrote consist of grammatical mistakes then it will give a wrong impression, so do not go for such a thing.
Conclusion:
So, above are some of the vital points that one must keep in mind while handling the profile on LinkedIn. One must keep the profile professional and should not take it casually or you will have to suffer the brunt of the result.
Be specific in what you mention, be true and most importantly be upto date. Your linkedIn profile portrtays you first and then your CV speaks and at last the personal contact. So, make sure the first impression is good and does not take a toll on you. The linkedin profiles helps in lot many things other than the job finding and making connections.
