People are using LinkedIn every day to look for others. They’re looking for employees, vendors, clients, speakers, prospects, or anyone who has the answer to their problems. With over 500 million LinkedIn users, odds are that one of them is looking for someone like you. Your number of LinkedIn profile views can be a great indicator of whether people are finding you.
Are people finding you or the other guy? Are the people who find you the right people? There are things you can do to ensure they are.
Are people looking at our profile now?
First, determine whether people are finding you at all. I love Who’s Viewed Your Profile for this purpose. Besides the fact that I’m curious about who has been checking out my profile, I use it as a good indicator to see whether people are finding me and who they are. If you have a Basic (free) account, you’re at a bit of a disadvantage because you’ll get a short list of only the last 5 people who viewed your profile. I have a premium account and can see a list of everyone over the last 90 days.
To get more profile views:
Optimize your profile with keywords. LinkedIn’s search is based on keywords that are typed in the search bar or in the keywords option when you use the search filter. Your keywords are very specific to what you do and should be placed strategically in your profile.
Good keywords are words that describe what you do, your job titles (current and past), your specific skills, competencies that are required for your job, industry specific words, and certifications (ex: CPA or PMP).
Bad keywords are words like experienced, dynamic, professional, self-motivated. They are too generic and fit almost everyone.
Use the good keywords in your headline, job titles, experience descriptions and summary section and of course, the skills and expertise section. Do not keyword stuff your profile. You’ve probably seen some examples where people go overboard and every other word is sales or manage.
Tip: You can determine where on LinkedIn keywords matter because of the options in search.
Complete your profile. LinkedIn has created the All-Star status requirement for a reason. If you aren’t one, click on the prompt on your profile that offers suggestions to improve your profile. You’ll be more likely to come up in the search rankings with a completed profile.
Have a profile photo. Profiles with photos are 21X more likely to be viewed than those that aren’t. Make sure you are smiling and look professional. A logo will not cut it. People want to see who it is they are looking at.
Have an interesting profile. People will be more likely to view your profile if you show a little personality, write in the 1st person narrative, in full sentences and don’t have you profile look like your resume. Resumes are boring and no one, not even most recruiters enjoy reading them. So, don’t turn off your reader by being boring.
Craft an intriguing headline. LinkedIn automatically defaults to your job title, and you do more and are more interesting than your job title. Add a little tag line if you have one or something that will inspire the reader to keep reading.
Actively participate on LinkedIn. I have noticed a definite increase in my profile views when I am participating in conversations or posting status updates. It’s even more when I write an article. I have noticed a little drop in my views when I let my LinkedIn sit unattended for a few days. When I went on a two-week vacation last year with limited access to the internet I experienced a 62% drop in profile views. It took me awhile get that number back up to normal levels.
Post comments or start discussions in your groups. This is an easy one. You are probably not 1st level connections with everyone in your group, so when you post something interesting and of value in the group, the other members will want to learn more about you.
Reach out to your network – people you haven’t talked to in a while. Send a message or just say “Happy Birthday” and chances are they will check out your profile to see what you’ve been up to.
View other people’s profiles. This is a ninja trick used by a lot of people. It only stands to reason, if I notice that you looked at my profile and I don’t know who you are, I will look at yours to find out. Of course, then if there is synergy, you can connect to build your network.
Build your network. When someone performs a search, they automatically get a list of the 1st level connections. They can change the filter to include 2nd and 3rd degree connections. The bigger your network of 1st degree connections, the more 2nd and 3rd degree connections you have automatically. You’ll come up more often in search and that can lead to more profile views.
Join groups with lots of members. The people who are in your groups are your 2nd degree connections by default. This increases the size of your network and again, as noted above, you’ll show up in more searches.
Invite people to connect. When you do that, they usually look at your profile to learn more about you. Simple, right?
It’s hard to grow your business or find a job if people don’t know you exist. Do a couple of these things and you’ll start to get noticed on LinkedIn and your profile views will increase. Do all of these and your views will soar. You’ll start to get more invites to connect, more interest in what you do or say, attract potential employers or clients and in general, find more value in using LinkedIn.