Are you the one searching for your dream job? Or Are you in search of an employee that matches with your requirement needs? Do you know that most of the recruiters use social media to fill in their requirement efforts? Yes, one of those social media platforms is LinkedIn. Linkedin is the ultimate platform. Not for the job seekers and employees, it is now paramount in maintaining a business. 2019 is going to be the veer of marketing through LinkedIn. Be it developing a personal brand or marketing LinkedIn is a platform that you can’t ignore.

This is how LinkedIn works. Employers advertise their jobs, Job seekers search for a job that matches their profile, and just apply. It’s simple but not so simple.

You will have to create a basic profile and a lot more stuff like maintaining connections. Send an invite to a person that matches with your profile be it an Hr of a company you like or someone that matches with your job requirements. When a person accepts your request, you can even have a conversation with them.  Connections can be a great way to quickly get hired.

But to do all this, You should create a LinkedIn profile for yourself. Here’s how you can do it.

1. Choose account type

Navigate to the signup page and enter all your details like your name, email and then choose a secure password. While choosing a name make sure to use your true name. Do not use pseudo names. Next, choose the account type. This where you need to think whether you need a basic LinkedIn profile or the premium account with extra benefits. The basic LinkedIn is free but for that extra benefits, you would have to spend some money. In a premium account, you have options to choose from a professional account, job seeker and many more each with a different price, offers and benefits. Each offers a free trial where you jump to the next feature if you think the choice you made isn’t right.

2. A professional profile picture

Say yes to professionalism. Add a profile picture that is professionally compelling. Add a picture that shows your face clearly. Do not add selfies. The point is you should only use a photo that gives a professional look. It is said a profile with a professional picture get 14 times more views.

The resolution of your photo must be of 200*200 pixels. The less or more resolution than this will make your picture blurred. Adding a high-quality picture will get you 21 times more views and messages. Adding a good quality profile picture is definitely a game changer.

3. Add a headline

Your headline must be balanced and keyword rich. Use the keywords that are used in the recruiters’ search. This creates an impression in the recruiter’s view. Create an enticing headline will make your recruiter stop by. Creativity while creating your headline is good but don’t miss the originality.

Heres an idea for you, jot down all your assets and the select top two or three and create it as a headline or if you are confused to ask someone who is most familiar with you ask them what they admire the most about you and create it as a headline. Your headline must be of 120 characters so make gunshot statement that defines who you really are.

4. Add a summary

Again your summary must be keyword rich. This will help you appear in the searches. Your summary is most likely to be read than anything from your bio and is overlooked. Your summary must be of 2000 characters. This is the part that requires most strategy and writing skills. Your summary has the power to transform your career and attract a plethora of opportunities.

Your summary is more than your resume. Because your summary is what people will look when they need to know about you. This brings most of the traffic to your profile. Add your contact details so that any recruiter can contact you easily. Give them a place to pause ie., your summary must be that compelling that it catches the eye of the recruiter. On the whole your summary must be relevant in order to attract the right people.

5. Education, Skills and Experience

Include your school, college in order to connect with old classmates. You can include all your certifications, details regarding seminars and training attended. Add five perfect skills. A profile is 33 times more viewed by the recruiters when you add skills. Add high edged skills to connect with the recruiters, job seekers or other connections.

Adding an experience is the mainstay. Your experience is the mirror of what you do. List your experiences from the most recent ones.

6. Build your Network

Creating connections is lucrative for LinkedIn. Because LinkedIn is all about connections. You can send a connect to persons you know or to someone with whom you find a professional connection they might be your recruiters, friends, family and someone from your industry. After your connection is accepted you can even keep in touch with them.

Linkedin is a social media platform that can help you in every aspect right from job searching to maintaining business LinkedIn is a very powerful tool. Also, don’t forget to update your LinkedIn profile regularly with your new skills and experiences and unlike Facebook, you can also post your content. Make sure to post your content related to your field. LinkedIn makes it easy for both job seekers and recruiters. Take the full advantage of LinkedIn Happy searching, Happy recruiting and Happy marketing too.