Karl Kasca

Setting up a LinkedIn account is quick and easy.  But there are some things you need to do to assure that your profile is as effective as possible.

Action Steps

1) Set Up Your Account:

• Go to LinkedIn and see "Join LinkedIn Today".



• Enter:



• Your First Name



• Last Name



• Email Address, and 



• Press "Continue", and



• On the next page, Enter:



• A Password.



• Country



• Postal/Zip Code



• From the drop-down menu, Choose: Employed, A business owner, etc.



• Company



• Title



• Industry, and



• Press "Join LinkedIn"



• On the next page, Choose various options for how you want to use LinkedIn:



• To Find (note: See Video for options)



• To Be Found, and  (note: See Video for options)



• Press "Save Settings"



• On the next page, Confirm your Email Account



• Go to your email inbox, open the message from LinkedIn and hit the link to Confirm



• Then go back to the LinkedIn page and Confirm and SignIn.



• Build Your Network (later)



• You can do this later (which I would recommend at this point)



• When you do decide to do this, be careful to only select people to invite to LinkedIn who you are sure know you and will state that they know you when they either accept your invitation, or join LinkedIn, if they're not already members.



• The reason for this is that if 2-5 people say that they do NOT know you, then LinkedIn may warn you and/or deactivate your account for some time, since they think you may be a Spammer.  



• Thus you need to be very careful in selecting the people you know, and who know you to invite to your LinkedIn network.

2) Edit Your Profile

• Click Edit profile (in the left margin of the page)



• Current



• Add your Current Position



• Past



• Add your Past Postions



• Note: Add all of the important positions you've held in your life.



• When deciding what to add, think: 1) Is this a good position to have on a resume, and 2) Will enough people have worked at the same company/entity who may try to find you later that it is valuable to add?



• Education



• Add all of your college institutions and degrees.



• I recommend going back to High School with your eduction.



• Why? - Because many people know you from High School who may try to find you.



• And if they find you, and read your profile, or go to your website, they may choose to do business with you.



• Recommended



• You can ask for Recommendations



• Connections (later)



• Later you can Build your Network as mentioned above



• Websites



• Add your main website(s) and your blog (or more).



• Public Profile



• Edit your Public Profile link and enter a custom personalized name for your profile.



• Why? 



• 1) So people can find your Profile easier



• 2) So the link will look nicer when you put it on your business cards, email signature, etc.



• Summary and Specialties



• It's also highly recommended that you write a great Summary of your experience as well as listing your particulare Specialties (again, which can be found when people are seeking you, or someone with your skill sets.



• Applications (later)



• You can add various applications like Twitter and Slideshare to make your Profile more informative (and findable).

Video on How to Setup a LinkedIn Account with a Killer Profile

Resources

Related Articles

·  LinkedIn - Overview of LinkedIn and the Power of LinkedIn ·  Quickest Ways to Attract Visitors to your Website

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