Building Your Brand for an Outstanding LinkedIn Profile

An outstanding LinkedIn profile is not as elusive as it might seem. You are probably aware that LinkedIn may be poised to become the number one talent management platform of the future. In fact, trends show that LinkedIn may one day replace resumes altogether! In order to make certain that you are maximizing your LinkedIn profile – don’t become victim to one of the many common blunders that befall job seeking professionals.

Gary the Generalist

To recruiters and hiring managers, Gary the Generalist doesn’t get a second glance. If you are looking for your next great opportunity, you probably think that ‘casting your net wide’ is a great idea. Unfortunately, being a generalist or a Jack of All Trades doesn’t equal effective employment opportunities.

It cost money to onboard new employees. Organizations do not want to invest in people that cannot clearly demonstrate a focus for their career. Transferrable skills are excellent, but if that’s ALL you have without a target to aim for: then you will most likely be passed over. Labeling yourself as a Generalist does not help land your next great job.

“People spend more energy planning their vacation than they do planning their professions.” – unknown

Can’t Stay on the Tracks?

Trains move in solidly predictable paths determined by the rails they travel on. Careers typically do not follow such narrow trajectories. Please do not be concerned if your professional career evolved over time. In fact: your career must evolve in order for you to gain experience, depth, perspective and a broader knowledge base.

However, there is a difference between an evolutionary career and one that looks like you played professional hopscotch. While there’s nothing wrong with trying new things, be aware that there must be some commonality in order to demonstrate focus. If you have held jobs in wildly different positions without any clear relatability, this could send red flags to hiring managers. No one wants to hire someone that cannot decide what they want to do.

Finding a Theme

I encourage those who have held varying positions in the past to find a common theme in their professional evolution to build an outstanding LinkedIn profile. What was it in each position that you loved the most or what did you excel in? What strengths did you demonstrate in every job you held?  What were you the ‘go to’ person for? If you can answer these questions, it’s likely that you will find your theme.

Everyone has their own strength zone. If you look at your career, you will see common characteristics pop out in your mind. Maybe you are great at fixing problems or excelled in leading teams. Perhaps you always felt drawn towards working with people or perhaps you excelled in finance. These frequently found traits are your professional theme. Whatever the theme is – leverage it and make an outstanding LinkedIn profile!

Discovering Your Target

Now that you have an idea of what your professional theme is – it’s important to define a target industry or position(s) that can use your skillset. You could say: “I’m a great people person” but that doesn’t tell anyone where you want to connect with people. Is that sales, business development, healthcare, customer service, marketing or public relations? (To name a few.)

I invite you to look back over your career again. What are the areas did you enjoy working the most? What did you like the least? What type of work environment do you thrive in? Do you prefer leading the way and blazing your own trail or do you prefer the security of a team and working together towards a common goal?

Consider what industries or positions could best leverage your unique and valuable skills. Narrow your list down to a maximum of three targets. If these targets are related: all the better! For example: project management, program management or process improvement can be related fields. So are business analyst, data analyst and financial analyst roles.

Top Tip: Google position descriptions to determine what skill sets are required across different industries. Business analytics roles, requirements and expectations, for example, can vary widely between companies.

Building your Brand

Successfully landing your next great opportunity is all about marketing and you must demonstrate a personal brand! Your personal brand originates from your theme, leverages your target and demonstrates your focus to those reviewing your marketing materials. For job seekers: marketing materials = resumes, LinkedIn and verbal communication (networking and interviews).

We’ve discussed how to find a theme and how to define your target opportunities. Now, let’s talk about how to build your brand to clearly communicate your focus.

Don’t shy away from building your personal brand because this is what will tell a recruiter or potential hiring manager to contact YOU instead of someone else! Branding statements work like this:

1. What’s your theme? For example: if you find that you have always gravitated towards improving the way your organization does business that means you probably enjoy process improvement or business performance excellence. (Also known as continuous improvement.)
2. What industry or positions can leverage your skill set that interest you? If you enjoy science or machines – then perhaps manufacturing is what fits you best. However: if you prefer working with technology, perhaps start-ups or similar fits you best. Maybe your focus isn’t industry-specific, but it is best to understand that up front.
3. What keywords describe your value-add to organizations best? These keywords can build your Personal Brand Impact Statement.

Importance of Impact Statements

Good branding statements include impactful descriptors. While writing a sentence about yourself is a great start, you will need to distil it into an impact statement to stand out.

Start off by writing a sentence or two that describes your focus:

“I enjoying leading teams through process improvement work in finance, purchasing and business analytics.”

Your keywords are:

“I enjoying LEADING TEAMS through PROCESS IMPROVEMENT work in FINANCE, PURCHASING and BUSINESS ANALYTICS.”

A personal branding impact statement that clearly demonstrates your focus for an outstanding LinkedIn profile could look something like this:

Team Leader in Business Process Improvement | Proven Experience in Finance, Purchasing and Business Analytics

Or:

Proven Leader in Financial Analytics and Process Improvement

The first example is broader – focusing on Process Improvement. The second branding statement is tightly targeted towards financial analytics only. The reason they both work is because of RELEVANCE. When your focuses are relevant and/or related, you can more easily include them in your personal branding statement.

An example of dissimilar targets that WILL NOT work in a personal branding statement is:

Proven Leader in Sales | Experienced Project Manager with Finance Management Experience

This statement will only make the reader scratch their head in confusion and move on. If you have this experience but want to focus on sales perhaps your impact statement should read:

Proven Sales Leader Leveraging Project Management, Quality and Finance Management Experience

It could also be a good idea not to highlight irrelevant experience towards your focus, especially if you are considering a career change.

Top Tip: You do NOT want to say that you are ‘Proven’ unless you can demonstrate that in your resume and LinkedIn profile. The same can be said for keywords: experienced, expertise and knowledgeable.

Leverage Your Personal Brand

It is critical to clearly communicate your target and focus in your personal branding messages for an outstanding LinkedIn profile, to create an engaging resume and on your job search business card. Knowing your focus will also allow you to better understand if there are any key skillset you would like to further refine or obtain certifications to demonstrate professional credibility.

Don’t fall victim to the assumption that being able to ‘do everything’ will net you more opportunities! A professional that can communicate focus in their career is much more likely to get that phone call.

Erin Urban LSSBB, CPDC is a certified professional & leadership development coach and a member of the Forbes Coaches Council with over 8 years in mentoring and coaching successful professional transformations. With an extensive background in leading individual, cultural and organizational change initiatives: her mission is to lift others up to defy their limits and exceed their goals.