You can’t have another go at making a first impression. It must be right first time. It is more rule than exception these days to look someone up in Google before your first meeting. And if you type someone’s name in Google, their LinkedIn profile is usually the first search result.
Recruiters see what they can find about applicants, and the well prepared applicant checks the interviewing committee on LinkedIn before an interview. Business meetings are almost always preceded by a check of the business partner/client on LinkedIn.
What is the first thing someone sees when they visit your LinkedIn profile? Your name, photo and your professional headline. These three elements come into focus when you post an update, make a new connection or participate in a discussion in one of your groups. In previous posts in this series you read more about your LinkedIn profile photo and professional headline.
What do people see in your profile next? Some concise, LinkedIn generated “highlights” from your profile. Your current job, the three most recent past positions. Your three most recent education entry. Under ‘Contact Info’ you may find websites, Twitter handle, IM and other contact inf as well as the URL to your public profile.
All of these elements of your LinkedIn profile will be scrutinised in the coming articles of the blog series “LinkedIn profile from top to toe!”