LinkedIn is potentially your greatest marketing tool for finding internships and employment opportunities. However, fail to update your LinkedIn page and it’s little more than a digital resume. As a college student or a recent graduate, you might feel you’ve got little worth posting on LinkedIn. However, with some creativity, you can keep your LinkedIn page regularly updated and feeling fresh.
Change Your Profile Picture
LinkedIn pages with profile pictures get 14 times more views than pages without pics. However, a LinkedIn page with your last high school yearbook photo is never going to project the workforce-ready image you’re trying to present. Experts recommend updating your LinkedIn profile pic every year to help your page feel fresh and current. Forget about those frat party pictures, though. A simple headshot in front of a plain background presents a much more professional image.
Keep Your Information Up to Date
An old photo isn’t the only thing that can make your LinkedIn profile seem dated. Jessica Slaughter, a software engineer from Texas, recommends reviewing your LinkedIn profile page at least once a month and more often during recruiting season. Add any new classes and remove any you’ve dropped, note projects you’ve completed and any new ones you’ve started, and make any adjustments to your grade point average. Some simple tweaks will make sure your LinkedIn profile reflects your current situation.
Share Your Work
You’ve worked hard as a college student. LinkedIn gives you a platform for promoting that hard work. The site makes it easy to upload or link to your assignments, design projects, video presentations, articles written for your college newspaper, and other relevant work. Sharing your work doesn’t just keep your LinkedIn profile feeling fresh. It’ll also add visual interest and sell your skills to any browsing employers.
Write Blog Posts
While popular social media networks such as Facebook and Twitter focus on micro-blogging, LinkedIn gives you a greater platform for self-expression. Writing regular blog posts is a great way to keep your LinkedIn page fresh and to demonstrate how you tick. You could write blog posts about interesting lectures, concepts you’ve learned, or perspectives on current events in your industry. LinkedIn will share your posts with your network, but they could have an even wider reach. Remember to proofread them carefully to ensure they appear as professional as you want to be.
Seek Out Recommendations
Just as you consider customer reviews when buying new products, recruiters pay attention to LinkedIn recommendations, according to Omar Garriott, Salesforce’s director of product marketing and strategy. Getting recommendations on your LinkedIn page is a fantastic way to freshen it and to make you look more desirable to potential employers.
Contact your college professors, mentors, internship supervisors, or anyone else you’ve worked closely with and ask them to write a recommendation on your LinkedIn page. Offer to repay the favor and everybody wins.
Don’t let your lack of professional experience hold you back. Update your LinkedIn profile regularly and it can be a powerful tool in your search for internships, employment, and beyond.
