Like me, many of you may have taken an extended holiday vacation, and are just now getting back to business. If so, you may just be discovering that your LinkedIn profile looks a bit different.
Yes, there were some changes in December specifically to your LinkedIn Profile that you need to be aware of. Here they are:
1. Your Activity Feed has Moved:
This was the first thing I noticed - and while some may think it's more prominent, I actually couldn't see it at first. So take note that your activity feed is now in the main area of your profile (before it was on the right sidebar) - and it's now one of the first things people see.
2. Larger Profile Photo:
If you love your photo, this is great news! If you don't - now is a great time to upload a fantastic new photo of yourself (perhaps choose one that isn't from one of those holiday parties...). Also, with the larger image space, make sure to check out your current photo and make sure it's not blurry.
3. Larger Headline:
Many people tend to forget about their profile headline, but now that is is larger and more prominent than ever - you should pay special attention to this 120 character space. Use this area to really highlight who you are (and who you want others to see you as) and your core difference. If you don't know what sets you apart - now's the time to think about it!
4. New Visual Display of Your Profile Sections:
Yes - you will now see icons in your profile sections (for education and such) as well as logos for companies you've worked for, organizations you belong to, and schools you've attended. Take a few minutes to review this section. If a logo is not displaying next to one of your companies, schools or groups, it's possible you don't have the name entered correctly (it has to be spelled exactly the same as on the organization page) in order to pull the logo.
In addition, there are some new sections that have been added, including publications. So if you've written an article, an eBook or a book, be sure to include it here.
5. Personal Galleries:
Now this is interesting. You can add a gallery of work (including videos, photos or presentations) to your job or education entries. This is a great opportunity to not just tell people what you've done, but show them.
6. Endorsements:
You know about the Recommendations feature, but LinkedIn has now introduced an easier (and more controversial) way to gain endorsements. And it's been hard to miss with the prominent promotion at the top of your profile and nudges to endorse this person for that skill. Oh and all the emails too.
So how does this new endorsement feature work? It pulls from the skills you've listed in your Skills section - so it's more important than ever to enter in these skills (and make sure you're being accurate and comprehensive) so that your followers will have a chance to endorse you. No skills entered = no endorsements.
Right now, LinkedIn is advertising on profiles to endorse other people - and is prominently displaying when someone endorses you. If there is a particular person you would like to have endorse you - trying endorsing them. They'll likely do the same in return.
I can see the Endorsement feature being important simply for immediate visibily, especially as it becomes more mainstream. If you're looking at two people, and one has huge volume of Endorsements and the other none, you're at first glance going to think person #1 is more credible.
7. Recommendations:
So how are Endorsements different from Recommendations? Endorsements are quick and easy - you click to agree that "Shelly knows about Online Marketing" and voila - you have endorsed Shelly. For Recommendations you have actually WRITE a testimonial - which is a bit more effort for most people.
Having said that, it's likely that when everything shakes out, Recommendations will be viewed as more credible and pull more weight simply because they do take that extra effort - so the person must REALLY like you.
8. Search Changes:
Before, you could used the advanced search feature to search your entire network to find connections. Now, you can specifically search the network of one of your first level connections. For anyone using LinkedIn to find leads, this is one of the most exciting new features out there.
9. What Do you Have in Common?
LinkedIn has now made it easier to see what you have in common with other people. Do you share a group? Take the same course? Hold the same certification? Remember, if you're looking to generate leads, having something in common can make that little bit of difference. So if you belong to the yaught club, add that in.
