What I Found When I Studied 1000 LinkedIn Profiles

“ The richest people in the world look for and build networks. Everyone else looks for work.”

: Robert Kiyosaki

Whenever we hear the word networking, the first things which come to our minds are computers and technology. Sure computers and technology have played a very important role in the development of our human species, but there is one more form of networking which is not even a bit less crucial than computers and technology. A form of networking which does not exist in the materialistic form, but effects any and every thing around us, a form of networking which is not recognized by most of us, but it literally exists in our blood. The networking we are talking about is Human networking.

Networking not only satisfies our human need to socialize, but it can also be done with a purpose- in order to get immediate favors, in order to get future favors, to headstart your career and business, to accelerate your career or business and so on.

All these great things are made possible today by a completely different type of networking: human networking. Networking can really do wonders for you if you do it correctly.

A modern and effective tool for human networking, which has evolved tremendously in recent times is LinkedIn.

LinkedIn is the social network of choice for working professionals looking to make connections. Your LinkedIn profile can be the ticket to a better job and career advancement. With 575 million users and counting, LinkedIn has become the definitive business networking site. With every passing second, two new users create a profile on Linkedin, If you’re just using the site as a place to keep your resume online, then you’re missing out on some great opportunities.

The statistics of Linkedin are compelling:

• 44% of LinkedIn users earn more than $75,000 in a year
• There are over 39 million students and recent grads on LinkedIn
• After the US, India, Brazil, Great Britain and Canada have the highest number of LinkedIn users
• There are 87 million Millennials on LinkedIn with 11 million in decision-making positions
• In the US, 212 million business leads are generated through Linkedin
• 28% of all internet male users use Linkedin, whereas 27% of all Internet Female users use LinkedIn
• In the US, 8 out of 10 LinkedIn members drive business decisions
• LinkedIn now has over 26 million companies and 15 million active job listings.
• 1 million professionals have published a post on LinkedIn
• LinkedIn makes up more than 50% of all social traffic to B2B websites & blogs
• In the US, a LinkedIn member’s average income is $86,000 (which is 23% higher than the US general population.)

When I realized the importance of LinkedIn, I decided to put in some serious effort into my LinkedIn profile. So, I decided to do some research on the internet before making my own profile. There is a tonne of articles available on the internet, highlighting each and every aspect of an ideal LinkedIn profile, from the profile picture to the summary, from how to describe your working experience to how to define your accomplishments. There is something for all.

I also went into the profiles of different working professionals. While studying their Linkedin profiles, I noticed some common trends among them and I decided to conglomerate them. So, here’s What I Found When I Studied 1000 LinkedIn Profiles :

1. Your Profile and Cover picture sets the tone of your profile

We have all heard the phrase “Don’t judge a book by its cover.” But the fact is that if a cover isn’t inviting, people aren’t going to open that book to read what’s inside.

Humans are wired to make judgments based on appearance. In real-world interactions, this might mean reading physical cues and expressions. On Linkedin, the profile and cover picture represents our sole opportunity to make a strong visual first impression.

In a world of commerce now ruled by digital communication, your profile photo is a chance to remind people that there is a living, breathing human being behind your online persona. Statistics show that Linkedin members with a profile photo receive far more engagements than the one who are not having any profile picture: 21 times more profile views and 9 times more connection requests.

Out of the 1000 profiles I studied, almost 90% had a professional profile picture, So one of the first steps of having an effective Linkedin Profile is to make sure that you add a Professional profile picture and cover picture.

One of the first places where a potential candidate will look, when they reach your profile is your profile picture. Upload a professional photo where you are smiling, dressed appropriately and looking directly at the camera.

Remember that first impressions are everything.

2. Elite Colleges Are Not a Necessity

In my quest of finding the things which all successful professionals have in common, I studied a thousand Linkedin profile. While studying them, I gave a very special attention to the education section of each and every individual. The thing which I noticed was that most of the successful professionals were not from an elite college or university, most of them were from colleges of which you might not have even heard the name also. Some of them even attended community colleges.

Let alone elite colleges, I was amazed to see how individuals who studied one field in college were now leading a completely different field, with no relation to the field they studied in their colleges (For example, a bachelors in history leading the marketing division of a company). This surely demonstrates that it’s never too late to find what you’re “really” interested in.

Talent is the key, not the college from which you got your degree from. If you have the will and is ready to put in the hard work, success will definitely won’t ride on your college degree. You will eventually succeed.

3. A customized Headline

The next thing which all the effective Linkedin profiles have in common is a catchy, industry-specific headline. This is the second place a potential connection will look when he/she views your profile. By default, Linkedin places your latest job title as your headline. You can just click the edit button and put in your own headline. Just make sure that your headline specifies the industry you are working in or wants to work in. Also, try to define what you stand for or believe in using a small phrase or a small sentence. LinkedIn has a 120 words limit for it. but make sure that your headline is short and effective. That’s how successful professionals do it.

4. Your Summary Tells Your Story

This section of your profile defines you. This section of your profile tells a potential connection who you really are.

The summary section of your profile is one of the most noticeable section of your profile, make sure it’s your top shot. The summary of a profile separates an effective profile from the ineffective ones. Out of all the effective Linkedin profiles I studied, this was the most common thing among all of them, they had an eye-catching summary, some of them were short and some were descriptive but they were all effective in some or the other way.

Your summary should address who you are, what do you stand for (some people also use a quote to describe this), which industry do you work or want to work in, you could also describe or promote your business in your summary, like how and for whom your business is helpful for. You can describe the things or fields you are are a specialist in. Altogether, describe yourself in a maximum of 2000 characters(which is the word limit), although do not stretch your summary very much, describe all the points, but keep it short and classy, unnecessary exaggeration is not required. You can also use your summary to communicate what your hobbies are or what you do in your free time. Remember that headers, sub-headers, and bullets are a great way to effortlessly lead your reader through the content.

5. Accomplishments Do Matter

On Linkedin, accomplishment section basically includes your published papers or articles, the patents you have, the courses you have done, the projects you have made, the awards and honors you have received, your test scores, the languages you know and the organizations you have been involved with. These points give your Linkedin profile a class and add a charm to it.

Many professionals try to use this section as evidence of their expertise. They showcase their abilities by listing various accomplishments they have. This is the last section of your Linkedin profile. So, make sure to put some effort into it, in order to get a positive outcome.

6. The Power of Voluntary Work

The volunteer section is the perfect place to highlight your passion and demonstrate how you like to give back to society. Millions of professionals donate their time volunteering that impacts the lives of others, but it turns out volunteering is as good for your career as it is to those you help. Research shows that 41% of companies find volunteer work as vital as paid work. 20% of the hiring managers surveyed have made a hiring decision based on a candidate’s volunteer work experience. Thus, this section is very important.

The voluntary work you had done not only glorifies your profile, but it also gives a potential connection or recruiter an idea about what sort of person you are. So, make sure you are wise enough to list all your voluntary work.

7. Endorsement And Recommendations

An endorsement is when a connection endorses any of the skills that you have listed on your profile. Whereas recommendation is when a connection (with whom you have worked with) writes a recommendation for you in his/her own words which will be visible to the other users who visit your profile.

Ever since the feature of endorsement was launched, over 10 billion endorsements have been given by LinkedIn users. Endorsement basically adds value to the skills that you have stated on your profile. It gives an assurance that the skills you have listed are genuine and are not mentioned for namesake. An endorsement can be done by any of your connection whether you have worked with them or not.

Whereas recommendation is a description of you by the people with whom you have worked with or are related to you professionally in some way. A LinkedIn recommendation can provide a reasonable proxy for someone’s performance. From a recruiter’s point of view, this written statement could provide valuable insight into a job candidate’s abilities. What most recruiters look for on LinkedIn are detailed and unique recommendations. For example, recommendations that talk about a job candidate’s strengths, how the candidate got along with the other co-workers, how the candidate overcame problems at work, etc.

What’s your view? How can we make our LinkedIn profiles more effective and efficient?