(Analytics) LinkedIn: A Business Person' s Mandatory Profile

Social media is becoming one of the most important outlets for a person to have in this day of age. Whether you want to get on Facebook and vent to your friends about last nights game or you want to get on instagram to post pictures of the wonderful vacation your family just went on. Social media is a way for you to reach out to people across the world and get to know them without leaving your computer chair. LinkedIn has become one of the most crucial ways for jobseekers to get out to employers to possible obtain a career. Its a way to show all of your accomplishments that employers may never see on a resume. However, their are some unspoken rules and regulations to creating a LinkedIn profile and I will give you 9 short simple steps to creating one.

1. PHOTO- Having a photo on your profile is one of the most important beginning steps to making a LinkedIn profile. If employers look at your profile and you have a million accomplishments with no photo, it becomes sort of a turnoff because they have no idea who you are. Having a clean cut, sharply dressed headshot of yourself will go a long way in the job market. 
2. JOB TITLE- Use this section to show off your current job. If you don't have a job then put the job or industry you are seeking to help employers identify those who are curious about jobs within their industry.
3. PAST JOBS OR EXPERIENCE- When describing your past jobs or experience, don't list them, tell a story behind it. Use this as a summary for the accomplish you had, then explain how you accomplished it and what you did to make it to that point.
4. SUMMARY- Competitive advantage is the keyword here. Use this section to separate yourself from any other people who are within the same field as you. What makes you different than the other 30 people applying for this job. 
5. SPECIALTIES- List every keyword that you can think of that will lead you to the job that you want. If you are having trouble then go to someone's profile who has the job you are looking for and use some of their keywords. Go ahead its not cheating, that's what this network is for!
6. LIST- This is simple, just like any hobbies, interests, training, clubs and organizations that you belong to or participate in, etc.
7. ADD LINKS TO ANY WEBSITE- Do you have a Twitter, Facebook, Blog? Then add those links to your profile, at your own risk. If you have anything on your facebook that would not be considered professional or maybe its too much into your personal life, then don't put the link. You only want to include things that will fortify your brand and image in the eyes of employers.
8. JOIN- One or more groups on LinkedIn. Use this as a way to network and get yourself out there. If there are organizations or groups that have similar interest to you, then join them and communicate with them. You will be surprised at some of the opportunities that people can present to you just by the click of a button.
9. DESCRIBE- Use LinkedIn to describe something that is important to you. If you take a picture with the president at a national conference or you are given an award at a prestigious event. POST IT! Talk about what happened to those who are connected with you because these moments can lead to connections beyond what you imagined.