IF you’re not using LinkedIn, you should be. If you’re not using it effectively, start! Without LinkedIn, you’re cutting yourself off from a river of ways in which an opportunity might find you.

Companies search LinkedIn for potential candidates to interview. Recruiters search LinkedIn for candidates who might meet the needs of their clients. Other job seekers search LinkedIn to see with whom they might want to be connected and who might provide some strategic help to themselves or someone they know.

Your first step is to maximize the effectiveness of your profile. Rather than completing it with no thought to keywords, or worse, not completing it at all, take full advantage of what your profile offers you and others.

The area directly under your name is ripe for keywords. Rather than stopping at your title, include any specialized skills you have that are in demand relative to your function and industry. Do a people search with some terms that come into mind and see what others are using.

Choose your picture with some thought. A picture in which you’re dressed professionally and smiling is the best choice. This is how people will perceive you and they will hold the picture of you in their mind. If you don’t have one, get one done.

Both your summary and resume area, like the area under your name, need to be keyword-rich, but naturally and within the context of what you’re writing. Rather than typing it directly into the form and forgetting it, do a few searches for people with your same skills and title. Look at their summaries and use as models the ones that flow and are obviously well-thought out. Edit and perfect it before you enter it. Read it several times and have someone else read it to ensure the grammar and spelling are correct.

Like your actual resume, both your LinkedIn resume and your summary need to focus on what you have done that has benefited your employers. What did you change, reduce, improve, enhance, develop or implement? Job descriptions and responsibility statements don’t begin to convey your uniqueness or the way in which you think and apply those skills. Companies and recruiters searching for candidates who stand out in the crowd will pass you over.

Social media and networking are a means to developing mutually beneficial relationships. Connections should be defined by quality, not quantity, although on some level you need the former to get the latter. Yes, a large number of connections gives you access to a greater number of people, but connected or not, you need to be aware that the more tenuous the relationship is, the less point there is to it, and the less likely it is to serve you. Make sure your connections are people with whom you’ll be willing to talk, help and, perhaps, recommend.

Keep yourself visible. There’s little reason to be part of LinkedIn if you’re not part of LinkedIn. Participate in groups and discussions so that people learn and see who you are by what you post. In turn, you come to know them, and when you find a job posting, a profile, or an article that will be of interest to the group, post it. Likewise, if you find an article of interest, a job or a profile that might be of interest to another person, send it on whether they’re a connection or not. If they aren’t, invite them to connect to you.

Use LinkedIn Answers to answer questions within your knowledge area, showcase your expertise and provide assistance to those who need it. This also keeps you in the forefront, increasing the likelihood of your being discovered, and helps others to find the answers they’re seeking. Continued...

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Next time: More on LinkedIn, and a bit on social media in general.

Judi Perkins, owner of Find the Perfect Job in Bethel, was a search consultant for 22 years. She now operates the Web site www.FindThePerfectJob.com.

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