LinkedIn is a valuable tool for networking, job seeking and researching people and their career paths. It is also useful for journalists looking to build their professional profile by sharing their work, networking with peers, learning new skills, and finding fresh sources and prospects.
With over one billion members, 67 million listed companies, and 139,000 listed schools, LinkedIn bills itself as the world’s largest professional network. But are you making the most of it?
This step-by-step guide to optimising your LinkedIn profile is something I teach in multiple classes, but it is not just college journalists who can benefit from a LinkedIn tune up. Be sure to check back and update these elements regularly, as an outdated profile is not a good look.
- Professional headshot: use a professional headshot, looking directly at the camera. The thumbnails on the site and app are small, so zoom in tight. Do not be too far away. And avoid casual photos. No pictures of you at the beach, or a poorly cropped image from a wedding cutting out the person standing next to you. They just look like a cut up photo after a bad break-up.
- Personalised URL: customise your LinkedIn URL to make it more professional and SEO-friendly. Include this URL on your CV and resume.
- Personalised header image: use a header image that is relevant to your interests, rather than the default image LinkedIn provides. If you are a photographer, use one of your images or a shot of you in action. (Reporters can do this too.) Use Canva to turn this into a mini online business card.
- Contact Information: include your website/portfolio, Twitter, and email. A phone number is optional, consider privacy. But, please, for the love of God, have a contact email address. I have lost track of the countless journalists who make it very hard to find their email.
- Aspirational headline: do not just list your job title (which is the default information that is pulled through). Instead, create a descriptive headline outlining what you do, what you study or what you want to do.
- Compelling "about" section: your "about" section should align with your portfolio (which you linked to in the contact section, right?). Describe who you are. A good quick three paragraph format for early career journalists: what do you do now, where have you come from (your origin story), where are you going (what do you want to do).
- "Featured" carousel: highlight 3-5 pieces of your best work. This may also include your CV and resume.
- Detailed employment history: describe your roles, focusing on your impact and achievements, not just duties. Include stats: how many articles did you write, by what per cebt did you grow those social media channels. What size budget, or team, did you manage?
- Media content: Add relevant media to your roles in your employment history to showcase your work. Include no more than three media pieces. Don’t duplicate what’s in the “featured” section. Demonstrate your breadth.
- Education: Include examples of classes and courses you have taken to show the range of your skills, interests and knowledge. Journalism degrees are two a penny. The specialist knowledge you learned from them, is not. Include professional certifications too, as well as any LinkedIn Learning content you have completed.
- Skills: add relevant skills, including languages and software. Do not undersell your skills, especially language skills. They can be a real differentiator in a crowded marketplace.
- Awards and scholarships: include relevant scholarships in the awards section. They indicate that others rate you.
- Voice consistency: use either first or third-person voice throughout your profile, but do not switch between the two. Some people dislike using third person, as they feel it comes across as impersonal and possible pretentious. But it also makes it easier to avoid starting every sentence with “I”.
- Post regularly: use the platform to share your work, as well as the work of others. By all means humblebrag, but be useful to your network by lifting up and shining a light on others. Show what you are interested in and your expertise.
- Recommendations: over time collect recommendations from former colleagues, bosses, and professors. These can add credibility and colour to your profile. They can also remind you of how awesome you are. And we all need reminding of that from time-to-time.
5 tips for taking it to the next level
Beyond your profile, consider these tips to enhance your overall LinkedIn presence:
- Networking: customise connection requests. Avoid sending blank requests. If I do not know you, tell me why you want to connect. Do not just be a friend collector.
- Respond to requests: acknowledge connection requests, especially if they include a personal note. Reply in kind and start a dialogue.
- Hashtags: use relevant hashtags on posts to expand your reach.
- Groups: join relevant groups and follow organisations to find jobs and updates.
- Video content: The platform is increasingly making video content more prominent. Explore how to lean into this in your status updates and elsewhere.
Lastly, be sure to check out the LinkedIn for Journalists resources. This includes a group page, tips on how to use the platform, and best of all access to an online training session which can yield you a year of LinkedIn premium.
You have to apply to participate in that, and this may be hard for student journalists, but it is worth a shot, especially if you have clips from outside the classroom.
Also, some recommended LinkedIn newsletters:
- Andrew Seaman, editor at large for jobs and career development, LinkedIn writes the super helpful “Get Hired” newsletter each week.
- Muck Rack Weekly from Gregory Galant, CEO of Muck Rack & the Shorty Awards, is always full of great insights, and development across journalism and public relations over the past week.
Damian Radcliffe is the Carolyn S. Chambers Professor in Journalism at the University of Oregon. He is an experienced analyst, educator, journalist, and researcher who has worked in editorial, research, teaching, and policy positions for the past three decades in the UK, Middle East, and USA. You can, of course, find him on LinkedIn.
This article was first published on 15 March 2018 and has been republished with new information and advice
Free daily newsletter
If you like our news and feature articles, you can sign up to receive our free daily (Mon-Fri) email newsletter (mobile friendly).