3 Places To Pack Your LinkedIn Profile With Keywords

Here’s why you should power up your LinkedIn profile with keywords: The more skills and job titles that match recruiter searches for candidates, the higher volume of traffic your profile will receive. In turn, better traffic means you’re more likely to be the target of a great new job.

If you’re lacking in keyword knowledge, but need to be found more often on LinkedIn, add keywords in these critical places on your profile:

1. Your Headline

Not only will a keyword-centric Headline help your profile traffic, it just looks better to employers.

So, replace “Operations and Production at XYZ Company” (the default from your current position) to “Operations Director & Manager. Cost Savings from Lean Six Sigma & Process Improvements in Aluminum Manufacturing.”

The same goes for “Unemployed and Looking,” which only tells employers you’re desperate. Instead, pull in a job title and some skill sets (“IT Director | Infrastructure & Applications | IT Roadmaps | Global Growth Strategy, ERP, & Business Transformation”) that convey your value-add.

2. Your Summary

Along with a powerful opening line that stirs interest, your LinkedIn Summary should contain keywords relevant to your goal:

“Creating over-goal revenue by zeroing in on untapped markets is how I’ve blown past quotas (up to 185% of goal), using innovative prospecting and consultative sales practices as Director of Business Development and Sales Manager.”

Notice that this Summary is completely different from a traditional resume profile, which doesn’t contain enough specifics to be useful on LinkedIn.

3. Your Contact Information

A little-used area in which to place keywords, your Contact data can be used to add even more keywords. Here’s how:

First go to Settings, find Email Preferences on the bottom left, and then look for a text box called “Advice to People Who are Contacting You.”

Here, you can add your contact specifics (e-mail, phone number, web links), plus more keywords, as in this example:

“As a prolific Sales Director and candidate for VP of Sales, once I believe in a product and set a goal, I’ve always achieved it (results include new market success in Internet product sales, 143% of quota from relationship building at United Airlines, and cloud product sales that opened 3 territories. I’m continually interested in partnering with VARs to grow managed services and hosting service revenue.”

Note how this Contact section specifies several job titles, as well as key product areas and other skills that can count in a recruiter search.

So, remember: all that stands between you and more LinkedIn traffic might be some additional keywords. Take the time to load up your profile in these areas, and you’ll experience a better hit rate and perhaps even more job offers.

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