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Tue 19th Apr 2016 Known as the world’s largest professional network, LinkedIn is a fantastic tool to marketing yourself and your skills here are our tips on making the most of the social platform. 1) Get endorsed – endorsements are a great way of showing readers that other people value your skill set. Ask past employers or fellow contractors to write a piece about your skills and how you have helped them. Think about the skills you want to highlight most and ask them to concentrate on those. You can also endorse other people, and in doing so they may feel inclined to return the favour. Be careful to make any recommendations appear natural but not asking too many people to do them at once. 2) Include a CV – include your education and explain any relevant accreditations and areas of study. Also, ensure your job experience section is up to date, explaining the roles you have held and the responsibilities within those roles. 3) Include a headline – make sure your headline tells people what your skills are. Include your most recent job title or the type of role you are looking for next. Make sure the term you use is universal to get the most attention. 4) Be found on searches – recruiters will use Linked In search tools to find a short list of candidates to approach. Try to ensure you are on their short list by making sure the search terms they use are included in your profile somewhere. The tricky part can be figuring out what these terms might be. 5) Make connections – but be smart about them. People are often bombarded by invitations to link up, and they need to understand why they want to accept your invitation in a matter of se cords. Make sure you include personal messages that explain exactly why you want to be linked to them to stand the best chance of them accepting. 6) Include a picture –having a professional image attached to your profile helps you to stand out Ensure any image you use gives the right first impression 7) Join groups – they can be helpful to you as well as putting your profile in the right places Groups can be great for industry networking and keeping up to date with industry news. Active members boost their rankings within the groups and their profiles get more coverage. 8) Be contactable – make sure your details are up to date and made public so that when somebody wants to contact you they can do so with ease. Check you inbox regularly and answer any messages promptly. 9) Keep it up – an up to date profile is important, so keep adding new experiences – you do not want to be overlooked because your profile looks like you are under qualified. 10) Be vocal – have you got something to say? Try publishing an article through Linked In pulse. Make sure any articles you write are relevant to your professional life, stick to areas you have the most experience and be ready to answer any comments if necessary. Return