The job hunt has gone digital thanks to professional networking sites such as LinkedIn. LinkedIn provides a platform that uses digital marketing for job seekers by allowing them to personalize their LinkedIn profile to showcase professional skills and abilities. Creating a powerful summary can help convey your worth as a potential employee, and maybe even land you the job!

Digital Marketing: 5 Tips for Your LinkedIn Profile Summary

1.Content:  This link is a great blog on the type of information to include in the content of your summary. Key aspects to consider include:

• A brief description of who you are
• The background of your experience
• Accomplishments
• Keywords related to your industry or role
• Contact information

Write it in the first person, please!

** A word of caution! When you update/edit your profile LinkedIn will send an auto-generated note to your contacts with the revision.  Here are directions to help you disable this feature if you don’t want to notify your network of the changes.

Adjust the activity broadcast setting while editing your profile:

• Move your cursor over Profile at the top of your homepage and select Edit Profile.
• Find the section you'd like to edit and click the Edit icon next to it.
• Click the green checkmark in the Notify Your Network? box on the right side of the page.
• Choose No, do not publish changes.

2. Use the Budget: The summary feature on LinkedIn provides a 2,000 character space for professionals to explain their experience and background to other users. Don't be afraid to use all 2,000 characters to your advantage by creating a strong summary for professional contacts.

3. Be a Storyteller: Take advantage of the summary by using it to tell the story of your professional career. Engaging users in a way that is entertaining and effective can increase other users’ ability to understand your professional accomplishments.

4. Know Your Audience:  The link below to a post on The Muse asks the reader to question “Who am I talking to?” when crafting your summary. Have you researched the profiles of others prominent in your industry or who hold a similar role? If you are job hunting have you thought of what a Recruiter would want to see on your profile?

5. Be Yourself: Regardless of your current professional goals, being yourself at all times is vital, including online! Your LinkedIn profile needs to be written in a way that is true to yourself and your values so employers and contacts have a clear understanding of who you are.

Using digital marketing to manage your professional brand on LinkedIn can have many benefits. Creating a strong summary is the first step to landing the job or meeting new professionals.