7 Linkedin Hacks for Your Professional Brand

7 Linkedin Hacks for Your Professional Brand January is all about beefing up your professional brand when it comes to career management.  In my previous Jan posts I shared how to perform an annual brand audit on Linkedin ®  as well as leverage other key platforms and brand strategies.    In this post, I want to take it one step further and  focus on some key actions youll want to master in order to take your brand from just existing, to actually working for you. You see it’s not just about having an online profile, it’s also about leveraging your presence to increase views, followers, interviews, sales (insert end goal here). Here are a few hacks  for leveraging your Linkedin ® presence once your brand is in place: 1.  Join Groups This is where your peeps are hanging out so join the party!   Search for relevant industry or professional groups and start to connect with like-minded people.  This is huge for someone looking to transition industries! 2.  Follow Companies Get the latest on trends, industry and other key insights from the companies you admire.   Being in the know is key especially if you’re hoping to wow at an interview or win over new business. 3.Start Conversations After you’ve joined target groups, start to participate.   This will help you stand out and establish your presence with your target people. 4.Be Helpful (Answer Questions and Contribute) Be seen as a problem solver.   Take the opportunity to showcase your knowledge by helping out when others ask questions.   People love a helper! [wpcb id=10 text=Click Here for a Free PDF download of this post. style=black_flat] 5.Share Content Writing original content not your thing?   Not a problem, post interesting content you find, to your news feed (similar to Tweeting) so your connections can keep you (AND your interesting content) top of mind. 6.Contribute Relevant Content If writing content is your thing, you’ll want to apply to contribute via Linkedin ® pulse.   This is especially valuable for those looking to attract new business or clients. 7.Connect Regularly Last but not least, make a point to connect proactively.   The more you link to other members, the more your network increases which contributes to boosting your SEO and shortening the degrees of connectivity between you and what may be a coveted, life-changing contact. Once youve had a chance to hack it out, share your results in the comments below.  Was there any one particular hack that worked especially well for you?  Was it industry specific?  What benefit did you yield?