C-Suite Network™

Menu
Search
Close this search box.

Author: Carol Kaemmerer

Internationally recognized executive branding expert, speaker and author of the award-winning book LinkedIn for the Savvy Executive, Carol Kaemmerer creates powerful brand messaging for senior executives and their companies to increase their visibility, influence, and ability to steer their future.

A member of National Speakers Association and certified as a Virtual Presenter, Carol is also an Advisor to the C-Suite Network.

Categories
Best Practices Leadership Marketing

What Can “Customer Experience” Teach About Building Your Personal Brand?

A Riddle
I can be your most powerful ambassador
and an efficient way to attract your ideal audience,
but I am often skeletal and without heart.
I’m a touch point for your customers,
accessible 24/7 across all time zones,
but you cannot know when I will be seen.
I’m used to vet board members, job candidates and vendors.
I am both the most used – and most ignored – part of your personal brand.
What am I?

 

Ponder this riddle for a bit, and we’ll come back to it…

Successful corporate brands are using Customer Experience (CX) experts to help them understand how customers are responding to each touch point along their Customer’s Journey. To explore how the discipline of Customer Experience might apply to personal brands, I asked for input from a fellow member of the National Speakers Association, Dan Gingiss, who teaches his clients and audiences how to create remarkable experiences that become their best sales and marketing strategy.

Dan shared with me that the discipline of Customer Experience explores how customers feel about every interaction with the brand. The Customer Journey, he explained, starts well before purchase and continues beyond the lifetime of the product. With each interaction or touch point with the brand, the customer’s opinion of the brand may either be reinforced or adjusted positively or negatively.

How can we apply that to our personal brand? A key concept from Customer Experience is that everything counts – every touch point with the brand shapes our opinion of the brand.

Most of us understand that how we dress for business (yes, even when we’re just seeing people on Zoom) is part of our personal brand, as is how we appear in our online meetings. Our offices and virtual backgrounds are also part of our brand because they are part of how we appear when we attend a virtual meeting. We can plan for how we show up in these business settings.

We understand that what we say and how we act at a meeting or in an office setting is part of our brand, as is anything we have published.

But we often forget that a huge part of what others consider to be an important part of our personal brand is something we seldom pay any attention to. Yes, you’ve probably guessed that the answer to my riddle is your LinkedIn profile.

In my one-on-work consultation with senior leaders, it’s not uncommon to hear comments from clients like:

“Well, if I had known that they were going to be looking at my profile, I would have polished it up.”

“Oh, I set it up X years ago and haven’t looked at it since.”

“Why is that skill in my profile? I’ve never used that skill!”

“Our company just bid on our biggest project ever and noticed that each of our leaders’ LinkedIn profiles were visited by the other company. We were all embarrassed that our profiles are out of date.”

Why are we surprised that people making judgments about us by looking at our LinkedIn profile? It is a touch point that is accessible 24/7 and ranks highly when our name is searched on Google. People assume it is up to date and a fair representation of who we are. And yet, very often, it is neither.

Here’s a challenge:
Today, read through your LinkedIn profile from top to bottom as though you are learning about a stranger, and ponder these questions:
1. What did you learn about this person?
2. How does their profile make you feel about them?
3. From your reading, can you determine their purpose, business passion and principles?
4. Does this person seem like someone with whom you’d like to do business?

If the feeling you had about this stranger was not strongly positive, it’s time for a serious overhaul of your brand online. If you are a C-suite executive or senior leader who would like to improve your online personal brand, LinkedIn profile, and presence, I can make it easy for you. Based on my knowledge of how LinkedIn works and how people respond to what they see there, I can ensure everything is ready and your profile conveys exactly the message and impression you’re aiming for. Let me help you attract the talent you want to hire, increase your visibility and influence, and steer your career. Contact me through my website: www.carolkaemmerer.com or profile: www.linkedin.com/in/carolkaemmerer.

To your success!

About Carol Kaemmerer: Named one of six top branding experts in 2022 by The American Reporter, I’ve helped countless C-level clients over the past ten years to use LinkedIn to frame conversations, impress customers, and introduce themselves before their first conversation takes place.

Contact me through my website https://carolkaemmerer.com for:
• Executive one-on-one assistance with your online brand
• Professional speaking engagements on personal brand and LinkedIn
• An autographed copy of my book, LinkedIn for the Savvy Executive-2ndEdition
• My self-paced, online course
• To receive my articles in your email mailbox monthly

My award-winning book, LinkedIn for the Savvy Executive-2nd Edition received BookAuthority’s “Best LinkedIn Books of All Time” award, was named one of the “Top 100+ Best Business Books” by The C-Suite Network, and is an International Book Awards winner. For your author-inscribed and signed book or for quantity discounts, order at: https://carolkaemmerer.com/books

Categories
Best Practices Growth Human Resources Leadership Personal Development

How Can I Spend My Time Wisely on LinkedIn?

 

How Can I Spend My Time Wisely on LinkedIn?

In networking sessions and master classes I’m often asked by people what they should be doing on LinkedIn when they’re on the platform. Here are my recommendations.

Be strategic

You probably have heard that you should be active on LinkedIn, so you’ve logged on. Good for you. But what can you do there that will achieve results?

Let’s begin with the end in mind. Let’s say that the results you want are:

PURPOSE 1: To nurture key business relationships and establish new ones,

PURPOSE 2: To be top of mind when someone is in need of someone just like you,

PURPOSE 3: To cultivate your reputation as an expert in a specific area,

or all of the above.

It is important to be strategic with your interactions and frugal with your time. So, set a timer for 15 minutes and begin.

Check your messages icon daily

If you have received new messages, the number of messages you’ve received will be superimposed over the messaging icon. Many people are using LinkedIn as a principal way to communicate – instead of email. And they expect you to respond. (To fail to do so would violate Purpose #1 above.) If you absolutely have time for only one thing on LinkedIn, checking your messages should be it.

Are you getting an unwanted sales pitch from a vendor? If you have no interest in that, use the auto response LinkedIn provides to indicate that that you’re not interested and move on quickly. Don’t waste time on these; they are probably automatic messages anyway.

If you have received a message from a client or colleague, respond as thoroughly as you would if the message came to you via email. Remember that every message you send reflects on you and your personal brand. (This also relates to Purpose #1 above.)

Check your notifications icon

Here you’ll find posts made by people that LinkedIn has selected for you to hear from, based on LinkedIn’s proprietary AI algorithm. In addition, you’re likely to see some notifications about birthdays and work anniversaries. Here’s how to respond.

Posts: Look at the posts LinkedIn has chosen to notify you about. If someone who is important to you has posted something, take time to read their post and respond with a Like AND a comment. (A Like by itself shows little engagement and gets you little notice.) Make sure your response adds value to the person who posted, to others reading your comment, and to yourself. (Relates to Purposes 1, 2 & 3.) If you think about it, you will understand that adding value excludes the throw-away comments (e.g., Congrats!, Great article., You go, girl., etc.) Instead, seek to add a comment that will cause someone else to want to read the post/article by spotlighting something specific. Validate it with an example. Amplify it with an additional case. Give the author something meaty to reply to so that a dialog can begin. Does this take more time than “Great article?” Yes, it does, but by pausing to formulate a meaningful response you are addressing all three Purposes, so this is a win.

Birthdays and work anniversaries: When you see a notification of a birthday or a work anniversary, consider it as an opportunity to say hello to those who are important to you and the opportunity to renew an acquaintanceship that has gone stale – the proverbial foot in the door. (Relates to Purposes 1 and 2.)

Do not waste time if you don’t really know the person – we don’t know a lot of our connections. But IF you decide you’d like to wish them a happy birthday, don’t just click the button. Think of Purpose #1. To nurture a relationship, you need to go beyond the robo message. Navigate to their profile, select send a message, and craft a sincerely communicated thought. I add a photo of something festive. Consider how you can send a greeting that will be memorable and consistent with your brand.

What about work anniversaries? Strangest notification ever, right? Let the lion’s share of these messages pass right on by, but if you’re wanting to re-engage with that person, this is an opportunity for you. Your personalized message might be something like: “George, I see you are still at XYZ company. Congratulations. I so enjoyed working with you on the ABC project back in the day.” And then continue with information about what you are currently doing or an opportunity to catch up over coffee or Zoom.

Look at your homepage feed

The timer you set should still be ticking, so that you don’t disappear down a rabbit hole. Scroll quickly to see if there is anything – or anyone (remember Purpose 1) – that deserves your attention. Every response reflects your brand and should add value to the conversation.

Check your network icon – at least once a week

Under this icon you will find connection requests (Purpose 1), opportunities to follow company pages and newsletters, and events. Just because you are asked to connect, follow, or attend, doesn’t mean that you are obliged to do so. These are opportunities; you are the one who gets to decide. Your time is precious.

Write some rules for yourself about the kinds of people you will admit to your network and those you won’t. Ignore the people who clearly fall outside your rules. If you’re not sure, check out their profile to see if they are a fit before you act.

As for the events and opportunities, the people who invited you will not receive a notification if you hit “ignore.”

Create your own posts regularly, on a schedule you can maintain

Whether you are posting, curating an article you found valuable, or writing your own commentary about something important to you, content creation relates primarily to Purpose 3, cultivating your reputation as an expert. You may need to extend your timer for this task, to do a good job writing a post or article. Don’t let writing consume too much of your time, but know that the more you post and demonstrate your expertise, the more likely people are to remember you when they hear of a need you can fill (Purpose 2).

When your timer is done, go on to the rest of your work day, knowing that you have used LinkedIn efficiently and to your best advantage. Strategic use of your time on LinkedIn will help you nurture important business relationships, help your name come to mind when an opportunity arises, and reinforce people’s appreciation of your expertise.

speaker holding microphoneNamed one of six top branding experts in 2022 by The American Reporter, over the past ten years, I’ve helped countless C-level clients use LinkedIn to frame conversations, impress suitors and customers, and introduce themselves before their first conversation takes place. If you are a C-suite executive or senior leader, I can make this easy for you. Based on my knowledge of how LinkedIn works and how people respond to what they see there, I can ensure everything is ready and your profile conveys exactly the message and impression you’re aiming for. Let me help you attract the talent you want to hire, increase your visibility and influence, and steer your career.

 

book cover
To order an author-signed book, see: https://carolkaemmerer.com/books

To order an author-signed book, see: https://carolkaemmerer.com/books

Contact me through my website https://carolkaemmerer.com for:

  • Executive one-on-one assistance with your online brand
  • Professional speaking engagements on personal brand and LinkedIn
  • An autographed copy of my book, LinkedIn for the Savvy Executive-2nd Edition
  • My self-paced, online course
  • To receive my articles in your email mailbox monthly

My award-winning book, LinkedIn for the Savvy Executive-2nd Edition received BookAuthority’s “Best LinkedIn Books of All Time” award, was named one of the “Top 100+ Best Business Books” by The C-Suite Network. For your author-inscribed and signed book or quantity discounts, order at: https://carolkaemmerer.com/books

Categories
Leadership Marketing Personal Development

Three Misconceptions About LinkedIn That Could Be Hurting You

Three Misconceptions About LinkedIn That Could Be Hurting You

In my roles as an executive branding expert, coach and speaker, I often hear misconceptions from both my clients and audiences about LinkedIn. When we accept these misconceptions as fact and operate on them, where we end up is not where we intend. This month I share three misconceptions and why they lead you astray on your journey to be memorable and to find opportunities –  clients, customers, and new challenges – that are right for you.

Misconception #1: LinkedIn is Just for Job Seekers

Although this may have been true in the past, it is certainly not the case today. LinkedIn is where many people will form their first impression of you. It’s where they look for evidence that they may be able to know, like and trust you – all prerequisites for doing business with you.

Today, executive leaders are waking up to the idea that sharing their authentic brand online is an asset for their company, because when they share their purpose, business passion and principles, they attract the talent they seek to hire.

If you are operating under the misconception that LinkedIn is just for job seekers and you are not seeking a new position, you are unlikely to tell your business story in a way that helps you stand out and be memorable. You are unlikely to sow the seeds of know, like and trust into your profile, and unlikely to be found by LinkedIn’s search function for opportunities that are right for you.

Also, if your company decides that they can do without you (it happens!), you are unlikely to be ready to search for your next role.

Misconception #2: Less is More

There are many situations when less is more. When the customer is already sold, we should stop talking. We appreciate white space in written documents; we know they will be less of a chore to read. And every Marie Kondo fan rejoices when they’ve achieved a kitchen counter devoid of all clutter.

But on LinkedIn, less is NOT more. This is because LinkedIn is a search engine in search of keywords. One of the primary determinants of whether you appear on page one of the results of someone’s search is the number of times the keyword being searched for appears in your  profile.

People who write their LinkedIn profile as though less is more are likely to have a very brief About section (or worse, no About section at all). They are likely to have little information in other sections as well. These people have no chance of ranking well on a keyword search: because they’ve used little text, their keywords don’t show up often.

In contrast, people who take full advantage of the LinkedIn character limits for each section by “writing to the margins,” will rank more highly because their keywords will naturally be used more often. See my article “If You’re Not “Writing to the Margins” on LinkedIn, You’re Missing Out,” for LinkedIn’s character limits as of this writing.


Misconception #3: Getting Thousands of Connections is THE Winning Strategy

My inbox overflows with offers to automatically generate leads for me with little effort on my part. It is as though getting leads (connections) is the most important strategy, to be pursued above all else.

Although the search algorithm works better when we have over 500 connections, once we’ve reached that threshold, there is a strategy that is much more important than adding new connections. That strategy is nurturing relationships – growing connections into friends; creating a true network of people whose expertise we trust. For LinkedIn nurturing strategies, see my article: Nurturing Your Most Important Business Relationships on LinkedIn.

speaker holding microphoneNamed one of six top branding experts in 2022 by The American Reporter, over the past ten years, I’ve helped countless C-level clients use LinkedIn to frame conversations, impress suitors and customers, and introduce themselves before their first conversation takes place. If you are a C-suite executive or senior leader, I can make this easy for you. Based on my knowledge of how LinkedIn works and how people respond to what they see there, I can ensure everything is ready and your profile conveys exactly the message and impression you’re aiming for. Let me help you attract the talent you want to hire, increase your visibility and influence, and steer your career.

 

book cover
To order an author-signed book, see: https://carolkaemmerer.com/books

Contact me through my website https://carolkaemmerer.com for:

  • Executive one-on-one assistance with your online brand
  • Professional speaking engagements on personal brand and LinkedIn
  • An autographed copy of my book, LinkedIn for the Savvy Executive-2nd Edition
  • My self-paced, online course
  • To receive my articles in your email mailbox monthly

My award-winning book, LinkedIn for the Savvy Executive-2nd Edition received BookAuthority’s “Best LinkedIn Books of All Time” award, was named one of the “Top 100+ Best Business Books” by The C-Suite Network. For your author-inscribed and signed book or quantity discounts, order at: https://carolkaemmerer.com/books

Other Articles by Carol Kaemmerer

What is a Personal Branding Expert? …And Do You Need One?

Why Senior Leaders Need a Strong Brand NOW — And Why It’s In their Company’s Best Interest to See That They Get One

7 Ways to Elevate Your Online Brand So You Can Love Your LinkedIn Profile

What is a Personal Brand – And How Can You Take Charge of Yours?

Twelve Changes You Can Make in About an Hour to Improve Your LinkedIn Profile

Why Is My LinkedIn Profile Getting So Few Views?

How Can LinkedIn Be Part of Your Company’s Strategy for Responding to the Great Resignation?

Is Your LinkedIn Profile Missing the Mark?

Comfortable in Your Job? Uncomfortable Life Lessons to Safeguard Your Career

How to Be Found on LinkedIn: Ten Top Strategies to Rank Well on a LinkedIn Keyword Search

Why Are You Playing Small on LinkedIn?

If You’re Not “Writing to the Margins” on LinkedIn, You’re Missing Out

Don’t Be Hooked Through a Big Phish: Recognize and Avoid Phishing Scams on LinkedIn:

A Small Omission That Undermines Your Credibility on LinkedIn

“Tell Me More…” — On LinkedIn

What is Your Poor LinkedIn Profile Costing You?

C-Suite Executives: Stop Hiding Online

Categories
Growth Management Personal Development

What is a Personal Branding Expert? …And Do You Need One?

 

What is a Personal Branding Expert?

…And Do You Need One?

I was recently named one of six top branding experts to watch in 2022 by The American Reporter. Since receiving that honor, I’ve been asked by colleagues “just what IS a personal branding expert?” In general, a personal branding expert is one who clarifies and polishes the way their clients present themselves to the world of work –  their personal brand –  to increase their client’s visibility and influence. Typically, people who identify as personal branding experts have backgrounds in marketing or communications with a strong client-centric focus. While they may specialize in a particular type of personal branding assistance (e.g. online branding via LinkedIn, thought leadership, social media management, public speaking, video communications, personal appearance and apparel, etc.) most are able to meet a broad range of client needs either themselves or with referral partners.

Do YOU Need a Personal Branding Expert?

Clients of personal branding experts tend to be executives, business owners, influencers, and celebrities – people who can afford one-of-a-kind, tailored-for-them work. Clients may seek personal branding assistance because they…

  • Need to publicly showcase their leadership style to attract and retain top talent
  • Wish to up-level their personal marketing collateral (LinkedIn profile, resume, etc.) to demonstrate that they are ready to move to the next level in their career
  • Need to prepare for an executive job search
  • Want to change the direction of their career and are in need of a new public narrative
  • Would like some help in crafting and preparing for a very important presentation
  • Need assistance “looking the part” following a promotion or to be a credible contender for a promotion
  • Need some communications coaching to improve the way they interact with others

What Do I Do as an Executive Branding Coach?

The word executive in my title refers to both the kinds of clients I work with and the level at which I work. My primary focus is on expressing my client’s brand online on LinkedIn because today every serious business discussion starts with both parties probing each others’ LinkedIn profiles. I ensure that everything is ready so that my client’s profile conveys exactly the message and impression they’re aiming for. I’ve helped countless C-level clients over the past ten years to frame conversations, attract talent and customers, and make positive impressions before their first conversation takes place with new customers or business partners.

I bring to my efforts world-class marketing communications experience for a Fortune 500 company, deep understanding of the LinkedIn platform (I literally wrote the book on the expression of executive brand on LinkedIn), experience working with an elite clientele, and interviewing and listening skills.

Every engagement begins with an interview to reveal the client’s brand and narrative so that I can write in their voice. After adjusting LinkedIn’s under-the-hood settings (what you don’t see CAN hurt you) I use every applicable section of the LinkedIn profile to tell my client’s story to its best effect. I write to the margins, emphasizing their keywords, to give my client the very best chance of being found by the LinkedIn search algorithm. Together we examine opportunities to incorporate visual elements that reinforce their brand story, including the selection of their profile’s banner image. I also teach my clients how to use the LinkedIn platform effectively to achieve their goals in relationship building, increasing their visibility and influence, sharing their thought leadership, etc.

Beyond their LinkedIn profile, many of my clients have needs for other personal marketing collateral such as executive resumes or curricula vitae, cover letters, bios for speaking or websites, website text, etc. I also mentor clients to help them develop posting skills, use LinkedIn capabilities in nurturing relationships, and creation of opinion and thought leadership pieces. As a trusted advisor to my clients, I address other needs through my well-vetted team of referral partners. [eut_single_image image_type=”image-link” image_mode=”medium” image=”32023″ link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fc-suitenetwork.com%2Fexecutive-membership|||”]

Clients who work with me experience these benefits:

  • Their profile is always ready to make a positive impression online
  • Their personal business story is communicated with authenticity, tact, and power, showcasing their business passion, purpose and principles effectively
  • The power of their profile attracts ideal-for-them opportunities passively 24/7
  • The foundations of KNOW, LIKE and TRUST are built into their profile, shortening the sales cycle
  • They learn strategies for nurturing their important connections, increasing their visibility and influence, and sharing their thought leadership via the LinkedIn platform

If you find that it is time for you to up-level your online brand, I can make it easy for you. For one-on-one assistance with your online brand, contact me through my website: https://carolkaemmerer.com.

 

 

You can contact me to speak to your group either virtually or in-person on the topic of personal branding via LinkedIn. I am a member of the National Speakers Association, a Certified Virtual Presenter, an Advisor to the C-Suite Network, and Executive Leader of LeadHERship Global.

LinkedIn for the Savvy Executive-2nd Edition received BookAuthority’s “Best LinkedIn Books of All Time” award, and is a featured selection of the C-Suite Book Club. For your author-inscribed and signed book or quantity discounts, order at: https://carolkaemmerer.com/books

For DIY instruction on improving your LinkedIn profile, register for my self-paced, online course: How to be Found on LinkedIn: Key Strategies for Attracting Ideal-for-You Opportunities, https://carolkaemmerer.com/onlinecourse

 To receive my monthly articles in your email inbox, sign up for my monthly e-letter here.

 

Other Articles by Carol Kaemmerer

Why Senior Leaders Need a Strong Brand NOW — And Why It’s In their Company’s Best Interest to See That They Get One

7 Ways to Elevate Your Online Brand So You Can Love Your LinkedIn Profile

What is a Personal Brand – And How Can You Take Charge of Yours?

Twelve Changes You Can Make in About an Hour to Improve Your LinkedIn Profile

Why Is My LinkedIn Profile Getting So Few Views?

How Can LinkedIn Be Part of Your Company’s Strategy for Responding to the Great Resignation?

Is Your LinkedIn Profile Missing the Mark?

Comfortable in Your Job? Uncomfortable Life Lessons to Safeguard Your Career

How to Be Found on LinkedIn: Ten Top Strategies to Rank Well on a LinkedIn Keyword Search

Why Are You Playing Small on LinkedIn?

If You’re Not “Writing to the Margins” on LinkedIn, You’re Missing Out

Don’t Be Hooked Through a Big Phish: Recognize and Avoid Phishing Scams on LinkedIn:

A Small Omission That Undermines Your Credibility on LinkedIn

“Tell Me More…” — On LinkedIn

What is Your Poor LinkedIn Profile Costing You?

C-Suite Executives: Stop Hiding Online

Categories
Best Practices Growth Human Resources Management Personal Development

Why Senior Leaders Need a Strong Online Brand NOW

Why Senior Leaders Need a Strong Online Brand NOW –

and Why It’s In their Company’s Best Interest to See That They Get One

As a consequence of the COVID pandemic, the world of work has been turned upside down. Given the necessity of working from home, an unprecedented number of talented employees have become disaffected and disengaged from their companies. They are leaving in massive numbers, or contemplating leaving within the year, in a phenomenon dubbed the Great Resignation. In the hiring and retention process, job candidates and employees now have the upper hand.

Generally, talented people who are contemplating change are not interested in settling for just any position that will provide them a paycheck. They already have that. Instead, they are looking to work for leaders who have a passion for what they do. They are looking for leaders who elevate their direct reports, who help them to grow and advance in their careers, and who mentor and coach them. And of course, they are looking for great leaders at great companies.

You may already be that passionate kind of leader – and if so, bravo! But unless your online presence shows that, no one outside your immediate circle will know. If you have only a skeletal LinkedIn profile, the talent you seek to hire will be unimpressed rather than attracted to you, and will look elsewhere.

In the past, your company may have considered that improvements to a leader’s LinkedIn profile were an indicator that they were about to depart. But NOW, astute corporate leaders recognize that a leader’s great online presence is a company asset. Here’s why:

  • One of the primary ways candidates vet a company and an open position (remember they have the upper hand, now) is by looking at the company’s leadership online on LinkedIn.
  • They’ll be scrutinizing leaders’ ABOUT sections looking for clues about how they lead, the principles that guide them, and their areas of passion. They will be trying to size up the leaders to determine if they would enjoy working for them. They’ll be looking for leaders who are authentic and transparent. A two-sentence synopsis won’t do.
  • They’ll look to leaders’ EXPERIENCE sections to see about what accomplishments they’ve listed and how they talk about them. For example, does the leader acknowledge their team or take full credit for accomplishments that obviously were not an individual effort?
  • They’ll look at leaders’ HONORS and AWARDS section as an indicator of how the company recognizes its existing talent.
  • They’ll be hunting for leaders’ VOLUNTEER activities. They want to know that leaders in the company have a life of meaning outside the company, and that they give back to the community. They’ll want to see that leaders are making time for family and volunteering.

How does knowing these things about how available talent evaluates leaders’ profiles help you?

If you are a C-Suite executive, use the bullet points above to audit your own LinkedIn profile. Does your profile provide the kind of information job candidates are looking for? Is your profile a talent magnet, or is it, because of its sparseness, the kind of profile that might it actually repel the talent considering your company? Next, take a look at the profiles of the other members of your company’s leadership team. If your company’s leaders are solid but their LinkedIn profiles don’t reflect that, LinkedIn makeovers are in order. Make them available at company expense.

Remember, the talent your company wants to hire is evaluating your company’s desirability based on what they read on your leaders’ LinkedIn profiles. Make your leaders’ profiles a company asset.

 

speaker holding microphoneFrom Fortune 500 companies to Silicon Valley start-ups, clients around the country have passed initial muster, raised capital, and bought or sold what they wanted to buy or sell by using LinkedIn to their best advantage. If you are a C-suite executive or senior leader, I can make this easy for you. Before a customer or M&A team examines your team’s LinkedIn profiles, based on my knowledge of how LinkedIn works and how people respond to what they see there, I can ensure everything is ready and your profiles convey exactly the message and impression you’re aiming for.

Over the past ten years, I’ve helped countless C-level clients and senior executives use LinkedIn to frame conversations, impress suitors and customers, and introduce themselves before their first conversation takes place.

book cover
To order an author-signed book, see: https://carolkaemmerer.com/books

Along the way, I wrote the award-winning book, LinkedIn for the Savvy Executive-2nd Edition. It’s received BookAuthority’s “Best LinkedIn Books of All Time” award, and is a featured selection of the C-Suite Book Club. For your author-inscribed and signed book or quantity discounts, order at: https://carolkaemmerer.com/books

Let me help you use this essential business tool effectively. Contact me through my website: www.carolkaemmerer.com or profile: www.linkedin.com/in/carolkaemmerer. 

Book me to speak either virtually or in person on the topic of personal branding via LinkedIn. I am a member of the National Speakers Association, a Certified Virtual Presenter, and an Advisor to the C-Suite Network.

For DIY instruction on improving your LinkedIn profile, register for my self-paced, online course: How to be Found on LinkedIn: Key Strategies for Attracting Ideal-for-You Opportunities, https://carolkaemmerer.com/onlinecourse

To receive my monthly articles in your email inbox, sign up for my monthly emailing here.

 

Other Articles by Carol Kaemmerer

7 Ways to Elevate Your Online Brand So You Can Love Your LinkedIn Profile

What is a Personal Brand – And How Can You Take Charge of Yours?

Twelve Changes You Can Make in About an Hour to Improve Your LinkedIn Profile

Why Is My LinkedIn Profile Getting So Few Views?

How Can LinkedIn Be Part of Your Company’s Strategy for Responding to the Great Resignation?

Is Your LinkedIn Profile Missing the Mark?

Comfortable in Your Job? Uncomfortable Life Lessons to Safeguard Your Career

How to Be Found on LinkedIn: Ten Top Strategies to Rank Well on a LinkedIn Keyword Search

Why Are You Playing Small on LinkedIn?

If You’re Not “Writing to the Margins” on LinkedIn, You’re Missing Out

Don’t Be Hooked Through a Big Phish: Recognize and Avoid Phishing Scams on LinkedIn:

A Small Omission That Undermines Your Credibility on LinkedIn

“Tell Me More…” — On LinkedIn

What is Your Poor LinkedIn Profile Costing You?

C-Suite Executives: Stop Hiding Online

Categories
Best Practices Marketing Personal Development

7 Ways to Elevate Your Online Brand So You Can Love Your LinkedIn Profile

7 Ways to Elevate Your Online Brand So You Can Love Your LinkedIn Profile

Do you dread having potential business suitors, partners, customers – and the talent you hope to hire – probe your LinkedIn profile? Are you uncomfortable because you know your profile doesn’t represent you effectively? A great LinkedIn profile introduces you well, and starts to convey the message and impression you’re shooting for even before your first conversation takes place. If your profile is not doesn’t do this, give yourself some self-love to elevate it. I’ve outlined 7 ways below – so you can love your online brand.

Before a customer or M&A team probes your team’s LinkedIn profiles, I ensure everything is ready, and your profiles convey exactly the message and impression you’re aiming for.

Be authentically YOU.

As I mentioned in last month’s article, expressing your personal brand in words is difficult, but it is a challenge worth tackling. Think about who you serve, the problems you help them solve, and the results of your work. In your About section, tell us about your business purpose, principles, and passion. The more deeply you share, the more effectively you set the stage for people to know, like, and trust you.

Create a headline that differentiates you.

LinkedIn auto-fills your headline with your current position title and company, but they also provide 220 characters for customization. Consider how you add value and write the phrases that will let us know.

Update your headshot.

If your headshot is already stellar AND you still look like the person in the picture, there’s no need to update. But if the image isn’t the best, love yourself enough to find the best headshot photographer in your area and make an appointment. Chapter 3 in my book provides a checklist to help you evaluate whether you need a new headshot and information about how to source your ideal headshot photographer.

Create a customized banner image.

The graphic behind your headshot is called the banner; the default banner provided by LinkedIn is an uninspiring gray/green graphic. Customizing it can bring your personal brand to life. Perhaps your company’s marketing communications team already has some company-accepted banner images using your company’s logo. Or, refer to the headline you created and consider how some of your personal brand attributes might translate visually. The free sources of images I love to access for my clients are stocksnap.io and www.unsplash.com. Also, you can add text to any visual using www.canva.com.

Write to the margins.

An important driver of LinkedIn’s search algorithm is the number of times your profile uses the keyword someone is using in their search. If you write a two-sentence About section or include minimal text under each of your job experiences, you cannot possibly rank as well as someone who takes LinkedIn’s character limits for each section to heart. For example, the About section is 2,600 characters (about 5 paragraphs) and for each job position, the limit is 2,000 characters. The more you write, the more you will naturally use keywords related to your personal brand. For a more complete discussion on how to write effectively for the two audiences (bots and people) on your LinkedIn profile, see my article Tell Me More – on LinkedIn.

Customize your URL.

As I mentioned in my December article, the URL assigned to you by LinkedIn ends with a long string of random numbers and letters that are hard for you (and others) to memorize or type. You should create your own URL, because using the default URL signals that you are not in the know. A default URL doesn’t fit nicely on a business card or your signature block on your email and it is cumbersome when you have to look it up to post it in the Zoom chat. This is an easy fix: to the right of your profile, you’ll find the link called Edit Public Profile and URL. Click on it, and you can create your own URL.

 

Up-level your Skills section.

Make sure that the first three skills listed in your Skills section are your most important skills. If they are not, demote the skills currently listed in the top three slots by clicking the pushpin icons and add the pushpin icons to your three most important skills. For a more complete explanation of why that is important and how to up-level the skills listed in this important LinkedIn section, see my article: Have You Missed the Step that Gives Your LinkedIn Skills POWER?

When your online brand represents you well, you’ll love your LinkedIn profile. A profile that is working optimally will bring ideal-for-you opportunities right to your door.

 

 

 

From Fortune 500 companies to Silicon Valley start-ups, clients around the country have passed initial muster, raised capital, and bought or sold what they wanted to buy or sell by using LinkedIn to their best advantage. If you are a C-suite executive or senior leader, I can make this easy for you. Before a customer or M&A team examines your team’s LinkedIn profiles, based on my knowledge of how LinkedIn works and how people respond to what they see there, I can ensure everything is ready and your profiles convey exactly the message and impression you’re aiming for.

Over the past ten years, I’ve helped countless C-level clients and senior executives use LinkedIn to frame conversations, impress suitors and customers, and introduce themselves before their first conversation takes place. Along the way, I wrote the award-winning book, LinkedIn for the Savvy Executive-2nd Edition. It’s received BookAuthority’s “Best LinkedIn Books of All Time” award, and is a featured selection of the C-Suite Book Club.

Let me help you use this essential business tool effectively. Contact me through my website: www.carolkaemmerer.com or profile: www.linkedin.com/in/carolkaemmerer. 

Carol KaemmererBook me to speak either virtually or in person on the topic of personal branding via LinkedIn. I am a member of the National Speakers Association, a Certified Virtual Presenter, and an Advisor to the C-Suite Network.

Promote Your Brand with Authenticity, Tact and Power

book cover
To order an author-signed book, see: https://carolk.yourfeaturedauthor.com/

My book Second Edition: LinkedIn for the Savvy Executive: Promote Your Brand with Authenticity, Tact and Power is available through online booksellers. For your author-inscribed and signed book or quantity discounts, order at: https://carolkaemmerer.com/books

For DIY instruction on improving your LinkedIn profile, register for my self-paced, online course: How to be Found on LinkedIn: Key Strategies for Attracting Ideal-for-You Opportunities, https://carolkaemmerer.com/onlinecourse

To receive my monthly articles in your email inbox, sign up for my monthly emailing here.

 

Other Articles by Carol Kaemmerer

 

What is a Personal Brand – And How Can You Take Charge of Yours?

Twelve Changes You Can Make in About an Hour to Improve Your LinkedIn Profile

Why Is My LinkedIn Profile Getting So Few Views?

How Can LinkedIn Be Part of Your Company’s Strategy for Responding to the Great Resignation?

Is Your LinkedIn Profile Missing the Mark?

Comfortable in Your Job? Uncomfortable Life Lessons to Safeguard Your Career

How to Be Found on LinkedIn: Ten Top Strategies to Rank Well on a LinkedIn Keyword Search

Why Are You Playing Small on LinkedIn?

If You’re Not “Writing to the Margins” on LinkedIn, You’re Missing Out

Don’t Be Hooked Through a Big Phish: Recognize and Avoid Phishing Scams on LinkedIn:

A Small Omission That Undermines Your Credibility on LinkedIn

“Tell Me More…” — On LinkedIn

What is Your Poor LinkedIn Profile Costing You?

C-Suite Executives: Stop Hiding Online

 

 

 

Categories
Best Practices Growth Personal Development

What is a Personal Brand – and How Can You Take Charge of Yours?

What is a Personal Brand?

And How Can You Take Charge of Yours?

 

What is a personal brand?

Your personal brand is what people know you for – it is your reputation. Jeff Bezos suggests: “Your brand is what people say about you when you’re not in the room.” Your personal brand is what makes you memorable; your personal brand differentiates you from others. Others attribute your personal brand to you based on their experience with you by evaluating how you look, how you act, and what you say.

Taking charge of your personal

If other people are attributing your brand to you, do you have any control over how you are known? YES, you absolutely can proactively control your personal brand to make sure you get recognized for who you are and what you are good at. Having a strong personal brand will help you advance in the world of work. The keys to building your strong personal brand are: assessment, authenticity, communication, congruence, credibility.

Assessment

Take stock of yourself. Give yourself the gift of time and space for serious introspection. What is it people come to you for? What are your skills and experiences? What do you really enjoy doing? What are your personal values and principles? What differentiates you from others? Figuring out who you are and what you want to communicate about yourself is the essential starting point for “packaging” your personal brand message.

Authenticity

Intentionally creating a personal brand is not about adopting a new persona; it is about representing yourself as you are authentically. I like the maxim often attributed to Oscar Wilde: “Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.” So, strive to be the best possible version of yourself, but don’t try to be someone you’re not. If you adopt a false brand, you won’t attract the right opportunities.

Communication

Putting your personal brand into words concisely is a challenge worth tackling. Think about who you serve, the problems you help them solve, and the results of your work. Draft multiple defining statements and say each aloud. When you find one you really like, practice it repeatedly so that it trips off your tongue easily.

When you can easily articulate your personal brand, you’ll find it much easier to introduce yourself at a networking session, write a compelling LinkedIn headline and About section, share with your customer how you may be helpful, make a compelling impression at a job interview, and more.

Craft your LinkedIn profile with care. LinkedIn is one of the primary ways people find out about you.

Congruence

An intentionally created personal brand is like a contract with yourself and others. Michael Hyatt says: “Literally, every point of contact is an opportunity to create a positive brand impression—if you are intentional.” But if how you look, how you act, and what you say are not aligned, the brand you intend to convey will not be the brand others perceive. For example, if part of your stated personal brand is that you are “customer-focused,” but you consistently show up to meetings late, fail to listen, and don’t complete projects according to the agreed-to deadline, then something is definitely not congruent – and your brand is damaged.

Credibility

Have you heard the admonition “show, don’t tell?” Instead of telling us of your greatness, you can use your LinkedIn profile to increase your credibility by including your education, honors, and awards; by quantifying your results using key performance indicators; by including the names and logos of companies you’ve worked for; by endorsements and recommendations. These credibility indicators are easy to include on your LinkedIn profile, as well as on your resume and other personal marketing materials.

Building an intentional, strong personal brand is the key to career advancement – and of course, sharing your brand online via LinkedIn is an essential career strategy.

 

 

If you are a C-suite executive or senior leader who would like to improve your online personal brand, LinkedIn profile, and presence, I can make it easy for you. I have a track record of working effectively with C-suite executives and senior leaders to create LinkedIn profiles and other executive-branded materials that help them show up as authentically and powerfully online as they do in person. This way, they can attract the talent they want to hire, increase their visibility and influence, and control their career. I also mentor clients on LinkedIn etiquette and effective posting strategies to ensure their success. Let me help you use this essential business tool effectively. Contact me through my website: www.carolkaemmerer.com or profile: www.linkedin.com/in/carolkaemmerer. 

Carol KaemmererOther resources:

Book me to speak either virtually or in person on the topic of personal branding via LinkedIn. I am a member of the National Speakers Association, a Certified Virtual Presenter, and an Advisor to the C-Suite Network.

to order click: https://carolk.yourfeaturedauthor.com/LinkedIn for the Savvy Executive - Second Edition
Promote Your Brand with Authenticity, Tact and Power

My NEW book Second Edition: LinkedIn for the Savvy Executive: Promote Your Brand with Authenticity, Tact and Power is available through online booksellers. For your author-inscribed and signed book or quantity discounts, order at: https://carolkaemmerer.com/books

 

For DIY instruction on improving your LinkedIn profile, register for my self-paced, online course: How to be Found on LinkedIn: Key Strategies for Attracting Ideal-for-You Opportunities, https://carolkaemmerer.com/onlinecourse

 

To receive my monthly articles in your email inbox, sign up for my monthly emailing here.

 

Other Articles by Carol Kaemmerer

Twelve Changes You Can Make in About an Hour to Improve Your LinkedIn Profile

Why Is My LinkedIn Profile Getting So Few Views?

How Can LinkedIn Be Part of Your Company’s Strategy for Responding to the Great Resignation?

Is Your LinkedIn Profile Missing the Mark?

Comfortable in Your Job? Uncomfortable Life Lessons to Safeguard Your Career

How to Be Found on LinkedIn: Ten Top Strategies to Rank Well on a LinkedIn Keyword Search

Why Are You Playing Small on LinkedIn?

If You’re Not “Writing to the Margins” on LinkedIn, You’re Missing Out

Don’t Be Hooked Through a Big Phish: Recognize and Avoid Phishing Scams on LinkedIn:

A Small Omission That Undermines Your Credibility on LinkedIn

“Tell Me More…” — On LinkedIn

What is Your Poor LinkedIn Profile Costing You?

C-Suite Executives: Stop Hiding Online

 

 

 

Categories
Best Practices Growth Personal Development

Twelve Changes You Can Make in About an Hour to Improve Your LinkedIn Profile

Twelve Changes You Can Make in About an Hour to Improve Your LinkedIn Profile

Generally, I write and speak about the importance of putting your essence – your purpose, principles, and business passions – into your LinkedIn profile, so people will discover the authentic YOU when they encounter your profile. That change requires heavy lifting: introspection by the individual and high quality writing (either by that person or someone like me who specializes in writing superlative customized LinkedIn profiles). But here, as my holiday gift to you, I offer 12 simple changes you can make to improve your profile from a mechanical standpoint. Each of these is easy to make and the references I provide can help. You may be able to make all these changes in about a hour, or if you are so inclined, you could do one a day during each of the 12 days of Christmas!

 

  1. Customize your profile’s URL
    Why? Because the URL assigned to you by LinkedIn ends with a long string of random numbers and letters that make it hard for you (and others) to memorize or type. Your default URL doesn’t fit nicely on a business card or your signature block on your email and it is cumbersome when you have to look it up to post it in the Zoom chat with the customized URLs of others. Also, using the default URL signals that you are not in the know. To the right of your profile, you’ll find Edit Public Profile and URL.
  2. Check to see that your photo and all your sections are visible to the public
    The longer you have been on LinkedIn, the more likely you are to have this kind of settings problems because we were all so skittish about showing our photo online years ago. Now, having your photo not show on your profile is equivalent to having no photo of a house listed for sale. I see the “no photo showing” problem quite often among senior-level leaders. Of course they are generally unaware that people who are not connected see their profile without their photo. There are other sections of your profile that may not be visible. To make them visible, you’ll find those in the in the Edit Public Profile and URL noted in #1.
  3. Change the setting “Viewers of This Profile Also Viewed” to NO
    Why? This default setting allows 10 people to appear to the right of your profile (or 20 in the phone app) who were viewed by someone who viewed your profile also. Recruiters sometimes refer to these people as your competition; recruiters are delighted to use this feature to help them source candidates for positions they are trying to fill. Giving others a free ride on your LinkedIn profile is not to your advantage. Change this setting to No. You’ll find this setting in a drop-down menu under your avatar (the small photo of you on your toolbar) in the Site Preferences section.
  4. Add your email address
    Actually, add it in two places: under the Contact info button and at the end of your About section. Why? Your connections expect to be able to access your email in your Contact info section, but people who are not connected with you cannot see your email under your Contact section.
  5. Check out the other info under the Contact info button
    For example, add your current company’s website if it is not already there and make sure that websites from former positions are not still linked with your account. Also, take a look at anything else you might want to add or subtract. For example, if you dislike having prospective vendors and people you don’t know well wish you a happy birthday, take your birth date off. If on your special day you crave attention, make sure your birthday is listed.
  6. Attempt to correct the issue of any missing logos in your Experience section and Education section
    Logos are an important credibility builder. For my instructions on how to get logos that exist within the LinkedIn database to show up, and how to get logos for a company you control to be entered in the LinkedIn database, see my article, A Small Omission That Undermines Your Credibility on LinkedIn.
  7. Add the Name pronouncer widget
    Is yours is a name that people find challenging to pronounce? If so, rejoice! Help is on the way. On the LinkedIn mobile app (only), you can now record your name so that people will know how to pronounce it. You’ll find instructions here. Once recorded via the mobile app, people can listen to your recording from any device.
  8. Add a Featured section
    Populate it with posts you’ve made about your team, articles you’ve written, logos of professional associations to which you belong, etc. Read more about the Featured section in my article Are You Missing Out On LinkedIn’s New Brand-Building Features?
  9. Make sure your education listings are in the order you prefer
    To make a change, go to your education section and you’ll see to the right of the word Education caret symbols (up and down) and a plus sign. Click on the carets which takes you to a “Reorder” window from which you can change the order of your schools using the slider icons.
  10. Check out the Optional sections such as licenses and certifications, honors and awards, volunteer experience. Add any that apply.
  11. Make sure that the top three skills that show on your profile are really your most important skills
    If they are not, demote the skills currently listed in the top three slots by clicking the pushpin icons and add the pushpin icons to your three most important skills.
  12. Customize your LinkedIn headline
    LinkedIn auto-fills your headline with your current job title and company, but you have 220 characters to customize it. Think of your headline as your marketing tagline and add some additional text. For example, you could add the value your clients or customers receive from your services.

 

If you are a C-suite executive or senior leader who would like to improve your LinkedIn profile and presence, I can make it easy for you. I have a track record of working effectively with C-suite executives and senior leaders to create LinkedIn profiles and other executive-branded materials that help them show up as authentically and powerfully online as they do in person. This way, they can attract the talent they want to hire, increase their visibility and influence, and control their career. I also mentor clients on LinkedIn etiquette and effective posting strategies to ensure their success. Let me help you use this essential business tool effectively. Contact me through my website: www.carolkaemmerer.com or profile: www.linkedin.com/in/carolkaemmerer. 

 

Carol KaemmererOther resources:

Book me to speak either virtually or in-person on the topic of personal branding via LinkedIn. I am a member of the National Speakers Association, a Certified Virtual Presenter, and an Advisor to the C-Suite Network.

Cover of LinkedIn for the Savvy Executive: Second Edition by Carol Kaemmerer

 

My NEW book Second Edition: LinkedIn for the Savvy Executive: Promote Your Brand with Authenticity, Tact and Power is available through online booksellers. For your author-inscribed and signed book or quantity discounts, order: https://carolkaemmerer.com/books

 

For DIY instruction on improving your LinkedIn profile, register for my self-paced, online course: How to be Found on LinkedIn: Key Strategies for Attracting Ideal-for-You Opportunities, https://carolkaemmerer.com/onlinecourse

 

To receive my monthly articles in your email inbox, sign up for my monthly emailing here.

 

Articles by Carol Kaemmerer

Why Is My LinkedIn Profile Getting So Few Views?

How Can LinkedIn Be Part of Your Company’s Strategy for Responding to the Great Resignation?

Is Your LinkedIn Profile Missing the Mark?

Comfortable in Your Job? Uncomfortable Life Lessons to Safeguard Your Career

How to Be Found on LinkedIn: Ten Top Strategies to Rank Well on a LinkedIn Keyword Search

Why Are You Playing Small on LinkedIn?

If You’re Not “Writing to the Margins” on LinkedIn, You’re Missing Out

Don’t Be Hooked Through a Big Phish: Recognize and Avoid Phishing Scams on LinkedIn

A Small Omission That Undermines Your Credibility on LinkedIn

“Tell Me More…” — On LinkedIn

What is Your Poor LinkedIn Profile Costing You?

C-Suite Executives: Stop Hiding Online

 

Categories
Growth Personal Development

Why Is My LinkedIn Profile Getting So Few Views?

Why Is My LinkedIn Profile Getting So Few Views?

“Why is my LinkedIn profile getting so few views?” I often get this question from audience members when I speak. For many, their lack of profile views is an obstacle they need to overcome. Perhaps their business is flagging and they’re hoping to attract customers; perhaps they are seeking a new position and are hoping to be found by recruiters and hiring managers. If having few views is a problem for you for whatever reason, this article will identify the contributing issues and provide strategies for improving your profile’s ability to attract your ideal target audience.

 

You have too few connections

One of the two primary drivers of LinkedIn’s search algorithm is your relationship with the person doing the search. In other words, people who are 1st-level connections with the person searching will rank more highly on the searcher’s query than they will rank on a query by someone with whom they are not connected. Thus, the search algorithm benefits people with a large network (500+ 1st level connections). Growing your network to this size will increase the likelihood of your profile being viewed based on a LinkedIn keyword search.

 

You have too few words

LinkedIn is a search engine; the second driver of its search algorithm is the number of times the keyword that is being searched for appears on your profile. A keyword can be multiple words; it is a search term someone may enter into a search engine. When you write more text, you will naturally use your keywords more often in context, which will help your profile show up in more searches.

LinkedIn’s search function is not just looking for whether a keyword entered by someone doing a search is on your profile or not; it is looking at how many times their keyword appears on your profile. You simply can’t have search words show up often if your profile has very little text. If your profile has no About section or just a sentence or two and you have no text or very little text under each of your positions, your chance of ranking high enough on a keyword search is quite low. See LinkedIn’s character limits for each section in my article.

 

You have made parts of your profile private

This error is most often found among people who established their LinkedIn account many years ago when people were warier about sharing career information online than they are now. If you’ve made your text private, LinkedIn’s bots can’t read it, and any keywords that you used in those sequestered parts of your profile will not contribute to your ranking. You’ll find these privacy settings on the right side of your profile under the heading “Edit public profile & URL.” When you click on this heading, you’ll find each section of your profile named along with a toggle button that can be set to “hide” or “show.” For your best chance to be found on a keyword search and to have your profile seen each section should be toggled to “show.” For a further description of setting errors, you may have made, see my article.

 

Many people on LinkedIn have the same name

Up until this point, we have been talking keyword searches, for example, someone searching for an accountant with experience in the real estate industry who lives in Philadelphia. But now let’s turn to what may happen when someone searches for a person by name.

 

Suppose your name is John Hart and you are in a Zoom networking meeting with people from all over the US, Canada, and Australia. If someone from the Zoom meeting decided they would like to connect with you and searched for “John Hart” on LinkedIn, they’d be faced with 100 pages of people named John Hart to choose from. How can you improve your chance that they’ll find you, and actually view your profile,  before they give up?

 

One way you can make things easier for people is to list your middle initial and/or your credentials (e.g., John T. Hart, JD) on both your Zoom label and on your LinkedIn profile. Having a photo that actually looks like you look today also helps. Listing your location on your Zoom screen also can help. To provide people with the most definitive way to connect, you could put your LinkedIn URL into the Zoom chat. To find out how to customize your LinkedIn URL to have it be memorable and easy to use, see my article.

 

You have no profile photo

Whether you have a profile photo or not has no bearing on whether your profile will be found on a LinkedIn keyword search, but it has a lot to do with whether your profile will actually be opened and viewed. LinkedIn’s research tells us that you are 21 times more likely to have your profile opened (viewed) if you have a profile photo than if you do not.

 

You are not active on the platform

One of the ways people find and view others’ profiles is by seeing what they post online. People who post interesting content find that their views spike on the days when they post something engaging.

 

On-point help

If YOU need to see a surge in your number of views, I’ve developed a self-paced, online course that could be a great fit for you. It’s called How to Be Found on LinkedIn: Key Strategies for Attracting Ideal-for-You Opportunities. Course details and registration can be found here.

 

 

LinkedIn for the Savvy Executive-Second Edition, by Carol Kaemmerer, Published January 2021

If you are a C-suite executive or senior leader who would like to improve your LinkedIn profile and presence, I can make it easy for you. I have a track record of working effectively with C-suite executives and senior leaders to create LinkedIn profiles and other executive-branded materials that help them show up as authentically and powerfully online as they do in person. This way, they can attract the talent they want to hire, increase their visibility and influence, and control their career. I also mentor clients on LinkedIn etiquette and effective posting strategies to ensure their success. Let me help you use this essential business tool effectively. Contact me through my website: www.carolkaemmerer.com or profile: www.linkedin.com/in/carolkaemmerer. 

 

 Other resources:

Book me to speak either virtually or in-person on personal branding via LinkedIn. I am a member of the National Speakers Association, a Certified Virtual Presenter, and an Advisor to the C-Suite Network.

 

My NEW book Second Edition: LinkedIn for the Savvy Executive: Promote Your Brand with Authenticity, Tact and Power is available through online booksellers. For quantity discounts or signed copies, contact me directly.

 

To receive my monthly articles in your email inbox, sign up for my monthly emailing here.

 

Articles by Carol Kaemmerer

 

How Can LinkedIn Be Part of Your Company’s Strategy for Responding to the Great Resignation?

Is Your LinkedIn Profile Missing the Mark?

Comfortable in Your Job? Uncomfortable Life Lessons to Safeguard Your Career

How to Be Found on LinkedIn: Ten Top Strategies to Rank Well on a LinkedIn Keyword Search

Why Are You Playing Small on LinkedIn?

If You’re Not “Writing to the Margins” on LinkedIn, You’re Missing Out

Don’t Be Hooked Through a Big Phish: Recognize and Avoid Phishing Scams on LinkedIn

A Small Omission That Undermines Your Credibility on LinkedIn

“Tell Me More…” — On LinkedIn

What is Your Poor LinkedIn Profile Costing You?

C-Suite Executives: Stop Hiding Online

 

Categories
Growth Leadership Personal Development

How Can LinkedIn Be Part of Your Company’s Strategy for Responding to the Great Resignation?

The COVID-19 pandemic has given rise to the Great Resignation – and to the scramble by a great many employers for qualified job candidates. This article explores one method C-suite executives and senior leaders can use to improve the odds that their company will attract qualified candidates via LinkedIn.

To inspire job candidates not only to sign on but to also stay for a while, companies need to offer greater flexibility than they have in the past and also make apparent their corporate values and corporate responsibility with regards to current societal issues. Company leaders also need to be more transparent about their leadership style, purpose, and values. The way C-suite executives and senior-level leaders use LinkedIn can help address these needs.

Why are these matters important?

We know that employees who have resigned already (or are planning to) are looking for greater flexibility in work schedule, greater work-life balance, and the ability to work remotely, at least occasionally, if they so choose. Beyond these recently emergent issues, years of Deloitte Millennial Surveys and other studies have stressed that Millennials and Gen Z workers want to align themselves with companies and leaders that have a purpose that goes beyond profit; they want to work for companies and leaders that address critical societal issues. They are looking for leaders who value employees as individuals.

Do these matters require a change in the way most C-suite executives and senior leaders use LinkedIn?

Yes. Most C-suite executives’ profiles are remarkably scant, revealing little information about them beyond their jobs over the years and where they earned their degree(s). But there is the potential for C-suite executives and senior-level leaders to use their LinkedIn profile and their presence on the LinkedIn platform to address these matters. For example:

  • In their About section on their personal profile, a leader can address their business passion, principles, and process. A leader’s authenticity and transparency can be compelling reasons to want to work for them.
  • Under their Experience section and their current job position, if their company is demonstrating good corporate citizenship with respect to some pressing social issues and working with their workforce to provide increased flexibility for employees, they can highlight these aspects of their company here.

Are such changes a good idea?

Yes. Today, most of the talented people who are looking for their next job are social media savvy. They do their research online. Because they are interested in the reputation of the company and leaders with whom they may associate next, it makes sense for companies and leaders to use LinkedIn as part of their overall strategy to appeal to them.

If your company is interested in using LinkedIn as part of your strategy for attracting top talent, I’ll be honored to work with you to tailor a plan for your company and your top leaders.

 

 

If you are a C-suite executive or senior leader who would like to improve your LinkedIn profile and presence, I can make it easy for you. I have a track record of working effectively with C-suite executives and senior leaders to create LinkedIn profiles and other executive-branded materials that help them show up as authentically and powerfully online as they do in person. This way, they can attract the talent they want to hire, increase their visibility and influence, and control their career. I also mentor clients on LinkedIn etiquette and effective posting strategies to ensure their success. Let me help you use this essential business tool effectively. Contact me through my website: www.carolkaemmerer.com or profile: www.linkedin.com/in/carolkaemmerer. 

 Other resources:

Book me to speak either virtually or in-person on personal branding via LinkedIn. I am a member of the National Speakers Association, a Certified Virtual Presenter, and an Advisor to the C-Suite Network.

My NEW book Second Edition: LinkedIn for the Savvy Executive: Promote Your Brand with Authenticity, Tact and Power is available through online booksellers. For quantity discounts or signed copies, contact me directly.

 Online course: 

My new online course, How to be Found on LinkedIn: Key Factors for Attracting Ideal-for-You Opportunities is a self-paced learning opportunity. For details and registration, see https://carolkaemmerer.com/onlinecourse

To receive my monthly articles in your email inbox, sign up for my monthly emailing here.

Articles by Carol Kaemmerer

Is Your LinkedIn Profile Missing the Mark?

Comfortable in Your Job? Uncomfortable Life Lessons to Safeguard Your Career

How to Be Found on LinkedIn: Ten Top Strategies to Rank Well on a LinkedIn Keyword Search

Why Are You Playing Small on LinkedIn?

If You’re Not “Writing to the Margins” on LinkedIn, You’re Missing Out

Don’t Be Hooked Through a Big Phish: Recognize and Avoid Phishing Scams on LinkedIn

A Small Omission That Undermines Your Credibility on LinkedIn

“Tell Me More…” — On LinkedIn

What is Your Poor LinkedIn Profile Costing You?

C-Suite Executives: Stop Hiding Online