THE WC KY SCLENTIST A S$ 0 €C 1ATI ON LINKEDIN BASICSSTEPS TO CREATING A STRONG LINKEDIN PRESENCE When you reach out to a person anonymously on Linkedin, you are unlikely to get a response if you don't have a strong Linkedin profile, This is because: 1 ‘The importance of wearing business attire in your LinkedIn photo cannot be understated, as a picture speaks a thousand words. Standing out from the PROFESSIONAL PHOTO. masses should be your aim in securing a position in industry. A professional photo is one way of doing that. Here are some examples of scientists on Linkedin, Firstly you need to wear business attire, secondly, you should show a smile, as it makes you appear more approachable, and thirdly have good lighting, with nothing obstructing the view of your face. A good photo wil reflect really well on you professional, but a bad photo will actually work against you. People who show no photo will appear Unconfident or that they are trying to hide something. Always have a photo on your profile, Remove any photos of you taken in a casual situation, as it demonstrates a casual approach to your career. Dressing in a lab coat is appropriate for those who want to stay in academia, but i's not the highest and best use of your photo if you are transitioning. You need to see yourself as a business professional before others can see you as a business professional too. Tip: If you can't afford a professional photographer, try asking one of your friends who has an interest in photography to take a photo of you in business attire. (Gilet aloo ee LINKEDIN BASICS2 USE LINKEDIN ALGORITHMS TO YOUR ADVANTAGE 3 CONNECT WITH AS MANY PEOPLE AS POSSIBLE 4 KEYWORD OPTIMIZE You can do this in several ways, firstly, used Linkedln’s paid subscriptions, as they will push your profile to more people. Another way to get your profile out to more people is to actually use the platform regularly. This means going onto Linkedin and using it for 5 minutes a day, commenting in groups, tweaking your profile and reaching out using inMails. Industry professionals value a network, so it's important not to advertise that you are connected to less than 500 people on Linkedin. While showing that you have 500 connections is not going to get you a job, at least it won't work against you, More importantly, you should be connecting with others so that your profile can show up in more search results. Linkedin allows your profile to show up in the search results of your first, second & third degree connections. So the more people you are connected to, the more likely you will be to show up in the search results with recruiters. The quickest way to build up your connections is to display the L.LO.N. acronym on your profile, seek out other L.LO.N.S., and actively connect with them. LILON. stands for Linkedin Open Networker, and these are people who will be willing to connect with you even though you don’t know each other. They understand the way Linkedin's algorithm works and are using it to their advantage. Some of these L.1.0.N.S. will be connected to over 25,000 people, Which will grow your own reach substantially. You should actively connect with as many of these people as possible, Another way to increase your reach is to join Linkedin Groups. Linkedin also pushes your profile to the search results of the people who are in the same groups as you. Therefore you should make use of the 50 groups allowed on Linkedin. t's also a good idea to try to get into a few recruiting groups, as well as groups in the areas you are trying to move towards, not away from, Take the scientific skills you are expert in, as well as the hardware and software you have used in the lab, and place these as keywords throughout your profile numerous times. This will help you show up in the top search results for recruiters who are searching for candidates with your skills, ‘Then demonstrate any experience you have in business, specifically in management, communication, problem solving and financial experience, as these are desirable industry skills. LINKEDIN BASICS5 POLISH YOUR PROFILE Eg, Instead of writing: "Liaised with clinical research associates, translational project manager, principal investigators, ethics committee secretaries and research nurses" You would include the specific results you were able to achieve with the skills you have. It would look like this: Liaised effectively with staff at varying management levels, in high paced environment, minimizing communication errors, improving staff morale and increasing staff retention." If asked about this in an interview, you would talk about an experience in the lab where you were able to take the lead with a problem that came up and explain how you used communication effectively with those involved to minimize the problem and find solutions. There's far more to your profile than just a professional looking photo, It is a package that you need to perfect in order to present yourself properly. Take some time to study other professional profiles on Linkedin and take note of what they feature. What stands out? What appeals to you? The majority of the successful people on the site have taken the time to fil in their entire profile, Youneed to do this if you want recruiters and others to take you seriously. Fill in every section of your profile, You should already have a good photograph in business attire, as mentioned earlier, but don’t forget to present the rest of your profile just as professionally. Work on your headline to create something that will capture people's attention and still indicate who you are and where you want to go. This can always be changed in the future, so try testing different headlines to find out which gets the most attention, You wouldn't go to a job interview with a nice business jacket and tie, and wear your pajama bottoms under it all. Don’t let your profile look sloppy, either. This is your first impression in most cases, s0 take care to make it a very good one. Pay attention to the details and provide the information that anyone viewing your profile might be interested in. Having a complete profile will also push your profile into more search results, so use this to your advantage. LINKEDIN BASICS6 GET NOTICED Z GO BEYOND LINKEDIN Two new people join Linkedin every second, That means you have a lot of competition and you really need to stand out in a crowd. Fortunately, most of those people will set up a basic profile and that's it. You can easily outshine them by putting a little more work into yours, In addition to having a great presentation, you need to be active in order to get Noticed. Linkedin is a social site and that is reflected in many of the opportunities afforded its members. Linkedin’s algorithms will push the profiles of the people who actually use the site, Become active on the site and you will notice a drastic increase in interest in your profile. This means spending 5 minutes a day, using the platform in a variety of ways. Join group discussions and be sure to like and comment on posts that you see around the site, Use inMail as well as tweak your profile. Linkedin also allows you to share relevant articles and blog posts, which can help you build a reputation ‘as someone who is in the know. Since many companies look to hire those who are up to date in their field, this can be helpful when you're ready to apply for a job or connect with a recruiter, In order to really get noticed, you will want to step outside of the LinkedIn sphere and become known elsewhere. The reason for this is to provide multiple ways to find you. Even if someone doesn’t recognize you when you send them a connection request, they can easily Google your name to discover what you've done online. ‘The best way to expand your influence is to set up your own website or blog and to post high quality information. Your website or blog is a good place to mention your credentials and to build up a reputation for being an expert and knowledgeable in your area, Be sure to share your posts and articles on social media. You can also post guest posts on other high profile blogs, particularly if you are renowned in your field Expanding beyond one social media site is also a good idea. Try using Twitter and Facebook as part of your marketing strategy. You are essentially creating a brand around yourself, which will pay off when you want to connect to someone via Linkedin. If they are already familiar with you from other areas, you will see a positive response. LINKEDIN BASICS8 USING LINKEDIN MORE EFFECTIVELY You can interconnect all of your social media sites and your own website or blog This allows for maximum exposure with even one or two simple posts or videos that you make, The more exposure, the better. However, keep in mind that 949% of hiring managers and recruiters use Linkedin to check out their potential hires, according Social Times. Only 65% are on Facebook for that purpose and just 55% use Twitter to vet candidates for filing positions. Linkedin is still your best option, but it doesn’t hurt to get noticed elsewhere, too, Building a strong profile on Linkedin is a good start, but it's still easy to make mistakes that could cost you valuable connections. Engaging the right way is essential to using the social site effectively. If you've been sending out messages and connection requests with very little response, it means you need to take things up a notch and learn to engage better. This requires testing various strategies and trying new things until you have a winning message that is opened and responded to every time, Here are some examples: Hi Mary, I recently read your article on the XYZ topic and found it to be of great value because of XYZ. | am also in the field of XYZ and share your interest for POR. | particularly enjoyed the part where you mentioned (insert specific). Given your recent work in the field, | would value your opinion on RST. (insert question related to the topic). Of course, | realize you are quite busy, so if you don't have time to reply, thanks for writing the article and I look forward to seeing more of your work. From Bob. oR Hi Jim | just came across your profile on Linkedin and saw that you worked for LINKEDIN BASICS9 FIND A CONNECTION RST Company. | have been following your company for some time, given its innovative work in the areas of GHI, particularly in relation to (insert specific) | would love to hear your experience about working at the company and would value your advice on to whom | should speak to about upcoming positions at the company. | realize you are busy, so | would be happy to make a time that is convenient to you to discuss briefly by phone. Thanks again Greg Note that these examples don't talk about you and your work in science, or your title or publications. They are focused on the person you are reaching out to. ‘They also have a specific reason you are reaching out, so that the person does ot have to guess your intentions. Don't reach out to people with an uncompleted profile, they will be less likely to respond if you don’t show a professional profile. Think about tht for a second, why should someone help you if you have not done all you can do to help yourself first. Also, someone won't refer you to the hiring manager in their company if your profile is not professional, because you will reflect poorly on them. You should already have a list of people you know on LinkedIn. Part of the reason you've joined a social network for your job search is to network with other people. Begin with those you know already and begin to check out who you connected with through these people. Then ask if you can use the common connection’s name when contacting someone new. This can be a powerful method of reaching out to new people. Use the “shared connection” link to seek out common threads. Who do you both know? When you see little icons indicating 2nd and 3rd degree connections, don't ignore them. Put these valuable tools to use and start reaching out to new people. The more people you know on Linkedin, the more connections you can make. In some cases, you may need to add new people to your network in order to find a connection to the ones you really want to know. LINKEDIN BASICS10 INTERACTION IS KEY Il GIVE AREASON TO CONNECT l2 ASK QUESTIONS ‘Anyone who has email knows what spam is and chances are, you delete dozens of spam emails every day. Unfortunately, when you write someone you don't know on Linkedin, your message is often discarded as unsolicited and garbage. With over 347 million users, there are plenty of people on the site competing for attention, particularly in the most popular job arenas. This doesn't mean you should give up and stop reaching out. Instead, be sure to engage with the person you wish to connect with long before you send a message. Interaction may be as simple as finding the person’s blog and commenting on it, or liking posts on their Facebook page. Every interaction puts your name in front of them and they will pay more attention when your name shows up in their inbox. Unless you tell someone why you want to connect with them, they have no reason to accept. Be sure to explain your why in the message you send. Keep in mind that benefits are important, but for the person you wish to connect with. Don't tell them how they can help you. Look at this from the other person's perspective and decide what you can offer them of value. It may help to mention something you know about the person you wish to connect with. Perhaps they won an award recently or had a life event that you can connect with them on, Make the message about the other person. Show interest in their life and work and let them know what's in it for them if they take you up on your offer to connect. Part of making a message about the person you are writing to is to ask a question. Most people feel compelled to answer a question, which means this simple technique can practically force them to respond. ‘The question does not have to be complicated. You might ask about a recent life event or for their opinion on something. Again, keep it focused on the other person for the best chance of success. ‘To make this method even more effective, try asking the question in a post script. Studies have shown that a PS, in an email message is read more than any other part of the message, apart from the actual subject line, That is a very powerful way to capture attention. Since the PS. is most likely to be read, you can use this to your advantage. Ask a relevant question here and your recipient will be inclined to answer it. LINKEDIN BASICS13 KEEP IT BRIEF No one has time to read through pages of your ramblings. Write the basics and then cut it down to 50 words or so. This is more than enough space to get your point across and it is short enough that anyone can read through it. Consider how much time you give a stranger when they write you an email. You probably skim it and delete if the message is more than a paragraph or two. Others will do the same to your messages. Scientists tend to be wordy, since they are used to explaining things, but you'll find that more people respond if you keep things short Linkedin can be a very powerful resource, but only if it is used correctly. Unless you really understand how to make it work for you, expect minimal return on your investment of time. As you begin to interact with more people, remember to keep things focused on them. You need to provide value. If you approach someone because you need something from them, you're in a weak position and no one will respect this, Recruiters are running businesses, not charities and they will not be interested in someone who is obviously needy, Instead, focus on what they need and how you can help. Who would you rather hire? A personwho is desperate for a job and will take anything they can get, even if it means they are unhappy in the position or a person who has put considerable research into the job and company and are clear they would like to work with you and who is able to identify the areas they can offer your company value? There's a very big difference between these two people and one is more likely to get the job, simply because theynot acting out of desperation and are able to show value to the company. When you're trying to get people interested in you, just remember that you are not important. No one cares if you need a new car or if your current job is falling apart, The important thing is value. What value can you give? This is your selling point. Keep tweaking your messages and find out for yourself what works best. With careful planning, itis possible to make Linkedin work for you. When you get all the pieces of your profile perfect, your Linkedin profile will start working for you. Think about that, don't you want recruiters finding you while you are working in the lab or going for an afternoon walk? Those who put the effort in, to get their profiles right will be the ones who stand out from the other applicants and ultimately secure jobs. LINKEDIN BASICS