This is the first comic in a series contributed by JD Gershbein of Owlish Communications. I’ll let JD introduce the comic.
THE HANDSHAKE CLUB ™ is a wacky romp through the world of Social Media and business networking. These characters not only “get” Social Media, but they, unlike most of their real-world counterparts, are the ones who always seem to have the time to do it. They are constantly deep-thinking LinkedIn, tweaking their profiles, contemplating their strategies and trying to blaze their own trails.
Your profile is the first thing you create on LinkedIn and it’s the first impression many people will have of you. You should spend time making sure that your profile is accurate, engaging, and error free. Typos will kill your credibility in a heartbeat.
It’s not enough to have a good profile you need a “Killer” profile. It should include enough relevant information so that the viewer isn’t left to try and fill any gaps. Use applications to add some stickiness.
Finally if you want to improve your odds of being found drop keywords throughout your profile.
The top three mistakes that I see in regard to profiles are no photo or not a professional photo (this isn’t Facebook), not enough detailed information, and the dreaded typos.
This is your online brand so make sure when someone does visit it they leave with a favorable impression.
J.D. Gershbein is the President of Owlish Communications, an Internet Marketing firm based in the Chicago, Illinois suburb of Vernon Hills. When he’s not helping his clients shine on LinkedIn, J.D. creates business cartoons and comic strips that brand businesses and make them memorable. He is the creator of the comic strip, The Handshake Club™, which features such notable characters as Will Banter™ and Brandy Share ™.
