HOW SALES PEOPLE CAN OPTIMIZE THEIR LINKEDIN PROFILE
Executive Positioning
LinkedIn is an excellent starting point for generating leads. The platform has an enormous user base, visible mutual connections, and a strong search capability. It can be easily said that a well-produced LinkedIn bio could help increase your sales for your business, but it isn’t always easily done. The pressure is real – your bio can be one of the most difficult segments of your sales profile to write. You can start by filling out the sections provided by LinkedIn, but then you’ll be stuck with a so-so, uninspired, templated bio for your brand. If you really want maximum exposure and appeal across the platform, you’ll need to take the time to build a well-constructed bio.
Your bio, or summary, is one of the first items people see when they visit your profile, and it’s an opportunity to make a great and lasting first impression. Think of it as a space where you can define yourself and your brand in your own words. As a sales professional, your bio should double as a marketing tool, advertising your services and products. A compelling bio serves as a calling card for your digital identity and if done well, can be repackaged for use across environments in introductions, applications, resumes, and award letters.
It might be tempting to write a novel about your passions and accomplishments, but prospects will likely be skimming your profile, quickly deciding whether you can assist them or not. Aim to write 1-2 paragraphs for your LinkedIn summary section, keep it precise and to the point. Already wrote a long bio? Don’t delete it! Longer bios can be repurposed on other platforms or on an “about” page on a website. It’s a good practice to keep multiple versions of your bio to be used across sites. Here are some more great tips for writing an impactful bio:
Use Your Bio to Tell a Story
A well-written bio doesn’t just sum up your professional history and qualifications, but it also showcases your personality. A good story captivates your audience from the start, it makes you and your brand more personable. One way to start your bio is to imagine yourself at a networking event – introduce yourself and briefly describe what you do.
Readers are doubling as target clients who are seeking answers, and they want to know how you can help them. Use the opening lines of your bio to showcase your value proposition to these potential clients. You can highlight your areas of expertise by referencing testimonials and success stories from previous clients. Next, elaborate on some of your achievements throughout your sales career by providing measurable, quantifiable evidence to accentuate your track record of success.
Ultimately, you want to impress your reader, highlight your accomplishments and boost your credibility. Avoid bragging, as you want to remain likable and trustworthy. You can also highlight any additional accolades, awards, and certifications you’ve earned. For some great explanations and templates of summaries, we love this blog from Hubspot.
Substance vs. Style
According to LinkedIn’s Talent blog, substance is the “way to say” and style is “how to say it”. Substance is where you add context to your career by discussing your passions, explaining your present role, and highlighting your successes in sales.
How did you get started in sales? What drives you? This is a great area for adding more personality traits like humor or humility while remaining professional, of course. You could even briefly describe a hobby, interest, or volunteer position that holds meaning to you and use it to supplement your accomplishments.
Style is important because you want an appropriate and approachable tone to match your content. You want to explain not just what you do, but how you do it. What value do you provide? This opening language choice is imperative to find a thesaurus to help you replace commonly used words. Use dynamic action verbs to help your bio stand out and will still be picked up by skimmers.
Importance of Keywords
Keywords are a great benefit of search engine optimization (SEO). Think about the keywords your prospective clients and customers will be searching for and include them in your summary. The choice and inclusion of keywords is worth the effort because it will improve your search rank on LinkedIn and Google, ensuring more eyes will be reaching your profile. Keywords and short phrases are a great way to highlight industry-specific hard skills, soft skills, qualifications, and credentials. It works to build trust and credibility with your target audience as well, as successful keywords demonstrate your unique knowledge of your industry. Good keywords and phrases to consider as a sales professional could center around growth, driving sales, performance, and customer service.
Add a Bonus Ending
A final way to optimize your bio is to add a quick call-to-action at the end. You could boost engagement by linking your social media profiles, encourage readers to buy your products, or ask them to subscribe to your blog or newsletter. This is a great tool for pushing conversions to your website too! If you’re just starting out, are still flushing out your social profiles, or your website is under construction, have no fear! Just remember to include some type of contact information. Interested parties will want to reach you fairly quickly so at the very least, include your email address and maybe even a phone number.
After following these tips, if you find yourself forever stuck on draft one of your bio, or if you are feeling uninspired, or lost, consider hiring Bell+Ivy to help. We offer branding services for individuals and small businesses. Whether you’re an entrepreneur, an executive, or a small business, Bell+Ivy’s Personal Brand Bio service will create a customized bio package just for you and your brand. Our team will transform your bio to fit into three formats to cover all environments: a social, bio, a short bio, and a long bio. With Bell+ Ivy’s package, you’ll have flexible and well-constructed bios to use across mediums in no time.
