LinkedIn is the largest professional social network online today so it is obvious that you need to make your presence in here: that is if you want your business to succeed online.  You should learn how you can create a presence on LinkedIn to make your business more successful.  So read on to know how you can use LinkedIn for your business’ success.

Build Your LinkedIn Foundation

To have presence, you first need to create a good profile so that other users and readers will be more interested in you and your business.  By having a good profile, you are creating a good impression about your business, therefore, making yourself and your business more credible.

Here are some things you need to do in order to build your LinkedIn foundation.

Complete Your LinkedIn Profile

If you want to get people interested in your LinkedIn profile and ultimately in you, you have to complete your profile.  Include all the necessary information about you, your expertise and your business so that your profile viewers will get more interested.  You also have to include your experiences in your industry or profession, your background, your interests and ideas so that other users can have a quick insight of who you are.

Making your LinkedIn profile complete will also give users that impression that you are a credible person with a good background and competent expertise.

Follow these tips on how to create a complete and professional LinkedIn profile:

• Upload a Professional Image

Make sure your image is clear and appropriate.  This will be your ‘face’ on your profile so this will be the basis of your viewers’ first impression of you.

• Create a Compelling Headline

Use compelling words to describe yourself and your profession. You only have a few characters you can use to grab your audience’s attention so use them wisely.  Be descriptive and engaging.

• List Your Current Positions and last Positions

This will help your audience see your experience and extent of expertise in your profession.  Be sure to describe your role on each position.

• Complete Your ‘Summary’ Section

Aside from your headline, you can describe yourself on your ‘summary’ section.  So be sure to use descriptive words that tell who you are and what your expertise is.  Make this as your headline’s continuation of your introduction.

• Complete the ‘Specialties’ Section of your Profile

Be sure to use appropriate keywords in here so that you will appear on LinkedIn’s search results.

• Give Recommendations First

Give recommendations first before asking for one.  This way, this will be a win-win situation for you and the people you asked recommendations from.

• Complete the ‘Interests’ and ‘Groups and Associations’ on Your Profile

Choose the appropriate keywords so that you can connect with people who are also interested in your industry.

Optimize Your Profile

Optimize your profile using keywords and SEO so that you can easily be found by your target audience.

• LinkedIn URL

Edit your LinkedIn profile URL and use your name so that you can appear on search results when someone searches your name.  This will also help develop your personal brand.

• Customize Your ‘Website’ Listings

Use proper keywords in describing your website on your listings to help you get found on search results.

• Include a Link to Your Twitter Profile

This will help your audience connect with your more easily.

• Make Your Profile Entirely Visible

Having a private profile won’t help you a bit.  Aim to be found by other professionals.

Use LinkedIn’s Applications

Take advantage of the applications that are available on LinkedIn to make your profile more optimized and visible to other professionals.  Below are some applications that can help you showcase your expertise easily and creatively.

• Slideshare

Aside from visual content, you can also embed video and audio presentations on your Slideshare so that you can effectively showcase your works and your capabilities.  Having a good video that you actually made will surely attract more viewers.

• Reading List by Amazon

Share your latest reads through this LinkedIn application so that your audience can know more about you and your interest and passion.  This will also enable you to create connections with other users of this application.

• My Travel and Events

If you are an ‘always-on-the-go person’, you will find this application useful.  You will be able to share your schedule and experiences with your audience and other professionals.

• WordPress or Blog Link

Showcase your blog posts on your LinkedIn profile with this application.

• Polls

Understand your audience more with the help of this application.  Know what your audience is thinking and what their wants are.