5 must-haves to make you and your business stand out on LinkedIn

How to optimize your LinkedIn profile as an entrepreneur

Brodeur offers 5 must-haves for a winning LinkedIn profile:

1. Use a professional photo

Choose a photo that depicts how you would present yourself to a prospective customer, employee or investor. Ensure the photo is high-resolution and that your posture, clothing and background reflects who you are as an entrepreneur. (No selfies!)

2. Add a background banner

On LinkedIn, the background banner appears in your profile, just above your photo. This is the place to offer some visual interest and provides another snapshot of who you are. Many entrepreneurs use this space to showcase their company logo, their products or a photo of themselves doing what they love. Another option is to find a stock photo image that is representative of yourself or the industry you operate in.

3. Have a punchy headline

Here’s your chance to stand out. The 220-character LinkedIn headline is likely the first thing visitors will read on your profile. When crafting yours, think about your ideal customers and what would make them trust you and want to know more about you. Be sure to include:

• An accurate description of who you are and what you do
• Relevant industry keywords that would help you be found in a search
• Your value proposition

Here are two examples for an executive coach that demonstrate different approaches:

Jamie Hill

Helping leaders find their voice and fulfill their vision
Professional development | Executive coaching | Leadership styles | Measuring success

Jamie Hill

Executive coach, entrepreneur, advisor, investor

4. Introduce yourself in the summary section

The summary is the text box at the top of your profile where you can use up to 2,600 characters to share an overview of your career. This is an opportunity to share why you do what you do, what you love about it and what value you bring to your industry or target market. Some entrepreneurs use this section to personalize themselves with witty descriptions; others are more formal. Whatever you choose to do, it should match your personality so there’s no disconnect from your LinkedIn persona and who you are in “real” life.

5. Complete all elements

Many LinkedIn users don’t have a complete profile. This is a mistake. As an entrepreneur, you want to give your prospects as much information as possible to create a full picture of your expertise. After filling out the experience section, take the time to also add information in the education, volunteering, skills and recommendations sections. It’s especially important to ask others for recommendations and reciprocate. Both are visible on your profile and offer insights on what other people think of you and the relationships you’ve built.

Overall, it’s helpful to view the LinkedIn profiles of your competitors, mentors and other relevant professionals to help you find the right tone for yourself and your industry.

How to optimize your business’s LinkedIn profile

Your company page should be a clear representation of what you do and how you do it. Like your personal profile, you can upload your logo or include a stock image that reflects your business and industry.

“A LinkedIn business page is a place where prospects can get a description of the company, its size and the type of industry it operates in. It’s your opportunity to showcase your products and your values,” says Brodeur.

You can find inspiration for your company profile by looking at other companies’ pages, particularly in your industry. Be sure to complete all of the sections in the template to take full advantage of the profile.

How to prospect for leads on LinkedIn

One of the greatest features of LinkedIn is its access to millions of user profiles. If you’re looking to dig deep for prospects, you may consider paying for a subscription to Sales Navigator that provides advanced search and filtering options. It has tools like lead recommendations, saved lead lists, and CRM integration, which can help you maintain ongoing communication with potential clients.

You can also invest in LinkedIn Marketing Solutions that help you create campaigns and advertising on the platform geared for your ideal customers.

A more grassroots way of connecting with prospects is to join relevant groups on LinkedIn. “Being active in a LinkedIn group is a great way to get your name and your business’s name circulating. You can demonstrate your expertise and be part of community, which helps develop trusted relationships,” says Brodeur.

What to post on LinkedIn

LinkedIn posts should be all professional, all the time, says -Brodeur. She advises against posting non-work-related content.

You can engage your network and demonstrate your expertise by sharing a variety of valuable content from your company account. Potential topics include:

• Corporate news: Product updates, warehouse/office expansions, new hires, innovative new practices
• Thought leadership: Guidance, innovative ideas or solutions to industry challenges and unique insights and perspectives that would be helpful for your ideal customers
• Customer success stories: Show how your products or services solve problems for your customers
• Industry insights: Updates or articles about current trends, challenges and emerging technologies in your industry
• Behind-the-scenes content: A glimpse into the day-to-day of your company, including highlights of team culture, office events or the processes behind creating your products or services
• Employee highlights or achievements: Celebrate your employees’ achievements, promotions or certifications—great for morale and to show your audience your rich bench of talent

When to post on LinkedIn

The age-old question on social media: which day and at what time will your posts get the most attention? While there are some metrics available—Tuesday through Thursday are the most active LinkedIn days, in early or mid-morning—but Brodeur says consistency and regularity are more important than sticking to a rigid schedule.

“If you want to stay top-of-mind, it’s helpful to post at least three times a week from your business page. Entrepreneurs can also post from their own profile to stay in the conversation.”

How to build and maintain a thriving network on LinkedIn

Like most social media platforms, LinkedIn is all about community engagement. It’s not enough to regularly share your own posts—you’ve also got to demonstrate that you’re an active participant in professional discourses on issues important to your industry or business.

This means taking time each week to scroll through your feed and comment on or react to other people’s posts, plus send a few direct messages to stay in touch. Examples include:

• Congratulating a contact on a work anniversary or an announcement of an achievement
• Adding an insightful comment, asking a question or sharing a similar experience on other people’s posts
• Sending a personal message with a link to a resource that may be useful
• Checking in via direct message to say hello and invite a contact to a coffee meeting

“Being active on LinkedIn allows you to stay on the radar of people in your network. People appreciate ‘likes’ and comments, and they pay attention to who engages and how,” says -Brodeur.

She recommends checking in with LinkedIn daily and leaving a few likes and comments. “In addition, you might make a goal of finding two to three new connections every week, and sending them a message.”

Check out your social selling index

You can find out how well you’re performing on LinkedIn with the platform’s Social Selling Index (SSI). Every profile has a score that measures a user’s effectiveness in social selling on the platform. For entrepreneurs, the SSI can act as a roadmap, helping you understand how well you’re building your brand, finding leads and engaging with potential customers. The SSI score ranges from 0 to 100, based on four core pillars:

1. Establishing a professional brand (0-25 points)

This pillar measures how effectively you present yourself as an industry expert. A high score means you’re sharing valuable content and your profile is optimized.

How to improve your score: Optimize your profile and regularly post insightful content.

2. Finding the right people (0-25 points)

This is an indication of how effectively you identify and connect with relevant people, like potential customers or business partners.

How to improve your score: Use LinkedIn’s advanced search filters (or Sales Navigator) to connect with people who align with your business goals, such as decision-makers in your target market. 

3. Engaging with insights (0-25 points)

This metric evaluates how often you engage with content from your network and the relevance of your interactions.

How to improve your score: Regularly react to posts from connections or industry leaders by liking, commenting and sharing. 

4. Building strong relationships (0-25 points)

This pillar reflects the strength of your network and the quality of your relationships.

How to improve your score: Focus on building genuine connections. Personalized messages, follow-ups and meaningful engagement can help foster long-term relationships and trust with potential clients.

Brodeur adds, “LinkedIn is a powerful tool. If used to its full potential it can help entrepreneurs find and nurture leads and develop a strong professional reputation.”

Next step

To plan your social media activities and simplify post management, download BDC’s free Social media calendar template.