profile – Dispatches From The Front

How exciting! You’ve just received a great introduction to a big potential client. And as you and your team work hard to whip up a stellar pitch, what do you think the potential client is doing?

She’s researching you, of course. And chances are, the first place she’ll go to learn more about your background, experience and personality is LinkedIn.

What’s she going to find when she pulls up your profile? An amateurish photo? Outdated information? Unpopular political views? A lack of references?

In business, it’s vital to focus on developing a quality LinkedIn profile and avoid making a poor first impression. Here are five ways to ensure you don’t embarrass yourself on this fast-growing and powerful platform:

Since LinkedIn introduced its endorsements feature more than two years ago, we’ve all received endorsements for skills we didn’t know we had from people we didn’t know we knew.

Though I think I could do a good job of writing about food, I’ve never done it, so I was mystified when five people endorsed me for “Food Writing.” Another mystery endorsement came from someone who checked off “Celebrity,” whatever that means.

Should I just let those endorsements stand, assuming any positive mark on my profile will help me? Or is there some way I can edit endorsements to make them reflect better what I do? What should I do when I get an endorsement out of the blue from someone whose name doesn’t ring a bell? Should I be in touch with and endorse the people who endorse me?

Tag: profile

5 Ways to Stop Embarrassing Yourself on LinkedIn | Entrepreneur

Everything You Need To Know About LinkedIn Endorsements | Forbes