Whether you are just starting your career or going for the next promotion, job hunting has come into the internet age. While we still send out resumes and contact recruiters directly, it is also crucial to establish yourself on LinkedIn in order to give potential employers easy access to your employment history and skills. Having a great profile photo is a necessary part of getting that next job or promotion.
Having a great photo on LinkedIn is a plus
A good recruiter or employer is going to evaluate you based on your skills and experience, but having a photo on LinkedIn is an essential part of getting them to the next step of contacting you. A photo tells anyone looking at your profile that you’re a real person who is active on LinkedIn.
It’s not what you know, it’s who you know
LinkedIn is about making the connections that will help you find that job. Many of those connections are ones you have cultivated in your real life and it pays to make it easier for them to find you. According to the Huffington Post “Someone who already knows you from your past, other social media, or a recent networking meeting will, hopefully, recognize that photo and know who you are.” If you have a common name, your photo can be indispensable in helping them determine which of the 467 million profiles belongs to you.
Not having a photo is a big negative
If a picture is worth a thousand words, not have a picture on a professional profile says so much more. Most recruiters will make inferences about a profile lacking a photo that are probably not true but you won’t have the chance to explain. Research published by LinkedIn has said that entries in their search results with photos are seven times more likely to be clicked than those without photos.
Again according to the Huffington Post, “To be successful today, most professional jobs require knowledge and skill with social media.” In world where almost every job requires some knowledge of technology, not having a profile photo may lead some to think that you aren’t tech savvy enough to upload a picture.
Some tips on getting the most out of your LinkedIn photo:
- Your photo must be a real and current photo of you. Make sure it’s up to date if you have recently changed your look in any way. You want to make sure anyone looking for you online can easily tell the profile belongs to the person they just met in person.
- This is about you and only you. No pets, cartoons, memes or logos. Think professional and let your profile photo project that.
- Photos should be cropped just below the shoulders. Too far away and you are unrecognizable, too close and it makes you look like a floating head — a distraction you don’t need.
- Dress for the job you want, not the job you have. Wear clothing that fits in with the work environment you’re looking for. For more ideas on what clothes work best in a professional profile photo, check out our story here.
What to wear in a professional photo
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