LinkedIn Profile SEO in 5 Easy Steps

I am often asked my secret to getting profiles optimized for high ranking in LinkedIn search. I am feeling generous today and so here it is, my secret to LinkedIn SEO in 5 easy steps.

First things first… decide what keywords you want to rank for and then pepper your profile with those keywords. Concentrate on these areas: Headline, Summary, Specialties, and JOB TITLE. You want to make sure you add it in multiple places, multiple times. I know, I know! It’s like 1990’s SEO! Here’s the thing, if you don’t believe me, let’s do an experiment.

Remember those keywords you said you wanted to rank for? Do a search for those keywords in LinkedIn… remember to choose “people” from the search droplist. Now let’s look at the results! Click on that #1 ranked profile. Is it open? Yes? Well, click CTRL-F on your keyboard, we are going to do a search on our keywords on this high ranking profile. Do you see how those words are now highlighted on the page? Count how many times they occur. Gosh they are repeated throughout that profile, right? Over and over again! Clearly LinkedIn is using old AltaVista technology for their search! Just teasing.

Now I feel it’s important to state that even though keyword density is good– don’t go overboard! Write for your reader, not for SEO. If you rank high and people click through to your profile, you want to keep them interested and you can’t do that with a profile written solely for search engines.

The other thing you may notice is that the top ranked profiles are also profiles that are COMPLETE! Yes, LinkedIn rewards serious users with better search placement. So FILL OUT your profile as much as you can! Use as much of the space allotted as possible! And if you are struggling to finish your profile, hire a LinkedIn Profile writer (Like Moi!) to finish it for you.

The fourth part of LinkedIn SEO is connecting with people! When you ran that keyword search, did you notice how the people that populated that first page of results were all people who were between a first and second degree connection to you? The more people you connect to, the higher you will rank in LinkedIn search.

And finally make good use of anchor text and links on your LinkedIn Profile. LinkedIn provides you with pre-written anchor text for your links: My Website, Company Website, etc… I know it’s easy to just accept these suggestions but instead, I want you to choose OTHER. Choosing Other gives you the opportunity to add your own anchor text. (If you don’t know what I mean by anchor text, it’s the word that you click on when you click a “link”). Now that you can create your own anchor text, USE THOSE KEYWORDS we talked about earlier! Are you wondering what URL you should use for these links? You mean you don’t have a Website yet? Well that’s fine, use your Facebook URL or setup a free blog on WordPress.com. Find a site and use it. This anchor text isn’t just great for your profile but it’s also awesome for that site you are linking!

So there you have it! LinkedIn Profile SEO in 5 easy steps! I wish you luck as you optimize your profile! And if you need help writing and optimizing your LinkedIn profile, order a LinkedIn Makeover!