Originally, LinkedIn was nothing more than a job board and a space to host your resume but since its founding and launch in 2003, it has changed drastically. It is now one of the biggest social networks in the world

Here are some of the statistics that can convince you to craft an engaging LinkedIn profile

• Nearly 830 million users are on the professional network in more than 200 countries.
• LinkedIn saw a 55% increase in conversations among connections in 2021
• 75% of people who change jobs use LinkedIn to inform this decision.
• LinkedIn has 57 million company profiles on the platform. The platform is popular among both job seekers and companies.
• 87% of recruiters use or engage LinkedIn at some point in their recruitment process. According to LinkedIn, over 49 million people use the platform to search for jobs every week, and every minute, 6 people get hired on LinkedIn.

Wondering how to get started, here is a step-by-step guide

Craft your headline:

The first thing people see when they look you up is your profile headline. It's the title you want to be known for! Get creative, you have 120 characters. . Use the right keywords that professionally describe you. The first few words are most important as they make someone click on your profile so make them count. Just your job title and company won’t cut it.

E.g. Data Scientist | Healthcare | Python | Machine learning OR

E.g. Data Scientist | Ph.D. | Python | Machine learning

Snap your Profile Photo:

Be warm and approachable, and don’t shy away from smiling. Avoid selfies or cropped group photos. Research your industry so dress accordingly. Update it once every 6 months or once a year to keep it fresh.

Connect one relevant email address:

Make sure to list all email addresses that are active on your LinkedIn profile. Bear in mind that your default email address is accessible for all connections.