There are times when you want to make your presence known on LinkedIn. After all, the platform is there to showcase how terrific you are and all you have to offer.
But you’ll also need to manage yourself in a way that supports your brand and doesn’t negatively affect others’ perception of you. The following are some things you’ll want to consider when you’re making updates on your profile, communicating with others in your network, or simply browsing other profiles on LinkedIn:
#1 – Make yourself anonymous when browsing profiles
This is probably common knowledge for most LinkedIn users, but it’s worth a reminder. There are times when you may not want someone to see that you’ve viewed his profile. To ensure the other person sees you as “anonymous” when you’ve done so, simply take the following steps:
- Mouse over your photo in the upper right corner of your page (above “Upgrade” on the menu bar).
- Select “Privacy & Settings”.
- Under the section “Privacy Controls”, choose “Select what others see when you’ve viewed their profile”.
- Select “You will be totally anonymous” and save changes.
#2 – Turn off the broadcast selection while editing your profile
Announcing to your network that you’ve made multiple, small changes can look sloppy to your connections. They don’t want to have to scroll through multiple posts about minor changes you’ve made before they get to an interesting news post or major career change regarding another contact.
And if you actually have a major change you DO want to share, your connections might miss it in the clutter. More important, you wouldn’t want your current employer to suspect that you’re looking elsewhere, and too much activity can raise their suspicions.
- Follow the same steps above, through to the Privacy & Settings selection.
- Under “Privacy Controls”, choose “Turn on/off your activity broadcasts”.
- Save changes.
#3 – Be careful when posting comments in groups
Not all groups are locked, which means your comments are not automatically limited to the eyes of those in your shared group. You can verify whether your group is closed by checking for a lock icon next to the group name listed on your profile.
If there’s no lock, your comments can be seen by all your connections, which can be great, as long as you’re thoughtful about what you write. Remember – you’re not sending a casual text, so be sure to check content, usage, and grammar before you post.
Be strategic about what you announce
Of course, when you make one significant change to your profile, such as adding a new photo, a new job, or a promotion (or all at the same time), you want all in your network to know how utterly fabulous you are.
So go ahead – make a splash! Then relish the congrats that come in from your connections.
Copyright 2014 Emily Wong