LinkedIn Profile Pictures

TheLadders Eye Tracking Study

How important can a LinkedIn profile picture be?  A recent study by TheLadders used eye tracking technology to study the factors employers focus on when reviewing a LinkedIn profile.  TheLadders found that employers spend 19% of the time they look at a profile examining the profile picture.  Maybe there is truth to the saying "A picture is worth a thousand words."  Here are a few tips to help you communicate the right message to future employers with a professional profile picture. 

Do

-Dress for the Job. Your attire and appearance for a professional profile picture should also be appropriate for a job interview.

-Consider the Background. A plain or muted background will encourage others to look at you and not at what's behind you.

-Use a Headshot. Your profile picture should capture you from the top of your head to just below the shoulders.

-Be Yourself. This is not the time to try a new hairstyle. Just be yourself and offer a pleasant smile.

 

Don't

-Crop a photo from a recent vacation or photographed event. Avoid beach pictures and wedding photographs.

-Include others. Make it easy for employers to recognize you by only including yourself in your profile picture. 

-Take a self-portrait. Mirror shots are unprofessional. Ask a friend to use a camera or use a tripod and a timer to take your headshot.

-Use an outdated photo. Profile pictures should represent how you currently look, not how you looked ten years ago.

 

Need some helping making your profile picture professional?  During the month of November, the Career Services Office will be taking LinkedIn Profile Pictures during drop-in hours (Monday-Friday, 10am-2pm).  Stop by the office (KT109), take a quick photo, receive an electronic copy of your image, and improve your LinkedIn profile!

LinkedIn and Upcoming Career Fair Information

So I was in a webinar this week about Career Services offices using LinkedIn to connect with students, and as a tool for students to do networking with university alumni and potential employers, and it got me to thinking. I was thinking about how the group of Resident Assistants to whom a coworker and I presented last week about online social networking all gave me a blank look when I started talking about LinkedIn, and only one knew the basics of what it is: "It's more professional than Facebook."

And, because my mind tends to wander during webinars, I started thinking about how online social networking can work out really well for us introverts. I have coworkers that are extraverts, and I have to be honest: I envy them and how easily they network with people they don't even know. But maybe online social networking can be the introverts' answer to doing networking when your best mode of communicating is not face-to-face in the moment. I wonder if the "In" in LinkedIn could stand for "introverts"--as in LinkedIn(troverts). (I wonder if I should trademark that....) Regardless, I suggest you all check out LinkedIn--you can join groups of interest to you, find graduates of your university and see what they're doing with their degrees, and start to build a positive professional presence online.

On another note, the 6th Annual IPFW Career & Internship Fair is just around the corner. We have over 30 employers currently registered, which is admittedly less than last year's 70 (although we still have 4 weeks until the actual event, and many employers like to wait to register for the fair), but we're still excited about that. I think the perception out there is that no one is hiring, and it's definitely not true. What I would suggest, though, is that you prepare exceptionally well for this fair--you have a lot of competition, so you need to be on top of your game with your resume, attire, and rehearsed speech to employers.

For more info on who will be coming to our career fair, check out www.ipfw.edu/career.