If there is one key performance indicator or KPI in your LinkedIn dashboard that you shouldn’t ignore, it should beWho Viewed Your Profile.
I can no longer count how many amazing opportunities I got by simply checking out who had been viewing my LinkedIn profile. Let me share with you two of the opportunities that came my way early on in my journey through Profile Views.
Profile Views helped launch my speaking career as a LinkedIn expert in 2017
In August 2017, I noticed that a CEO from a training company has viewed my profile twice. Prior to that, he has liked one of my posts. I met him in person when I was in the academia several years ago, but I wasn’t sure if he remembered me.
When I noticed him viewing my profile for the second time, I sent him a message to just start a conversation. The next morning, I was surprised to see his reply.
Turned out, he was looking for a speaker for an upcoming convention on media communications. He then invited me to be one of the speakers. Below was his message to me back then:
When I said yes, I just turned a couple of profile views from him into an opportunity to launch my "speaking career" as an independent LinkedIn speaker.
As a bonus, I got a chance to speak along with popular names in the country like Raffy Tima, a broadcast journalist I used to just watch on TV in the past.
That opportunity to speak about LinkedIn in front of thousands of communication students from different parts of the Philippines was the very first time I spoke about LinkedIn in public.
And it literally led to more speaking engagements thereafter.Here’s my post after the event.
Profile views helped me land one of my biggest clients in 2018
In May 2018, I noticed a CEO at a US-based online university has viewed my profile three times in separate days. On the third time, as I was already contemplating sending him a connection request, he made the move to connect with me.
And I quickly accepted! Apparently, he found me while he was searching for “personal branding experts" here on LinkedIn.
The profile views from him have not only helped me land one of my biggest clients for my online LinkedIn training program that same year, but also gave me an opportunity to work with highly respected professors and professionals from various countries including the US, the UK, Nigeria and the Philippines.
Working with and learning from them was truly an amazing opportunity! Up until this time, I am still able to do business with his company.
So you might be wondering, how do you attract profile views?
5 Ways to Attract Profile Views
1 - Keyword-optimize your LinkedIn profile
Think about the keywords that your target audience use when they're searching for someone with your expertise. Use those keywords throughout your profile, particularly on the headline, About section, Job title and description.
2 - Connect with your target audience
Use LinkedIn's advanced search feature to find your target audience. Send them customized connection requests.
LinkedIn has capped the number of connection requests that we can send to 100 per week. Use it wisely to connect with the right people that can point you to the opportunities that you want to attract.
3 - Create and share useful and relatable content
With your target audience in mind, create content that they will find useful and relatable. Avoid random posting. Create a content strategy that will attract your target audience.
4 - Engage. Engage. Engage.
A huge part of your success on LinkedIn is engaging with other people's content. It helps increase your visibility and build relationships with people.
Many of those who reached out to me either saw one of my connections engage with my posts, or saw my comments on my network's posts.
5 - Make your headline speak to your target audience
If you want profile views, then the first thing you should pay attention to is your headline. Does your headline resonate with them?
Use a clear tagline that speaks to your target audience. In my tagline, I mention my target audience and what I can help them with:
'Helps coaches, consultants and entrepreneurs build their influence, monetize their expertise and make an impact through LinkedIn marketing and personal branding'
Recommended by LinkedIn
So you got profile views - now, what? How do you get them to reach out to you?
5 Ways to Turn Profile Views Into Amazing Opportunities
1 - Clearly communicate what you do
Start with knowing your audience. And be clear about what types of opportunities you want to attract through LinkedIn.
Based on that, tailor your profile and make sure you CLEARLY articulate what you do and how you can add value to your target audience.
Remember: You can't be everything to everyone. If you try to please everyone, you will end up with no one. Clarity is key in attracting amazing opportunities.
2 - Add social proof
Do you want to attract speaking opportunities? Or maybe job opportunities? Or business opportunities?
Whatever it is, adding social proof to your LinkedIn profile goes a long way.
Make it easy for your profile viewers to decide whether you're the right person who can help them. Don't just tell them. Show them. Add social proof throughout your profile.
3 - Check 'Who Viewed Your Profile' daily
Make it a daily habit to check who are viewing your profile.
There have been many instances in the past when my teammate at VB Consulting reached out to the Top 100 nominees, but because a few didn't check their Profile Views and their connection requests, they missed the opportunity to be part of the Top 100 Filipinos on LinkedIn.
4 - Use the Featured section to showcase your most relevant work
The Featured section is the best place on your profile to quickly capture your target audience's attention. Use it to showcase a relevant post, newsletter, article, link or media. With 'relevant', I mean relevant to the opportunity that you want to attract.
For example, if you want to attract speaking opportunities, feature a speaking opportunity you recently had with a similar company.
I find this very powerful. One of my posts about a LinkedIn masterclass I had in a company with 10,000+ employees led to other masterclass opportunities in equally large companies.
All I did to get them to reach out to me was to post about that masterclass and feature that post in my profile!
5 - Add a call to action
Sometimes, a small change on your profile can make a huge impact. Most people don't have a call to action in their profiles. And this is a big mistake.
If you've exerted efforts to do tips #1 to #4 above, then it means you seriously want to attract opportunities! And to make that happen, don't forget to add a call to action or CTA on your profile.
What do you want people to do after viewing your profile? Whatever it is, ask for it.
Want to attract speaking opportunities? Here's a sample CTA you can use:
Invite me to speak in your next event. Let's talk: <<your email>>>
Want to get that job opportunity? Say something like this:
I'm currently exploring opportunities. To learn more about how I can add value to your organization, message me here on LinkedIn.
Want them to book a free consulting session with you? Ask for it:
Book a free 30-minute consulting session with me: <<<add your calendar link>>>
Wrapping Up
In many instances, people won't view your profile for no reason at all. So don’t be afraid to start a conversationwith your profile viewers. It’s the perfect time to reach out to them and find out two things:
Finally, consider getting a premium LinkedIn subscription. If you’re using the standard, free account, you can see only the last five people who have viewed your profile.
If you’re checking out your profile and looking at your profile views on a daily basis, the free account could work for you in this aspect.
However, subscribing to any LinkedIn Premium account will give you the advantage of seeing your profile view trends and knowing who viewed your profile in the last 90 days. This gives you a higher chance of turning profile views into opportunities.
Every profile view is an opportunity to build meaningful relationships that you can turn into amazing opportunities. You never know where your next big opportunity will be coming from! 🧡
