Create a LinkedIn Account

This article teaches you how to create a personal profile on LinkedIn.

Steps

Creating Your Account

  1. Open the LinkedIn webpage. It will open to a page with several text fields in the middle of it.
  2. Enter your personal information. You'll do this in the fields provided on the main page. LinkedIn needs the following information:
    • First Name
    • Last Name
    • Email - Your preferred email address at which LinkedIn can contact you.
    • Password - Your preferred password for your LinkedIn account.
  3. Click Join Now. It's the yellow button below the information entry fields.
  4. Click the box below "Country". Doing so will prompt a drop-down menu of countries.
  5. Click on your current country of residence.
  6. Type in your current ZIP code. You'll do so in the "ZIP code" box below the "Country" box.
  7. Click Next. It's below the ZIP code box.
  8. Indicate whether or not you're a student. To do so, click the Yes or the No box at the top of this page.
  9. Type in your job title and the company at which you work. You'll do so in the "Job title" and "Company" fields on this page.
    • Depending on your place of employment, you may also have to select a field from an "Industry" box on this page.
    • If you're a student, you'll type in your current school, the year at which you started school, and when you plan to graduate.
  10. Click Next. Now you'll need to customize the kind of content and connections you'll see in your LinkedIn Home page.

Personalizing Your LinkedIn Feed

  1. Select an account personalization option. Once you do, you'll be prompted to verify your email address. These options control what type of information LinkedIn shows you in your Home page:
    • Finding a job
    • Building my professional network
    • Staying up-to-date with my industry
    • Keeping in touch with my contacts
    • Not sure yet. I'm open!
  2. Open your email address. This should be the account you used to sign up for LinkedIn.
    • Make sure you don't close out of the LinkedIn page when you do this.
  3. Open the email from the "LinkedIn Messages" sender. Its subject will say "[Name], please confirm your email address."
    • If you don't see this email in your inbox, check the Spam folder (and the Updates folder if you're using Gmail).
  4. Click Confirm your email. It's the blue button below the six-digit code in the email's body.
    • You can also copy the code here and paste it into the code field on your LinkedIn page.
  5. Decide whether or not to import contacts. If you want to import contacts from your email address, click Continue. Otherwise, click Skip.
    • Choosing to import contacts will prompt you to allow LinkedIn access to your email account, and you'll need to check each person you wish to add on LinkedIn.
    • If you click Skip, you may need to click a pop-up Yes to confirm your decision.
  6. Add a photo of yourself. To do so, click the Upload Photo box and select a photo from your computer.
    • If you'd rather not do this right now, click Skip.
  7. Click Continue. Doing so will save your profile image.
  8. Select channels to follow. The channels you decide to follow will determine the kind of information you see on your LinkedIn Home page.
  9. Click Follow [number] channels. Doing so will cause your LinkedIn profile to follow your selected channels.
    • You can also click Skip at the bottom of the page to skip this step.
  10. Select influential LinkedIn profiles to follow. The information posted on these profiles will show up on your Home page.
    • Following profiles does not mean the profiles in question are in your contacts or LinkedIn connections.
  11. Click Follow [number] influencers. Doing so will cause your LinkedIn profile to follow your selected accounts.
    • You can also click Skip at the bottom of the page to skip this step.
  12. Click Next. It's in the bottom right corner of the screen. Now that your LinkedIn profile is officially set up, you can add information about your skills to your account.

Editing Your Profile

  1. Click the Me tab. It's in the top right corner of your profile, directly to the right of the Notifications icon.
  2. Click View Profile. This option is at the top of the Me drop-down menu.
  3. Click the pencil icon. It's to the right of your profile image at the top of your profile page. Doing so will allow you to edit your intro, including the following things:
    • First and Last Name
    • Headline - A catchphrase or brief personal description.
    • Current Position - Your position at your current company (for example, "Writer at Forbes").
    • Location Information - This includes your current country, ZIP code, and city.
    • Summary - A description of your goals, accomplishments, and/or mission statement.
    • Add Education - This option allows you to add a school or university to your profile.
  4. Click Save. Doing so will save your changes to your LinkedIn intro.
    • This is information that public LinkedIn users will be able to see.
  5. Add professional experience by clicking +. It's to the right of the "Experience" section which is a bit below your profile image.
    • When adding a professional experience, you'll enter information about the workplace (e.g., which company you worked at) as well as how long you worked there, what your title was, and a brief summary of your duties.
  6. Click Save. Doing so will add your new work experience to your LinkedIn profile.
  7. Edit a work experience by clicking the pencil icon. The pencil icon is to the right of an experience listed on your profile. You can edit anything listed here, from the business' name to the length of time for which you worked there.
  8. Click Save when you're done. It's at the bottom of the edit page. Your LinkedIn profile is now complete.

Tips

  • Look for member-hosted groups that are relevant to your interests. You can further expand your network by reaching out to people in these groups.
  • When posting an update, be sure to keep it general, positive and professional. Importantly, don’t give people an unwanted look into your personal life or anything unprofessional.

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