Your LinkedIn profile may seem like a minor part of landing that dream job or even your first role in the industry, but it’s actually an incredibly essential part of your job search. In fact, most recruiters or potential managers first look up candidates on LinkedIn to get a quick summary of their experience, essence, and skills. According to LinkedIn, profiles with complete sections are 40% more likely to receive opportunities from recruiters. Furthermore, having a professional photo increases profile views by 14 times. And profiles with recommendations from colleagues are viewed 3 times more often
But before we tackle the specifics of creating that perfect data analyst profile, let’s dive into LinkedIn profile basics that all professionals, no matter their speciality, should master.
Photo by Alexander Shatov on Unsplash
LinkedIn: Why Does it Matter?
You’ve already sent your CV, cover letter, and maybe even a portfolio and references to your potential employer, so why does it matter if you have a LinkedIn profile? Let’s take a look:
LinkedIn has more than 600 professional profiles; it’s an incomparable source for networking, finding connections, and much more.
In addition to its personal profiles, it has a job board where tons of companies post all kinds of roles daily.
It offers you the possibility of creating your own personal brand with the option to post and promote your own content or website.
Thanks to its well-known abilities, it ranks incredibly high on Google, meaning that when your name is searched online, your LinkedIn profile will be the first thing to appear.
It boasts a wealth of information: are you interested in checking out a company? Or a potential manager? What about where offices are located? In just one place, you can find out all of this–and more.
Tips and Tricks for All LinkedIn Profiles
Now that you’re convinced of all the glory of a high-quality LinkedIn profile, let’s tackle exactly how to create that. Uploading your Facebook profile picture to your LinkedIn profile and filling in your employment history is a great start, but there’s a lot more you could do to make your profile stand out and catch the eye of recruiters:
Choose the right pictures: we get it; it’s easier to take the picture from your brother’s wedding and use that as your LinkedIn profile picture, but remember: LinkedIn is a professional social networking site and your profile picture should reflect that; choose a headshot that clearly shows your face, is recent, professional, and close-up. But that’s not all: LinkedIn now allows you to include a background photo–choose a photo that describes you and what you offer and contributes to the creation of your personal brand.
Make the most of your headline: defining yourself as your job title is easy, but can limit your future opportunities. Instead of just writing your current job title, try to make your headline all-encompassing and able to meet a wide range of roles.
Create a captivating summary: LinkedIn offers the possibility of creating a summary where you can write whatever you want; take this chance to stay away from conventional buzzwords like “leader,” “focused,” “experienced,” and “passionate;” these words don’t differentiate you from other candidates. Use these few lines to show recruiters and potential employers who you really are and how you stand out.
Include all your experience: as interdisciplinary experience becomes increasingly sought after, employers want to see that you’ve worked in different areas and can handle different tasks or even topics; include all your abilities and accomplishments, no matter how unrelated they may seem.
Now that you have the basics down, it’s time to jump into why we’re here: creating the perfect LinkedIn profile for data analyst roles.
Building a Standout LinkedIn Profile for Data Analysts
As tech gains importance in every single industry, highlighting your hard skills and versatility is becoming increasingly crucial for potential data analysts. Detailing all your experience and certifications, in addition to specific, actionable results, will help show prospective employers that you’re uniquely qualified for their role.
Profile
Ensure your profile is comprehensive by including all relevant sections. For instance, in the ‘Summary’ section, highlight your experience with tools like SQL, Python, R, and data visualization platforms such as Tableau or Power BI. An example summary might be: 'Experienced Data Analyst with 5+ years in analyzing complex datasets to drive business insights using SQL, Python, and advanced visualization tools like Tableau. Proven track record of improving decision-making through detailed data analysis and clear reporting.'
Certifications
The vast majority of employers look for candidates with certifications that back up their knowledge; displaying these prominently on your LinkedIn profile helps employers see that you have proof of your skills. Some of the most common certifications for data analysts include the Google Data Analytics Professional Certificate, the IBM Data Analyst Professional Certificate, the Microsoft Certified: Power BI Data Analyst Associate, and the AWS Certified Data Analytics.
Projects
In addition to your education and certifications, employers want to see specific projects and experiences; add projects (and tag team members) with statistics to show that not only you’ve been successful, but have the data to back it up:
Use action verbs: “developed,” “led,” and “initiated” are all verbs that transmit more confidence and expertise than “did” or “completed.”
Include data: read these two sentences and let us know which is better (hint: it’s the second!); it’s crucial to convey confidence and use data to back up your claim:
Led data reduction project.
Initiated and directed a project that resulted in a 86% reduction in data.
Summary
As we mentioned above, your summary is a unique opportunity to provide a recruiter or potential employer with a glimpse into you and what you can bring to the table. Edit your summary to make it fit your personality, but here’s an idea:
[NAME] is a data professional with four years of demonstrated experience in the field, using their various certifications and experience at [COMPANY NAME] to deliver a 40% increase in revenue, a 89% decrease in data usage, and never before seen levels of user privacy. [NAME] is skilled in programming, SQL, data management, statistics, and machine learning, using their years of experience to provide an unparalleled data experience to all.
Recommendations and endorsements
You can list all your achievements, but what truly sets a high-quality profile apart from others is recommendations and endorsements; these are provided by past or current colleagues and are either personalized comments left on someone’s profile or endorsements about specific skills. For example, your previous boss could endorse your language skills, proficiency in Excel, or your teamwork skills; a recommendation would be a few sentences written specifically for you. Both provide an additional layer of confidence to potential employers and can help convey even more trust.
Steps to Optimize Your LinkedIn Profile
Professional Photo: Use a high-quality, professional photo.
Compelling Headline: Create a headline that highlights your strengths, e.g., 'Data Analyst | Expert in Data Visualization & Statistical Analysis.'
Detailed Summary: Write a summary that tells your professional story, including key skills and experiences.
Experience Section: Detail your role and achievements using specific metrics and examples.
Skills & Endorsements: List relevant skills and seek endorsements from colleagues.
Recommendations: Request recommendations from previous managers and clients
It may seem daunting at first, but LinkedIn is your friend and there to help you reach new heights, harnessing both its networking capabilities and capacity for you to show yourself off to help you make new connections and land that perfect role. And no matter if you’re just starting off or have years of experience in the field, LinkedIn is an incredibly useful tool for data analysts.
About the Author:
Juliette Carreiro is a tech writer, with two years of experience writing in-depth articles for Ironhack. Covering everything from career advice and navigating the job ladder, to the future impact of AI in the global tech space, Juliette is the go-to for Ironhack’s community of aspiring tech professionals.
