When you’re at a networking evening you need to be able to sum up what your company does and how they can deliver for the person you’re talking too – you need to be able to do this in just a few minutes. Paul Hurdsfield is a guy who taught me just how effective it is to get your message across, and how using LinkedIn to do this is a powerful tool.

The linked in summary is where you have the opportunity to deliver your important message. LinkedIn has grown massively over the last decade and it is a place where you will find every professional and company.

Here are some great tips that Paul Hurdsfield taught me:

1 – You need to concisely talk about the work and achievements from the past. Don’t worry about rambling on about details because that will just take up space.

2 – Describe the ideal customer and employee for your company. If you are looking for a job then this is where you need to talk about the ideal job for you.

3 – A great idea is to add a quote, review or letter from a satisfied customer. If you feel that sharing a letter is best then you can share it in the media section.

4 – Tell everyone what it is that makes your company, staff and products stand out from the competition.

5 – Add how exactly you go about making sure that people and organisations reach their aims – if you’re looking for a job then you should write about your skill and how they will improve any company you work for.

6 – Explain anything from your past business that can show some outstanding results.

7 – You must always have a call to action so anyone reading your summary knows what they need to do now.

8 – A large part of the summary should be used to show how you have some great ideas for the future. Explain to the reader the type of opportunities you think there are or any new markets you can help them reach.

9 – One thing I have seen on many good profiles are that people add their specialities. So be sure to highlight your top keywords. and this will give you a great chance climbing the LinkedIn rankings when people search for those keywords.

10 – If you’re confident then put in some contact info, that way people can act immediately and contact you directly.