In this lesson, you’ll learn how to search for companies that meet your target criteria and add a profile for your own company.
LinkedIn’s Company Profiles feature provides an opportunity for companies to present their products, services, and job openings to LinkedIn’s vast audience. In addition, company profiles offer extensive data that’s particularly useful to job seekers, recruiters, and members searching for potential clients and partners.
Tip: Promote Your Small Business with a Company Profile
Company profiles aren’t just for large corporations. If you own a small business, even a one-person business, creating a company profile can help you gain visibility on LinkedIn.
Caution: Company Profiles Aren’t Advertisements
Remember, however, that a company profile isn’t an advertisement in disguise. Stick to the facts and avoid hype. Read other profiles in your industry before creating your own to understand what is and isn’t appropriate.
Figure W2.1 shows a sample company profile.
Company profiles can include
• A company summary
• A list of specialties with keyword links
• A list of current employees, including those in your network
• Former employees in your network
• New hires
• Recent promotions and changes
• A list of employees with the most profile views
• Data about related companies
• Key statistics including top locations, company size, website link, common job titles, and median age of employees
• Links to open jobs posted on LinkedIn, if any
• Links to company news
• Stock information
Note: Consider a Custom Company Profile
Consider creating a custom company profile, a paid feature that’s part of LinkedIn Talent Advantage (http://talent.linkedin.com/profiles). Custom profiles can include additional features such as polls, videos, employee spotlights, and dynamic content that adapts to viewer profiles.
The company profile icon to the right of any company name in a member profile indicates that the company has a listing in LinkedIn Company Profiles. Click the company link to view the complete profile or hover over it to view a preview. Figure W2.2 shows a sample preview.
There are several ways to search company profiles on LinkedIn.
If you know the name of the company you want to find, follow these steps:
- On the top navigation menu, select the Search Companies option in the quick search box.
- Enter the company name in the text box.
- Click the Search button. The Search Results page appears, shown in Figure W2.3.
- On the Search Results page, click the name of the company whose profile you want to view.
Tip: Edit Your Criteria to Generate Different Search Results
If your initial search didn’t locate the profile you want to view, edit your criteria in the Modify Your Search box. This box duplicates the fields found on the Search Companies page, described later in this lesson. It’s also possible that a profile doesn’t exist yet for the company you’re searching for.
A quick search works well if you know the company profile you want to view. At times, however, you might want to search Company Profiles to find companies that fit target criteria rather than locate a company you already know. To search for companies based on criteria you specify, follow these steps:
- On the top navigation menu, click the Companies link. The Search Companies page opens, shown in Figure W2.4.
- In the Company Name or Keyword field, enter keywords targeted to your search. For example, enter “investor relations” to search for companies offering this service. You can also enter a company name, but using the quick search box is a faster way to locate a company by name.
- If you want to narrow search results to a specific location, select Located in or Near from the Location drop-down list. If your search isn’t location-specific, select Anywhere.
- If your search is location-specific, select a Country and Postal Code, if applicable.
- To display company headquarter locations only, select the Only Company Headquarters check box. This option appears only if you narrow search results by location.
- Click the Show More link to expand your options.
- Select an Industry from the drop-down list.
- Search All Companies or limit your search to only companies where you have 1st or 2nd degree connections.
- Specify a target Company Size from the eight options.
- If you want to view only companies with current openings, select the Only Companies with Jobs Posted on LinkedIn check box.
- Click the Search Companies button. The Search Results page opens with a list of potential matches.
- Click a company link to view its profile. See “Understanding LinkedIn Company Profiles,” earlier in this lesson to learn more about the information available on a company profile.
Tip: Specify Only the Most Pertinent Criteria
You don’t need to complete all the fields on the Search Companies page to perform a search. In fact, you’ll generate the best results by starting with your most important criteria and then modifying your criteria only if your initial search doesn’t yield the desired results.
In addition to entering search criteria, you can also browse companies by industry in the Browse Industries section on the Search Companies page. LinkedIn lists the most relevant industries based your profile, but you can click Browse All Industries to expand this list.
To add a profile for your company, follow these steps:
- On the top navigation menu, click the Companies link.
- Click the Add a Company link at the top of the Search Companies page. The Add a Company page opens, shown in Figure W2.5.
- Enter your Company Name and enter Your Email Address at Company.
- Click the Continue button. The Companies page opens (see Figure W2.6), prompting you to add basic information for your company.
- Your Company Name and Email Domain(s) appear by default. Click the Edit link to change these, if desired.
- Enter a Website URL, such as http://www.patricerutledge.com.
- Enter a Description of your company. Think strategically about how you want to present your company in this field, focusing on who you want to attract and what action you want them to take. Remember, though, that your description should be factual. This isn’t the place to advertise or promote.
- Select an Industry from the drop-down list.
- Enter the number of employees.
- Select a Type for your business. Options include Public Company, Privately Held, Non-Profit, Government Agency, Partnership, Sole Proprietorship, Self-Employed, or Educational Institution.
- Select your Country from the drop-down list.
- If applicable, enter a Postal Code.
- Select your Position from the drop-down list. Alternatively, enter a new position.
- Click the Save & Continue button. The Company Logo page opens.
- Browse to select a logo. Your logo should be approximately 100×60 pixels; in the PNG, JPEG, or GIF format; and no more than 100KB in size.
- Click Upload Logo button to upload your logo.
- Click the Locations link to edit headquarters information or add another location.
- Click the Financial link to add revenue information.
- Click the Company Blog link to add the URL of your company blog. LinkedIn displays this data in the News box on your profile.
- Click the Related Companies link to add information about divisions, subsidiaries, parent company, acquisitions, and mergers, if applicable.
- Click the Save Changes button to save changes.
- Click the Back to Company Profile link to view your profile.
The Your Company Profile box, shown in Figure W2.7, indicates your profile completeness and suggested content to enter.
For example, you can add a list of your specialties to increment your completeness by 25 percent. To do so, click the Add Specialties link to open the Basic Information page. Enter your specialties as keywords or keyword phrases separated by commas. They appear as searchable links on your actual company profile.
LinkedIn associates employees automatically with the company profiles of the current employers that they list on their profiles. If LinkedIn doesn’t list you correctly as an employee of your company, follow these steps to edit your company information:
- Click the Edit My Profile link on the expanded left navigation menu. The Edit My Profile page opens.
- Click the Edit link next to your current position. The Edit Position page opens.
- Click the Change Company link and enter a new company name. When you start typing, LinkedIn suggests possible matches. Be careful to choose the correct match. With larger companies in particular, you might find subsidiaries, divisions, or even incorrect spellings.
- Click the Update button to update your profile.
If you added your own company profile, you can edit it if you log in using the same account used to create your profile.
You can edit a company profile that you didn’t create only if you are a current employee.
To edit a company profile, follow these steps:
- Click the Companies link on the top navigation menu. The Search Companies page opens, displaying the Your Company Profile box in the upper-right corner. Figure W2.8 shows this box.
- Click the Edit Info link in the Your Company Profile box.
Note: Create a Complete Profile for Maximum Effectiveness
If your company profile isn’t complete, the Your Company Profile box includes links prompting you to complete specific sections of your profile (such as Add a Description, Add Logo, or Add Specialties).
- Enter your changes on the Basic Information page.
- Click the links in the Company Profile box to make changes to your logo, location, financial information, company blog, or related company data.
- Click the Save Changes button to update your company profile.
See “Adding a Company Profile” section earlier in this lesson for more information about the data you can enter on a company profile.