LinkedIn launched its first-ever #PictureOpportunity Tour on September 1st in Philadelphia. The professional social network is traveling across the country with a photo studio on wheels, offering free headshots and profile advice. Small Business Trends was in attendance at the second stop of the tour, at the New York Marriott East Side hotel on Sept. 3.
The process is fast if you only want the free headshot, but either way, you’ll need to line up. Wait times will vary depending on how many people show up. It’s a large bus marked “Picture Opportunity Tour” with a mirror inside for last-minute grooming.
A sign inside the bus is a friendly reminder that profiles with face pics get around 14 times more views than those without.
If you’d rather revise your profile wording on your own without any help, that’s fine. But maybe you weren’t aware of the little gems within LinkedIn’s profile structure, such as the ability to add links to the Projects section.
Naturally, you’ll want to be judicious about the links you add because everything on your profile affects your reputation.
“Also ask for recommendations from clients, vendors, and previous partners you’ve worked with to dial up your entrepreneurial reputation. It’s a critical way to garner credibility,” added LinkedIn’s career expert Catherine Fisher, in an email to Small Business Trends.
Before you arrive at the bus, be certain you know your LinkedIn password and the email associated with your account ahead of time. You’ll be asked for both because they’re required for uploading the headshot to your profile.
Your new headshot choices will be visible in the process and the assistants will ask you to pick the one you like best, before the manual upload process begins. This is all done on the bus and through an SD card, which is not yours to keep.
Also, nothing will be mailed or emailed to you.
The 10-city tour resumes after Labor Day and includes stops in Washington D.C., Chicago, Omaha, Denver, Albuquerque, Tempe, San Francisco and concludes at UCLA in Los Angeles on Oct. 12. Here’s the schedule and list of cities.
Images: LinkedIn, Alex Yong
