linkedin-personal-branding

LinkedIn Personal Branding Skill

CRITICAL: Mandatory Audit Requirements

Every audit MUST include — no exceptions:

Field	How to Determine
Industry/Sector	Job titles, skills, content topics
Profile Type	Employee / Consultant / Freelancer / Entrepreneur / Job Seeker
Target Audience	Recruiters / Clients / Peers / Investors / Partners
Engagement Rate	CALCULATED: (Reactions+Comments+Shares)/Impressions×100
SSI Score	Actual score OR estimation with note

These fields appear in the report header. Do not skip them.

---

Core Workflow

Step 1: Determine Analysis Type

• Full Profile Audit — all elements, complete report with scores
• Quick Profile Review — priority action items and quick wins
• Content Strategy Analysis — posts, engagement, content performance
• Visibility Optimization — keyword/SEO discoverability

Step 2: Access LinkedIn via Chrome DevTools

Required: LinkedIn profile open in Chrome, user logged in.

Tool	MCP Name	Use For
List Pages	mcp__chrome-devtools__list_pages	Find LinkedIn tab by URL
Select Page	mcp__chrome-devtools__select_page	Focus tab
Snapshot	mcp__chrome-devtools__take_snapshot	Accessibility tree with UIDs
Screenshot	mcp__chrome-devtools__take_screenshot	Photo and banner analysis
Navigate	mcp__chrome-devtools__navigate_page	Go to URLs
Click/Hover	mcp__chrome-devtools__click / hover	Interact with elements
Wait For	mcp__chrome-devtools__wait_for	Lazy-loaded content

Extraction workflow:

1. list_pages → find pageId where URL contains linkedin.com/in/
2. select_page → focus tab
3. take_snapshot → get accessibility tree with UIDs
4. take_screenshot → analyze photo/banner
5. For lazy-loaded sections: hover to scroll → re-snapshot

Profile sections to analyze: photo, banner, headline, About, custom URL, experience, education, skills/endorsements, certifications, recommendations, featured section, activity/posts, followers, connections (500+ indicator), groups.

Step 3: Score Profile Elements

Category	Weight	Key Factors
Visual Identity	15%	Photo quality, banner, consistency
Headline	15%	Value proposition, keywords, memorability
About Section	15%	Story, keywords, CTA
Experience	20%	Completeness, achievements, metrics
Skills & Endorsements	10%	Relevance, count
Recommendations	10%	Quality, diversity, recency
Activity & Content	15%	Posting frequency, engagement rate

Score interpretation: 90-100 Elite · 80-89 Excellent · 70-79 Good · 60-69 Average · <60 Needs Work

Step 4: Calculate Mandatory Metrics

Engagement Rate (REQUIRED):

Engagement Rate = (Reactions + Comments + Shares) / Impressions × 100

Example: (15+1+0)/1,376×100 = 1.16% → below 3% target

SSI Score (REQUIRED):

Option A — User visits linkedin.com/sales/ssi and shares score (target: 70+/100, 20+/25 per component).

Option B — If unavailable, estimate:

Profile Characteristics	Estimated SSI
All-Star + active posting + engaged network	70-85
Complete + regular posting	55-70
Basic + occasional activity	40-55
Incomplete + minimal activity	<40

Keyword/SEO: Check keyword presence in headline, About, experience, skills. Recommend additions for target role/industry.

Profile completeness (All-Star): photo, banner, customized headline, About (500+ chars), current position + description, 2+ past positions, education, 5+ skills, location, industry.

Step 5: Generate Recommendations

Priority matrix:

• Quick Wins (high impact, low effort) — do immediately
• Strategic Initiatives (high impact, high effort) — plan carefully
• Nice-to-haves (low impact, low effort) — when possible

Categories: Profile optimization, Content strategy (3x/week minimum posting), Engagement (comments, network growth, recommendations), Visibility (keywords, featured section, creator mode).

Step 6: Deliver Report

Pre-report checklist: industry identified, profile type classified, target audience identified, engagement rate calculated, SSI captured or estimated, industry benchmarks applied.

Report sections:

1. Executive Summary
2. Classification (Industry, Profile Type, Target Audience)
3. Profile Scorecard
4. Calculated Metrics (Engagement Rate, SSI)
5. Element-by-Element Analysis
6. Quick Wins
7. Strategic Recommendations
8. 30-60-90 Day Action Plan

---

Profile Element Best Practices

Photo: 400×400px minimum, professional attire, approachable expression, clean background, face 60-70% of frame, good lighting.

Banner (1584×396px): Branded/industry-relevant, value proposition text, no clutter or small text.

Headline formula (220 chars max): Who you are + problems you solve + benefit/result + keywords

• Bad: "Marketing Manager"
• Good: "Marketing Manager | Helping B2B Companies Grow Through Data-Driven Strategies | 45% Revenue Increase Specialist"

About section (2,600 chars max): Hook (first 2-3 lines) → story → what you do/who you help → achievements with metrics → skills → CTA. First person, short paragraphs, relevant keywords.

Experience: Quantified achievements (%, $, #), scope, key projects, skills demonstrated.

Skills: 50+ relevant skills, top 3 pinned, endorsements from colleagues, aligned with target keywords.

Featured: 3-6 curated items — portfolio, case studies, articles, media, lead magnets.

Services (Consultants/Freelancers): 3-5 keyword-rich service offerings.

---

Chrome DevTools Navigation Patterns

Lazy-loaded sections:

hover(uid: "[section_uid]") → wait_for(text: "Show all") → take_snapshot()

Activity/posts:

navigate_page(url: "linkedin.com/in/[user]/recent-activity/")
→ wait_for(text: "reactions") → take_snapshot()

Analytics dashboard:

navigate_page(url: "https://www.linkedin.com/analytics/")
→ wait_for(text: "Profile viewers") → take_snapshot()

SSI:

navigate_page(url: "https://www.linkedin.com/sales/ssi")
→ wait_for(text: "Social Selling Index") → take_snapshot()

Playwright fallback: If Chrome DevTools MCP unavailable, use mcp__playwright__browser_* equivalents (snapshot, screenshot, navigate, click, hover, wait_for).

Error handling:

Error	Recovery
LinkedIn tab not found	Ask user to open LinkedIn in Chrome
Element UID missing	Re-snapshot, find alternative UID
Content not loading	Scroll manually, increase timeout, refresh
Rate limited/CAPTCHA	Pause 30+ seconds, proceed slowly
SSI requires Sales Navigator	Note unavailable, provide estimation
Private profile	Document as "Limited visibility"

---

Industry-Specific Guidance

Always classify industry first. Load references/metrics_benchmarks.md for industry benchmarks across 15+ industries (Tech, Finance, Healthcare, Legal, Marketing, HR, Consulting, Creative, Nonprofit, Startups, etc.).

Factor	Conservative (Legal, Finance, Healthcare)	Progressive (Tech, Marketing, Startups)
Tone	Formal	Casual, personable
Content	Thought leadership	Stories, behind-the-scenes
Posting	2-3x/week	4-5x/week
Emojis	Minimal	Acceptable

LinkedIn Features to assess: Creator Mode (enable if 3+/week posting), Open to Work (job seekers), Providing Services (consultants), Newsletter (1000+ followers), Custom URL (always set), Verification Badge.

---

Reference Files

• references/scoring_framework.md — detailed scoring criteria with examples
• references/metrics_benchmarks.md — industry benchmarks for SSI, engagement, growth
• references/content_strategy.md — content pillars, posting schedules, formats
• assets/profile_audit_template.md — complete audit report template
• assets/quick_review_template.md — rapid assessment checklist
• assets/action_plan_template.md — 30-60-90 day roadmap template