How to Use LinkedIn to Find a Job
How to Use LinkedIn to Find a Job
Are you looking for a job and ready to leverage the power of LinkedIn? Your professional network can be an invaluable asset when it comes to finding your ideal job. Plus, in this digital age making meaningful connections is becoming a more powerful tool than ever before. With some guidance and insight, you’ll learn all about how to best utilize LinkedIn to boost your job prospects and make sure that employers know who you are. So let’s get started!
Why you should use LinkedIn for your job search
LinkedIn is the most popular professional social networking site, with users in countries all around the world. The Jobvite Recruiter Nation Survey found that 9 out of 10 recruiters use LinkedIn as part of their candidate search. LinkedIn has become a necessary platform for business people and students to connect with one another and advance in their careers.
LinkedIn is an amazing tool that can help you land your dream job, but only if you’re using it correctly. Below are some tips on how to get the most out of LinkedIn and use it to expand your professional network.
Jeff Weiner, LinkedIn’s Executive Chairman, has stated that the most vital aspect of a candidate’s profile is “authenticity.”
“Be yourself, represent who you are. It’s not just your experiences; this is not a resume … This is a more dynamic approach to representing your experiences, your skills, your objectives, what you know, what you’re interested in within a professional context,” Weiner explained. “It’s not just about the comprehensiveness; it’s also about freshness of the information, and the more complete and the more fresh, the more recent that that information has been updated, the more opportunities that are going to accrue to our members.”
14 ways to use LinkedIn to find a job
Here are 14 things you must be doing on LinkedIn to find your next job.
1. Keep your profile up to date.
According to LinkedIn’s blog, those who have a profile photo are 14 times more likely to receive page views while those who include skills are 13 times more likely to have their profiles viewed. With over 45,000 different skills available on LinkedIn, if you want employers to take notice of your profile, make sure that you regularly update it with new information and never forget to add both a great picture and list your relevant skills.
2. Be comprehensive about current skills and objectives.
LinkedIn is an amazing tool when you’re searching for a job, but you have to use it correctly. Make sure to include all of your skills and objectives on your page, so recruiters can get a good idea of who you are. updating your page regularly is also important, as companies might ignore you if they think you haven’t been active recently.
3. Highlight your recent professional wins and experiences
You want your recent experience to be noticeable to anyone who views your profile, especially when you’re trying to connect with someone or land a job.
4. Update your headline
The only things that people see when they search for you are your photo, name, and headline. So make sure that your headline is interesting and really highlights what you do or the type of position you want. For example, “HR professional connecting employees with management” sounds a lot better than “Chemical engineer in the public sector.”
5. Let people know you’re Open to Work
If you’re currently seeking a job, make sure to mention it in your headline. This will grab the attention of recruiters or hiring managers who are scanning through profiles.
You can also let recruiters know you’re looking for a job by using LinkedIn’s Open to Work feature. By indicating your targeted roles and location, LinkedIn will show your profile when recruiters search for candidates that meet those specifications. Simply turn on the Open to Work feature on your profile.
6. Add people to your network
LinkedIn allows you to easily connect with people you know by importing your contact lists from other sites like your Gmail account, which can help increase your exposure exponentially.
7. Research the companies you’re interested in and follow them
When you’re job hunting, LinkedIn is a great tool to help you find and follow companies. If you haven’t already, make a list of the companies you’d like to work for were given them all some love on LinkedIn by following their page. Doing this will keep you up-to-date with company news as well at any new positions that might become available – meaning you can be one of the first in line to apply!
8. Use the Advanced Search
Make a list of your favorite companies and see which LinkedIn connections are already associated with them. After that, you can touch base with those people and ask about their company experiences- whether they work there or not. This will give valuable insights into what the next steps should be when applying for jobs at these places! Be ingenious in your research so you’re completely prepared to make the best approach possible when contacting potential employers.
9. Ask your network for introductions
Once you have found the companies you would like to talk to, ask your connection if they know anyone who works there that could introduce you.
10. Connect with alumni or members of other groups you’re part of for connections
Online searching for your alma mater or other professional/civic groups is a great way to network with people who have similar experiences. This could give you an advantage when applying for jobs.
11. Be active
LinkedIn is a powerful networking tool, so use it to your full advantage. Be genuine in order gain trust and build relationships with other professionals. Regularly post updates about recent projects you’ve worked on or articles you’ve written–this will make people more likely to take notice of you and think of you as an authority figure. Joining groups relevant to your industry is also a great way to connect with like-minded individuals and build partnerships.
12. Join LinkedIn Professional Groups
If you want to broaden your network and demonstrate your expertise, do an Advanced Search to find professional groups in your area and become involved with them. It’s possible that participating in these groups will eventually lead you to the organizations you would like to work for. When researching which groups to join, be sure to consider how active they are; there’s no use joining a group that rarely interacts online.
13. Research the company and members of the team
LinkedIn provides a helpful function where you can research the people who will interview you, so that you know their interests and what they are looking for in candidates. Utilize this information to your benefit during the interview by building rapport and demonstrating that you understand what they need.
14. Network after work
If you want to get more interaction and exposure on LinkedIn, try updating your status, networking, and connecting with people and companies after business hours. According to Mashable, statistics show that only 8.33 percent of Americans use LinkedIn during working hours compared to other social media sites like Facebook (with almost 30 percent of people using it during work hours). So test this out at different times of the day to see what works best in getting responses and other interactions.
LinkedIn is a great tool for job seekers to find and follow companies, research potential employers, ask for introductions, join groups relevant to their industry, and more. Utilize all of the tips in this article to help you network with other professionals and increase your chances of landing the job of your dreams. Keep in mind that being active on LinkedIn (posting updates, joining groups, interacting with others) will help you build relationships and demonstrate your expertise which may give you an edge over other candidates.
Want to make sure your LinkedIn profile is the best it can be? Take our LinkedIn Profile Assessment and get our free checklist, and check out our other articles on using LinkedIn to its full potential.
