LinkedIn is a great platform for networking and finding new job opportunities. However, with its large user base, you may get inundated with basic job offers that don’t match your skills or career goals. Fortunately, LinkedIn provides options to control the types of jobs you see in your feed. Here are some tips on how to opt out of basic jobs on LinkedIn.
Adjust Your Career Interests
The first step is to update the career interests on your LinkedIn profile. LinkedIn will recommend jobs based on the position titles and skills you have listed. Go to your profile and click on the “Details” section under your profile photo. Scroll down to the “Career interests” module and click on the pencil icon to edit.
Here, you can remove any basic job titles that may be attracting irrelevant opportunities. For example, you can delete interests like “cashier,” “barista,” or other entry-level roles. Focus on listing titles and skills that are relevant to your professional experience and aspirations.
Be Specific With Position Types
Along with listing career interests, specify the exact types of positions you are looking for in the “Position types” section. For instance, you can select “Director,” “Head of,” “Vice President,” or other senior-level roles. Avoid checking the box for “Internship” or other junior positions unless those are truly roles you want.
Showcase Your Expertise
Make sure your LinkedIn profile thoroughly conveys your specialized experience and skills. Include details of your background that would attract opportunities in your desired field. For example, highlight technical expertise, certifications, advanced education, publications, volunteer leadership roles, and other relevant details.
Also, add skills to your profile that are specific to your industry and profession. Avoid including basic or soft skills like “communication” or “teamwork” that could match you with generalist roles. The more your profile showcases your specialized qualifications, the more likely you are to surface better job matches.
Set Specific Goals in Your Summary
Your LinkedIn summary or about section is valuable real estate to communicate your professional brand. Use it to state your current career goals and the specific type of opportunities you are pursuing. For example, you can say you are seeking a senior product management role in the healthcare industry.
Being explicit about your goals helps ensure recruiters know what types of positions you are interested in. Avoid vague statements like “exploring new challenges” and instead be clear about your target job titles, industries, and seniority levels.
Expand Your Network Selectively
Networking is important on LinkedIn, but connect only with professionals in your desired field. Avoid accepting connection requests from random accounts or unknown contacts. Similarly, be selective when sending your own requests and focus on those who work in your target companies or industry.
Expanding your network thoughtfully minimizes basic job offers from irrelevant connections. It also helps surface opportunities from contacts who understand your professional goals and can recommend suitable roles.
Follow Target Companies
One simple way to see more relevant job openings is to follow your target employers on LinkedIn. You can follow companies you are interested in working for. This ensures any job postings they make appear in your LinkedIn feed.
To follow a company, go to their LinkedIn page and click “Follow” near the top. You can also follow specific LinkedIn Groups focused on your profession or industry. By following target employers, you stay on their radar for future job opportunities.
Engage With Your Network
It’s not enough to just connect with the right people. You also need to engage with your network by liking and commenting on their posts, especially those related to your industry. This raises your visibility so your connections are more likely to think of you for opportunities.
Start conversations by asking connections how they handle challenges in their roles. Also, post your own industry insights and advice to developsubject matter expertise. By engaging, you stay top of mind versus remaining a passive connection.
Join Industry Groups
LinkedIn Groups centered around your profession are a great way to get noticed by the right people. Groups allow you to connect with industry influencers, join group discussions, and share your viewpoint.
To browse Groups, click on the ‘Interests’ icon in the top toolbar on LinkedIn. Use the search bar to find your industry or profession. Join Groups with the most active discussions and members to expand your reach. Engage regularly to get the full benefit.
Complete Profile Badges
LinkedIn offers badges you can add to your profile by completing tasks like filling out your profile details, sharing a post, following companies, and more. These help showcase your engagement on the platform.
To view available badges, click the “Me” icon and choose “View profile.” Scroll down to the Accomplishments section. Click “Add profile section” and select “Accomplishments.” From here, you can browse badges you’re eligible to earn. Completing them signals you’re an active user.
Curate Your Feed
Tailor your LinkedIn feed to focus on content related to your industry. Click on the ellipses icon next to “Feed” at the top and choose “Manage your feed.” From the Management page, you can:
- Prioritize content from target companies by selecting “See first”
- Hide posts from other users or companies by selecting “Hide”
- Mute hashtags or keywords not relevant to your goals
Curating your feed removes irrelevant content and positions you to see most useful job listings and articles.
Leverage Advanced Job Search
LinkedIn’s job search allows you to filter opportunities by title, company, location, and date posted. But you can further refine your search using the following advanced tips:
- Title keywords: Enter exact words that should be in the position title, like “Senior Product Manager.”
- Company name: Search openings for specific target employers.
- Location: Narrow down results to jobs based in your desired city.
- Remote: Filter remote or location-agnostic roles.
- Date posted: Focus on either “Past week” or “Past month” for newest listings.
- Experience level: Select “Director,” “VP,” or other seniority levels.
- Industry: Check the box next to your target sectors or function.
- Job function: Choose “Engineering,” “Marketing,” “Sales,” etc.
Using multiple filters together, like title and location, yields the most tailored results.
Set Job Alerts
For ongoing matching, set up job alerts tailored to your search criteria. Go to the LinkedIn Jobs homepage and enter your desired role type and location. Then click “Create job alert” and save your search.
You will now receive email notifications whenever new jobs matching your keywords are posted. This allows passive job searching since suitable openings get delivered to your inbox.
Use Specific Applications
When applying for opportunities on LinkedIn, customize your application to each role. Use the cover letter field to summarize why you are a strong match based on the position description rather than sending a generic application.
Also, pay attention to any questions or fields in the application form. Tailor your responses to the requirements of that particular job instead of hastily clicking through.
Putting time into each application indicates your genuine interest versus blindly applying to every posting.
Research Inside Connections
Many LinkedIn job postings indicate if you have any connections at that company. Reach out and leverage these relationships to help get your application noticed.
Even if you lack direct connections, look up managers in your target department. Brief, professional messages highlighting your relevant background and interest in the role can help build relationships with the right people.
Promote Your Candidacy
Beyond applying for openings, also market yourself proactively as a strong candidate. Update your employment status to “Looking for opportunities” or “Open to work” so recruiters know you’re available. You can also create an eye-catching banner image promoting your professional brand.
Additionally, post status updates highlighting impressive accomplishments that demonstrate your qualifications and expertise. Discuss challenges you solved, projects delivered, skills gained, etc. Stay top of mind with relevant content.
Attend Industry Events
Expand your community and unlock opportunities by attending in-person conferences, meetups, and events for your field. Use LinkedIn to research relevant gatherings coming up based on your location and interests.
Attending events allows you to network directly with professionals at target companies and demonstrate your industry thought leadership.
Conclusion
LinkedIn offers robust options for controlling what jobs you see to align with your career interests and professional profile. Applying advanced search filters, customizing your profile details, engaging with your industry network, and actively applying to roles improves your chances of securing more suitable positions.
Remember to consistently showcase your specialized expertise, accomplishments, and passion. With a targeted approach, you can optimize LinkedIn to accelerate your career progression rather than settle for basic job matches unrelated to your goals.
