LinkedIn can be a great tool for finding and landing a job. With over 774 million members worldwide, LinkedIn is the largest professional networking platform and an important part of many people’s job search and career development strategy. Here are some key ways LinkedIn can help with employment and job seeking:
Expanding your network
LinkedIn allows you to connect with professionals in your industry, recruiters, hiring managers, former colleagues, classmates, and more. By building out your network, you gain access to inside information about job openings, company cultures, hiring trends, and career advice. Your connections can serve as references, provide referrals, and help you get your foot in the door at companies you’re interested in.
Researching companies
The Company Pages feature on LinkedIn provides detailed overviews of thousands of companies. Here you can learn about a company’s products/services, culture, leadership team, mission, work environment, past and current employees, news coverage, job openings, and more. This intel can help you determine if a company is a good fit for you and prep for interviews.
Finding job openings
LinkedIn’s massive job board contains millions of job listings across nearly every industry, job function, and location. You can search openings, get alerts when new jobs are posted, and apply directly through LinkedIn. Recruiters also use LinkedIn to source potential candidates, so maintaining an updated profile can lead them to you.
Showcasing your professional brand
Your LinkedIn profile functions as an online resume and personal branding tool that highlights your background, skills, accomplishments, recommendations, and more. A standout “All-Star” profile can grab the attention of recruiters and hiring managers, leading to more job interviews and offers.
Signal you’re open to offers
LinkedIn’s Open To Work feature allows you to discretely signal that you’re looking for new job opportunities. Recruiters can still contact you, but this feature lets them know you’re open so they can prioritize you.
Following companies and influencers
By following companies you’re interested in, you can stay on top of their latest job postings, news, trends, events, thought leaders, and career advice. Following industry experts, recruiters, executives, and influencers provides valuable insights as well.
Joining industry and alumni groups
LinkedIn Groups centered around particular industries, professions, interests, schools, and more enable you to connect with like-minded professionals, share advice, stay current on industry news, and learn about job openings. Many are exclusively for group members.
Developing skills
LinkedIn Learning provides thousands of expert-led courses and videos to help you build in-demand job skills. Lynda.com courses are included with LinkedIn Premium subscriptions. This can help you stand out to hiring managers and recruiters.
Building your personal brand
By actively engaging on LinkedIn through posting updates, sharing articles, commenting on posts, publishing on LinkedIn Publishing, and connecting with others, you can establish yourself as a thought leader and authority in your field. This supports your personal brand and job search.
Accessing salary data
LinkedIn Salary provides detailed, real-time salary data for thousands of job titles. You can benchmark salaries by location, industry, experience level, company size, skills, education, and more. This helps you negotiate higher pay.
Applying for remote jobs
LinkedIn lists many work from home and remote job opportunities. With remote work becoming more prevalent, LinkedIn is a key resource for finding and landing remote roles across industries and functions.
Connecting after interviews
Following up with recruiters and hiring managers via LinkedIn after interviews can help keep you top of mind. You can also potentially connect with others at the company for insider intel.
Pros of Using LinkedIn for Employment
Here are some of the key pros of leveraging LinkedIn to help with your job search and career:
- Large professional network with over 774 million members
- Ability to research companies, hiring managers, and inside opportunities
- Massive job board with millions of listings across industries
- Tools for building an attractive professional brand and resume
- Resources for developing in-demand skills and knowledge
- Stay up to date on industry news and trends
- Connect with recruiters, hiring managers, and peers
- Groups provide inside access to opportunities
- Salary data helps negotiate pay
- Remote work listings are readily available
Cons of Using LinkedIn for Employment
However, there are also some potential drawbacks to relying on LinkedIn for your job search:
- Many job seekers means lots of competition
- Requires an active, updated, and optimized profile to fully benefit
- Not all open jobs are listed on LinkedIn
- Applying through LinkedIn still often requires going to company site
- Requires regular engagement to build connections and network
- Too much connection building can seem disingenuous
- Harder to stand out among hundreds of applicants
- Scams and fraudulent job postings need to be watched for
- Premium subscriptions cost money
- Not a replacement for having a strong resume
Tips for Using LinkedIn to Find a Job
To maximize your chances of success, keep these tips in mind when using LinkedIn to look for your next job or career move:
- Optimize your profile with keywords, experience, accomplishments, skills, recommendations
- Engage regularly by liking, commenting, posting, joining discussions
- Build out your high-quality network of connections strategically
- Research companies, hiring managers, and jobs thoroughly
- Follow relevant companies, influencers, groups, hashtags, schools
- Use advanced search to find the right job openings for you
- Apply for roles early – don’t wait for listings to get overloaded
- Follow up with recruiters and hiring managers after applying
- Take LinkedIn Learning courses to develop relevant skills
- Be patient but persistent in your efforts
Alternatives to LinkedIn
While LinkedIn is the top professional networking platform, there are other sites you can use in your job search as well:
- Indeed – Massive general job board with advanced filters
- Monster – Older but still used job posting site
- Glassdoor – Company reviews and salary data
- ZipRecruiter – AI-driven job matching platform
- FlexJobs – Telecommuting and remote work listings
- Dice – Tech and IT-focused job board
- AngelList – Startup and tech job marketplace
- Built In – Tech jobs at startups and tech companies
Conclusion
Using LinkedIn strategically as part of a broader job search plan can certainly improve your chances of landing your next desired job or career advancement opportunity. However, it requires time and effort to create a compelling profile, build connections, engage regularly, and search actively for the roles that best match your experience and interests. While not a magic bullet, incorporating LinkedIn into your efforts can provide access to information, people, resources, and openings that you may not find as easily elsewhere.
