What does creating a job alert on LinkedIn do?

Creating a job alert on LinkedIn is a useful way to stay up-to-date on job opportunities that match your interests and qualifications. When you set up a job alert, LinkedIn will automatically email you new job postings that meet your specified criteria. This saves you time searching for jobs manually and ensures you don’t miss relevant openings.

How to Create a LinkedIn Job Alert

Setting up a job alert on LinkedIn only takes a few minutes. Here are the steps:

1. Go to the LinkedIn Jobs homepage and click “Create job alert” at the top
2. Enter keywords for the position or company names you want to target
3. Select the location(s) you’re interested in working in
4. Choose the frequency for email updates – daily, weekly or monthly
5. Specify any other filters like job function, seniority level or company industry
6. Click “Create” to activate your job alert

You can create as many alerts as you want to target multiple types of roles or locations. LinkedIn also lets you manage or delete your alerts at any time.

Customization Options

One of the best things about LinkedIn job alerts is the customization. You can target your alerts to match your job search goals as closely as possible. Here are some of the options you have:

• Keywords – Enter specific job titles, skills or companies to filter openings.
• Location – Target opportunities in desired cities, states or countries.
• Job type – Filter by full-time, part-time, internship, etc.
• Experience level – Look for entry-level, mid-senior level or executive jobs.
• Company industry – Focus on your industry of interest.
• Job function – Target roles in marketing, engineering, finance, etc.
• Remote options – Find fully remote or hybrid opportunities.

Leveraging these filters allows you to have the job hunting come to you rather than spending hours searching across multiple sites.

Benefits of LinkedIn Job Alerts

Here are some of the top benefits of setting up LinkedIn job alerts:

• Get early access to new job postings before they gain widespread exposure.
• Avoid manually searching job boards and the LinkedIn jobs page.
• Surface relevant opportunities you may have otherwise missed.
• Stay up-to-date on openings at companies you’re interested in.
• Help keep your job search organized and focused.
• Quickly evaluate and apply to new roles that match your criteria.
• Monitor the job market and demand for your skills.

Overall, LinkedIn job alerts can simplify and accelerate your job search process. The platform’s customized alerts and proactive email updates make it easier to find and pursue the right opportunities at the right time.

Tips for Creating Effective Job Alerts

To get the most out of LinkedIn’s job alerts, here are some tips:

• Use specific keywords relevant to your experience and target job titles.
• Select current locations you want to work in or are able to relocate to.
• Set up multiple alerts to cover different types of roles or job functions.
• Target companies you’re interested in following for openings.
• Use filters like seniority level and job type to fine-tune alerts.
• Review alerts frequently and apply early once you get relevant email notifications.
• Update your alerts regularly to reflect changes in your job search.
• Enable daily or weekly alerts so you get new postings right away.

Downsides of LinkedIn Job Alerts

While job alerts have many benefits, there are a few potential downsides to consider as well:

• You may get email overload if you set up too many alerts or don’t manage them properly.
• Important openings still may be missed if the job description doesn’t contain your keywords.
• You’ll need to routinely check and refine your alerts to maximize their relevancy.
• The generated lists may include some less suitable roles or duplicate postings.
• It can take some trial and error to fine-tune alerts that filter jobs effectively.
• Having notifications go to your inbox could lead to ignoring the alerts over time.

However, you can minimize most of these issues by starting with just a few highly targeted alerts and tweaking them as needed. You may also want to create an email folder or label for the alerts so they don’t get lost among other messages.

LinkedIn vs. Google Job Alerts

Google also offers email-based job alerts for searches on Google Jobs. Here’s a quick comparison between LinkedIn and Google job alerts:

Overall, LinkedIn provides richer filtering capabilities and a more customized job alert experience for serious job seekers leveraging the platform’s extensive data.

Other Job Search Alert Options

In addition to LinkedIn and Google, here are some other options for setting up automated job search alerts:

• Indeed – Lets you save a search and get email notifications for new postings listed on Indeed’s broad job aggregation site.
• ZipRecruiter – Offers email alerts based on searches filtered by keywords, location and other criteria.
• Glassdoor – Provides an “Email me jobs” option to get notifications of openings matching your search terms.
• Company email lists – Sign up directly on company career sites to get job postings sent to your inbox.
• RSS feeds – Use feed reader apps to aggregate and monitor job listings from multiple sites in one view.

The best alert options for you will depend on the specific roles, employers, locations and job boards you want to target.

Conclusion

Setting up LinkedIn job alerts is a simple yet powerful way to automate elements of your job search. The platform makes it easy to customize alerts that deliver targeted, timely notifications of relevant job opportunities. While LinkedIn alerts have some limitations, the extensive filtering options provide a level of precision and integration unmatched by other services. With the right search criteria in place, LinkedIn job alerts can provide an invaluable ongoing feed of potential openings to accelerate your hiring efforts.