What to do on LinkedIn to get a job?

LinkedIn has become an essential platform for job seekers and recruiters alike. With over 722 million users worldwide, LinkedIn provides access to a vast network of professionals and opportunities. However, simply having a LinkedIn profile is not enough to land your dream job. You need to optimize your LinkedIn presence to attract recruiters and stand out from the crowd.

Complete your profile fully

A complete LinkedIn profile is your first step towards getting noticed by recruiters. You should fill out every section thoroughly, including your work experience, education, skills, accomplishments, interests, and recommendations. A well-rounded profile shows recruiters that you are a multifaceted professional. It also gives them plenty of information to assess your qualifications and fit for open positions.

Here are some tips for completing your LinkedIn profile:

• Include a professional headshot so recruiters can put a face to your name.
• Provide detailed descriptions of your work history – refer to your resume for accuracy. List your responsibilities, contributions, achievements, and skills gained at each position.
• Showcase all your skills, particularly those relevant to the roles you are targeting. Recruiters often search LinkedIn profiles based on skills.
• Add examples of your work through links, images, presentations, or documents.
• Highlight volunteer work, courses, certifications, publications, honors and awards.
• Get endorsements and recommendations from managers, colleagues, clients to back up your capabilities.

Spending time beefing up your LinkedIn profile is worthwhile. Profiles that are at least 80% complete are 40 times more likely to receive opportunities through LinkedIn.

Optimize your profile for search

With recruiters regularly searching LinkedIn to source candidates, you need to ensure your profile is optimized to be discovered. Include relevant keywords throughout your profile, especially in your headline, experience descriptions, and skills section. Use keywords that hiring managers are likely searching for.

Here are some tips for optimizing your profile:

• Research job postings to identify keywords commonly used for your target roles and companies.
• Incorporate a range of keyword variations in your profile, such as synonyms and related terms.
• Prioritize keywords in prominent profile sections like your headline and summary.
• List your most relevant skills near the top of your skills section.
• Use keywords naturally rather than overstuffing your profile repetitively.

Optimizing your profile for the right keywords can significantly boost your visibility in LinkedIn searches. Include keywords recruiters are looking for to get discovered more easily.

Customize your LinkedIn URL

Your customized public profile URL makes you look professional and is easy to include on your resume or email signature. It also helps with search engine optimization by directing people to your profile.

To customize your URL on LinkedIn:

1. Go to your profile and click “Edit public profile & URL” on the right rail.
2. Click “Customize your public profile URL.”
3. Enter the username you want in the available text box. This creates your URL: www.linkedin.com/in/yourusername.
4. Click “Set Custom URL.”

Tips for your customized URL:

• Use your full name or a variation of it for best branding.
• Keep it short and simple without special characters.
• Use keywords relevant to your profession or industry.

Having a customized public profile URL makes you appear credible and accessible to recruiters exploring your candidacy.

Showcase your background image

Your LinkedIn background photo is valuable, underutilized space to express your personality while aligning with your professional brand. Whether showing off your industry, passions, employer, or team, a background image attracts attention to your profile.

Follow these best practices when selecting your LinkedIn background photo:

• Choose a high-quality image that looks professional.
• Select a photo aligned with your career field, expertise, or interests.
• Use an image with minimal text or clutter to keep the focus on your profile content.
• Avoid distracting or inappropriate photos. Keep it workplace-friendly.
• Opt for inclusive images that appeal to a diverse audience.
• Personalize your brand with unique images instead of LinkedIn’s defaults.

An eye-catching background photo encourages recruiters to engage further with your profile. Just ensure it projects the right image as a job candidate.

Expand your network strategically

Growing your LinkedIn network demonstrates your connectivity and provides access to insider opportunities. However, sending generic connection requests will not expand your network meaningfully. You need to be strategic about who you connect with.

Here are some tips for expanding your LinkedIn network effectively:

• Connect with colleagues at companies of interest, especially ones in your target role or department.
• Join LinkedIn Groups aligned with your professional interests and connect with engaged members.
• Follow companies you want to work for and build relationships with their employees.
• Connect with staffing and recruiting professionals who can advocate for you.
• Leverage shared experiences and interests when requesting connections.
• Personalize invitation notes to explain why you want to connect.

Focus on making genuine connections instead of amassing contacts. A targeted, quality network boosts your visibility with the right people.

Show off your accomplishments

Showcasing your achievements on your LinkedIn profile demonstrates your capabilities and potential value to future employers. However, simply listing duties from previous jobs does little to convey your accomplishments. You need to highlight your best wins.

Use the S.T.A.R. (Situation, Task, Action, Result) method to effectively describe your accomplishments:

• Situation – Provide brief context explaining the situation or challenge faced.
• Task – Describe the task, project or objective you needed to accomplish.
• Action – Explain the strategic actions you took to complete the task.
• Result – Quantify the results, achievements, and impact of your actions.

For example: “Guided client through vendor selection process for new HRIS system, conducted needs analysis and crafted RFP, leading to 20% cost savings with improved functionality.”

Showcasing quantified results and impact demonstrates your value as a potential hire.

Engage with content and groups

Active engagement on LinkedIn shows your interests, strengthens your connections, and positions you as a thought leader. Follow relevant companies, post thoughtful content, and join Group conversations.

Here are some ways to engage effectively on LinkedIn:

• Like and comment on posts from your connections and target companies.
• Share insightful articles, case studies, and news related to your industry.
• Publish your own focused, expert posts to build your professional brand.
• Join niche professional Groups aligned with your field or interests.
• Pose and respond to questions in LinkedIn Groups to showcase your knowledge.
• Follow hashtags related to your industry to identify real-time trends and opportunities.

Proactive engagement boosts your visibility while allowing you to exchange ideas and build relationships. Just ensure your engagement provides value to your connections.

Utilize LinkedIn’s job search features

LinkedIn has extensive job search features you can leverage in your hunt for new opportunities. You can search open positions, receive job recommendations, apply directly through LinkedIn, and set job search alerts.

Here are some tips to use LinkedIn’s job search tools effectively:

• Curate relevant listings by location, title, company, skill set, and other filters.
• Save job postings you’re interested in to organize your search and apply later.
• Check “Who’s Viewed Your Profile” to see recruiters viewing you from target companies.
• Turn on job alerts to be notified of new postings matching your search criteria.
• Follow target companies to be updated on new openings and insider news.
• Apply for positions directly through LinkedIn with your profile as a resume.

Tapping into LinkedIn’s extensive job database allows you to efficiently search for open roles while showcasing your interest to recruiters. Combining job search tools with a strong profile makes discovering new opportunities easier.

Join LinkedIn Pro

Upgrading to a premium LinkedIn Pro account provides additional job seeking tools and benefits. With LinkedIn Pro you gain access to:

• See who’s viewed your profile to target companies.
• Contact recruiters directly with InMail messages.
• View salary data for positions to negotiate effectively.
• Get insights into hiring trends and labor market analysis.
• Post standout applications with multimedia content.
• Receive guidance on optimizing your profile searchability.

For active job seekers, a Pro account can be well worth the investment. The expanded search visibility, recruiting connectivity, and insights provided by Pro maximize your chances of landing that dream job.

Follow up with recruiters

After applying for positions on LinkedIn, follow up directly with recruiters to create personalized connections. Send InMail messages or customized connection requests to stand out from the applicant pool.

Here are some best practices for following up with recruiters:

• Thank recruiters for reviewing your application and reiterate your interest in the role.
• Highlight your key qualifications and achievements relevant to the position.
• Mention any shared connections or experiences you have with the company.
• Attach work samples, presentations, certifications or other supporting documents.
• Suggest a brief phone call or virtual coffee chat to further discuss your capabilities.
• Be respectful of recruiters’ time and avoid overly aggressive or frequent outreach.

Proactive and professional follow up establishes valuable connections while showing your enthusiasm as an applicant. Just be sure to balance persistence with patience when engaging recruiters.

Attend LinkedIn events and workshops

LinkedIn hosts an array of professional events both online and in-person. Attending relevant meetups, conferences, workshops and seminars expands your network while exposing you to insider opportunities.

Here are some of the events to consider:

• LinkedIn Local events in your city to connect with professionals in your area.
• LinkedIn student and graduate-focused workshops offering career advice.
• LinkedIn Learning instructor-led courses to gain new skills.
• LinkedIn Talent and HR focused events to meet recruiting professionals.
• LinkedIn Industry and topic-specific conferences and seminars.
• LinkedIn Networking events and mixers to grow your local network.

Browse upcoming events and register for those most relevant for your career goals. Attending in-person events also allows you to pass out business cards and further market your capabilities.

Join alumni and professional associations

Join LinkedIn Groups for the colleges, universities, organizations, and professional associations you are affiliated with. Fellow alumni and members are natural networking contacts who often enjoy assisting others within their communities.

Here are some ways to leverage these Groups:

• Browse member profiles for connections at target companies you can reach out to.
• Participate in Group discussions and events to increase your visibility.
• Message Group admins who may be able to share job leads or put you in touch with contacts.
• Opt for email updates on Group activity so you never miss a potential opportunity.
• Monitor new members joining the Groups and proactively connect with them.

Tapping into established communities multiplies your networking and recruitment touchpoints exponentially.

Promote other profiles and platforms

Your LinkedIn profile should not exist in isolation. Integrate links in your profile to provide easy access to your other professional platforms and sites.

Helpful platforms to link and cross-promote include:

• Personal website or online portfolio showcasing your work and achievements.
• Github, Stack Overflow or other coding profiles if in the tech industry.
• Behance, Dribbble or other design profiles if in the creative field.
• YouTube, Instagram, TikTok or other social media channels.
• Personal or company blog focused on industry topics and trends.
• Online resumes or CVs housed on sites like Slideshare or Google Docs.

Integrating your other channels provides a comprehensive view of your personal brand and expertise. Just ensure the content aligns with the professional image you want to project.

Conclusion

With LinkedIn’s reach and capabilities, your profile can become a pivot point for transforming career goals into job opportunities. Strategically optimizing your presence, expanding your network, engaging with content, and utilizing LinkedIn’s tools maximize your potential to get noticed by the right people. Commit to putting these LinkedIn best practices into action. With consistent effort, you can leverage LinkedIn to propel yourself into your next ideal role.