Here’s a question I often ask job seekers – do you make the most of LinkedIn to land your next job?

Even in a strong economy with low unemployment rates, job seekers can still have problems landing a job. With the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, those problems have multiplied.

Effective use of LinkedIn can increase the likelihood of landing the job you want. Optimizing your profile and effective use of key features can really help – if you use them to your best advantage.

 

Optimize Your LinkedIn Profile as a Job Seeker

  • Profile Photo. Be sure it’s an up-to-date headshot in which you are dressed as you would be for an interview.
  • Headline. Avoid using the words “seeking new opportunities.” Instead, use key words from the position descriptions of the jobs you are looking to land. You can also include the types of industries where you want to work. You have up to 220 characters available in the headline. Make the most of them!
  • About Section. Paint a picture of what you bring to your potential employer. Use short sentences, short paragraphs, and bulleted lists to create more white space, which makes the about section more readable. Keep in mind that many people will be using the LinkedIn mobile app. White space is even more important on a small screen. Consider adding one or two testimonials. You have up to 2,600 characters for this section, though most people likely won’t need that many.
  • Featured section. Here’s a great spot to add your resume. You can add it by clicking on “Add profile section” and selecting Featured. Click on “Media,” select your resume and click on Open. Retitle the document as your first name, last name and the word “resume.”
  • Positions in the experience section. In general, this section should mirror your resume. Include both your actual job title and a few key words or phrases to more fully describe your position. You have up to 100 characters available in the title field. In the position description you have just under 2,000 characters available.
    • Consider adding volunteer leadership positions to the experience section. Doing so shows your generosity of spirit as well as the skills you used in that role. Plus, it draws attention to the entity you served or are serving. And you can only get recommendations for these positions if you include them here.
  • Certifications and licenses. Most people populate the education section, which covers formal education. However, not everyone thinks to add their specialized certificates and licenses.
  • Skills and endorsements. Feature the skills that are most relevant to the types of jobs you are seeking. By clicking on the pencil icon, you can change the order in which the skills are listed.
  • Recommendations. Have at least a couple of recommendations, ideally for your most recent position.
  • Accomplishments. Include any relevant organizations you belong to or used to belong to. Other useful sections to populate are honors and awards, professional development courses, projects, and languages.

 

Other Features of LinkedIn That Job Seekers Should Use

  • Jobs tab. In this section you can search for jobs by job title, skill or company, and by location. Also, you can set up job alerts for certain kinds of jobs. You can even get help with building a resume and with interview preparation.
  • Privacy settings. Review the settings under Job Seeking Preferences (found in the Data Privacy section) and enable the relevant settings.
  • Notifications settings. Review these settings and adjust them to fit your needs as a job seeker. For example, you might not want LinkedIn to notify you when your connections have a birthday. But you would likely want LinkedIn to notify you about a connection’s work anniversary or a new job.
  • My Network. Be sure to check your pending invites regularly. Someone at a company where you want to work or a friend with connections to recruiters might be trying to connect.
  • Messages. You might be surprised how many people reach out to you via LinkedIn messages rather than through emails or calls. Someone might have sent you an important message, such as about a job opening.

How About You?

If you used LinkedIn while you were a job seeker, what tips do you have for those currently looking for their next opportunity?

 

About Joyce

Joyce Feustel helps people, especially those age 50 and up, to become more effective using social media, especially LinkedIn and Facebook.

She works with business owners, business development professionals, business consultants, job seekers, and more – ranging from entrepreneurs to people in large corporations. Find her at www.boomerssocialmediatutor.com.