Resources for Job Seekers
Linkedin Job Advice
How to maximise Linkedin to improve your chances of getting a job
How to use Linkedin to increase your chances of getting a job
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you should know that Linkedin is a social network aimed at networking, work and careers (unlike Facebook, Instagram & Twitter).
With such a high number of professional personnel using the app, having a good presence on Linkedin can play a vital role in improving your chances and securing any job you apply for.
Make sure to have a professional photo
Go for a professional, high quality photo that matches your industry. You don’t have to do the classic headshot, a picture that represents you in your specific work environment works fine as well, for example if you are a speaker, you can have a picture of you on stage speaking in front of a crowd.
Also make sure to add a background/header image (the one that’s shown behind your profile picture) that matches your industry or personality, rather than the LinkedIn default.
Be creative in your headline
Here you get 120 characters to be creative with. If you are looking for a new job you can use this field to exemplify what you what to do and what makes you stand out from the crowd. You should think of it as a headline for a big advertisement, it should draw attention to your target audience.
Also, don’t forget the keywords, think about which keywords a recruiter would use in their search and try to include some of these, for instance: “Data-driven marketing analyst looking for new challenge!”.
Make personal branding out of your summary
Consider your summery as your personal branding space. This is where you can promote yourself with a combination of soft skills, experience, and personality.
Invest some time in making this as vivid as possible (still with a professional touch of course) and don’t hesitate to ask a friend or colleague to read it and provide you with feedback.
Be creative with visuals
LinkedIn allows you to connect other media to your profile, for example YouTube videos, PDF-files, power points etc, which can be a great opportunity to show something you achieved as a diploma, a video or text.
Attaching visuals make you stand out from the crowd and attract attention.
Hit the ”Open candidate” button
This will show recruiters and HR-managers that you are open to new roles & opportunities. And no, your employer will not be able to see this. This information is only exposed to external recruiters.
If you are open for a new job right away and do not have a problem with showing it to others, LinkedIn also have a sticker that you can add on your profile picture that shows that you are open to work straight away.
Give and receive endorsements
In marketing, people often talk about the importance of word of mouth because we tend to listen more to outside reviews rather than the company’s own. The same goes for your personal brand. If you can get someone else to confirm your strengths, it is more credible than simply state that you “are great at digital marketing”.
Remember that you can ask other people than just your past bosses for recommendation, you can ask colleagues, customers, clients, basically anyone you’ve worked with, who can vouch for your work.
Don’t forget to proofread!
Spelling mistakes or dates that doesn’t look right will instantly give a bad impression. It’s better to look twice before completing your profile than miss out on a job opportunity because you couldn’t spell bussiness 😉
Make connections & start networking
Having more contacts increases your chances of being found or recommended by hiring managers and recruiters when they are looking for potential candidates. You can connect with persons that you know, people you have worked with or just people that looks interesting to you.
Then, make sure to keep your LinkedIn active, by liking and commenting posts from your connections and share or write articles yourself. Then your interests will be shown and it’s a great way to interact with people who could turn out to be a valuable connection to your future career.