LinkedIn has quickly become one of the most popular job search sites in the country.
Unlike other job search sites, LinkedIn allows your profile to be publicly searchable to the world.
This means more recruiters will be able to find you on LinkedIn than anywhere else.
So, if you are going to have a LinkedIn profile, you might as well have one that will get you hired.
Below we will show you how to professionally update your LinkedIn profile to attract recruiters and land interviews.
1. ACHIEVE ALL STAR STATUS
“All Star” status on LinkedIn is the first step to attracting recruiters.
According to LinkedIn “Users with complete profiles are 40 times more likely to receive opportunities through LinkedIn.”
Achieving All Star status it easy to do. It requires 7 simple steps that you can do in any order.
- Add a profile picture
- Add work experience
- Add skills & endorsements
- Add a summary
- Add your industry & location
- Add your education
- Add 50+ connections
Once you’ve added each necessary section of your LinkedIn profile, it’s time to fine tune the most important sections.
2. OPTIMIZE YOUR HEADLINE
Your headline is by far one of the most important sections in your entire LinkedIn profile.
When recruiters are searching for people on LinkedIn, headlines are one of the first things they will see.
If your headline says, “Looking for new opportunities”, nobody is going to have any idea what kind of jobs you are looking for.
Instead, say something like “Passionate Mechanical Engineer with AutoCAD and MATLAB experience”.
This clearly shows the recruiter or hiring manager who you are and what you have experience with. Using relevant keywords like “Mechanical Engineer”, “AutoCAD” and “MATLAB” makes it much easier for people to find you.
3. UPDATE JOB PREFERENCES
LinkedIn allows you to share whether or not you are looking for a job. If you are looking for a job, go to your profile and click on “Add profile section”.
From there, click the “Intro” dropdown and select the “Looking for a new job” button.
This will take you to the “Add job preferences” section of your profile. Here you can add the job titles that you are interested in, locations, and whether you’d prefer full-time or part-time work.
This is a great section to update if you are actively looking for new opportunities. Showing recruiters that you are looking for work will help you stand out and get hired.
4. ADD SKILLS & ENDORSEMENTS
The skills & endorsements section of your LinkedIn profile can make or break you.
When searching for jobs on LinkedIn, you might notice jobs that say you are in the “Top 25%” or “Top 10%” of all applicants. This score is based purely on your skills & endorsements section.
Make sure you add the most relevant skills to your profile so that the keywords match up with the job postings.
You are only able to add 50 skills to your profile so make sure they are strategically chosen.
A quick tip to choose the best skills for your profile is to find 10-20 jobs you are interested in. Next, add all of the top skills for each job into an excel sheet. Finally, gather the 50 most common skills that are needed for the jobs you are applying to and add them to your profile.
5. ASK FOR RECOMMENDATIONS
Recommendations can go a long way for job seekers at any career level.
Whether you are entry-level or c-level, recommendations from peers, managers, or employees can make you look very good.
Take some time to contact anyone you feel comfortable asking for a recommendation on LinkedIn. This can be former clients, team members, bosses, or anyone who has seen your work ethic.
Just having a handful of recommendations on your LinkedIn profile can give you the competitive advantage you need to land more interviews.
If you follow these tips, you are going to be hired in no time!
This guest post was written by Mike Podesto and may not be copied or published without PeopleGuru’s express written permission. Mike is a former recruiter and current Founder & CEO of Find My Profession, a leading resume writing and career coaching company. Mike’s career advice has been featured on sites like Inc., Zety, Motherly, and LinkedIn. Mike is passionate about helping job seekers find fulfillment in their careers.
