Get Hired: Enhance Your Professional Persona With LinkedIn

Is it your New Year’s resolution to climb up the career ladder? Whether you’re seeking a new employment opportunity, trying to win a promotion, or relocating in 2015 – LinkedIn offers the network opportunities, industry insight, and connections to hiring companies to get you noticed, and hired.

LinkedIn is the fastest growing social media outlet for business professionals, currently there are over 300 million LinkedIn Users – and at least two new LinkedIn users join every second. The site affords it’s users to build an online professional identity and build a network of contacts. Users have the tools available to them to unlock employment opportunities, business deals and new ventures.

In this digital era, it’s becoming increasingly important to monitor and enhance your online professional presence. A recent report from Careerbuilder recently found that 43 percent of employers use social networking sites to research job candidates. LinkedIn provides the best searchable platform to showcase your skills, achievements, and experience. Here are some top tips on getting noticed:

Update your headline

LinkedIn automatically populates this space with your current job title, however, your headline can be tweaked and customized to better showcase your assets, it’s a great way to promote yourself and gain attention from recruiters. Instead of simply stating for example: “Regional Sales Director”, upgrade your title to: “Regional Sales Director | Financial Services Specialist | Fortune 500 Experience” for greater impact and to attract a wider range of recruiters.

Build a Complete Profile

Start with creating an executive summary which highlights your background, area of expertise and exclusive skill set. Include keywords to make sure your profile filters higher in the list of candidates. A top tip is to include the keywords you see in postings for the job you want.

Make sure you have a profile picture

Did you know LinkedIn profiles accompanied by pictures are viewed eleven times more than those without? It’s a simple fix that could make the difference between getting you noticed by five people and fifty-five people.

Attach work samples

Use this feature to showcase your projects, talents and skills. Having an online portfolio of work linked to your profile provides recruiters with an idea of your capabilities and areas of expertise.

Reach out to colleagues and coworkers for “recommendations”

Have a colleague or coworker endorse your abilities and write you a ‘reference’ so to speak. Reach out to those who you have worked closely with who can speak better to your specific skills and strengths.

Share articles

One of the best ways to get on the radar of hiring companies is to write and share, or re-purpose relevant content. This demonstrates your interests and your level of expertise. If your post is viewed enough times, it will get picked up by LinkedIn newsreader, Pulse. After which, you will get exponential views, comments and shares.

Join Relevant Groups

LinkedIn offers a Group Search function. The best way to find relevant groups that will be beneficial to join is to search for keywords associated to your industry and marketplace. Groups can provide valuable networking and job seeking opportunities. Recruiters regularly target relevant groups to post jobs. It’s also another way for recruiters to find suitable candidates.

Pay for Premium Job Seekers

For serious job seekers, it’s recommended to pay the premium fee (starting from $74.99 per month) to allow the user access to job posting insights such as salary estimates and where you rank in comparison to other applicants. LinkedIn will offer up information such as “You’d be in the top 25% of applicants for this job” based on your profile credentials. Oftentimes LinkedIn facilitates direct messaging with hiring managers so that you can reach out to follow up on your application.

In summary, LinkedIn’s impact on the recruitment industry is hard to ignore. It is the most popular site for recruiters by far, with 96% of social recruiters using LinkedIn to search for candidates and 94% using the platform to contact candidates. The best chance at hiring success through LinkedIn is to monitor and enhance your LinkedIn profile, for more tips and tricks, as well as best practice articles and advice for job seekers visit the LinkedIn Blog.