*Power of LinkedIn*
*LinkedIn* is the largest business-oriented networking website geared specifically towards professionals. It has over 500 million members, in over 200 countries. A professionally written LinkedIn profile allows you to create an online professional brand which can help open doors to opportunities and networks that you may not have been aware of without the help of social media.
LinkedIn gives you the ability to showcase your profile, expertise, recommendations and connections, not only is your profile the first professional impression of you when recruiters and employers use LinkedIn to search for candidates but it also demonstrates credibility in your industry and highlights your achievements. Many people still underestimate the importance of LinkedIn in their job search and are sometimes reluctant to embrace social media. This article showcases 7 reasons why using LinkedIn can add value to your job search.
*1. Gain exposure to Hiring Managers and Recruiters*
93% of recruiters use LinkedIn to research and recruit candidates. LinkedIn allows you to have an online personal brand which makes you visible to key decision makers and recruiters. This means when your name is put into a search engine such as google, you have an online personal brand and you are appearing in search results. It’s for this reason you need to make sure you treat your LinkedIn profile in a similar way to your CV and you ensure what is on the profile is selling you in the best way possible.
*2. Demonstrate your knowledge, credibility and leadership expertise*
Having a LinkedIn profile helps build trust with employers and recruiters as they can see your recommendations and connections and evidence of where you have added value.
*3. Use LinkedIn as a research tool*
Having a LinkedIn account also means that you can use the site to research companies, interviewers, recruiters, and hiring managers — this is helpful before submitting applications and researching who’s interviewing you and conducting interview research.
*4. LinkedIn has a great job board*
New opportunities exist throughout the LinkedIn site that may not exist on traditional job boards. You can directly apply for roles using LinkedIn apply, save job searches, as well as flagging to recruiters that you are open to hearing about opportunities.
*5. You can gain social proof for your skills and talents*
Let others recommend and endorse you for your skills and past work. When others recommend or endorse you, anyone who sees your profile can see these and it shows you have other experts backing up your claims to have certain skills. This is very powerful in making connections. You can build your credibility through the endorsements and testimonials that LinkedIn allows your contacts to leave on your profile.
*6. Follow Companies*
LinkedIn is a brilliant tool for researching organisations and people that work at them. You can use this to target people within your network that work for organisations that you really want to work for.
*7. Join LinkedIn Groups*
Groups are a brilliant way to meet people with similar professional interests and expand your network from other graduates to professionals already working in your industry. Groups allow you to take part in discussions. This is a great way to exhibit your knowledge on topics related to your industry, ask questions and start conversations with key people in key organisations.
The benefits of LinkedIn are almost endless with no downside to having a LinkedIn profile. Get involved in forums, join groups and meet like-minded individuals like yourself. Best of all LinkedIn is totally free. Job seeking is a tough business and applying for online jobs each and every day is a job in itself!
From a job seeker’s perspective, LinkedIn is another tool that you can use to help get ahead when searching for a new job. It is important to optimise your profile and proactively use LinkedIn in order to ensure you are sourcing opportunities effectively.
