With over 20 million LinkedIn users in the UK, there’s no denying that it’s the place to be for most professionals.
However, the platform’s popularity also comes at a price for candidates like yourself. The dilemma many face is trying to stand out to employers and recruiters in such a densely populated market.
So, what’s the secret to success? What are the key fundamentals that the all-important decision makers are looking out for?
Let’s explore.
Highlight your purpose
The best place to start when trying to make your LinkedIn profile stand out is to address your purpose as a professional.
In other words, what’s your story?
One thing hiring managers, business owners and recruiters all have in common is a distinct lack of time. While finding the right candidate is imperative to them all, spending a lot of this valuable commodity on just one profile just isn’t realistic.
They want to know your purpose.
The key to achieving this is to:
- Keep your profile content succinct – use bullet points and clear content containing a lot of keywords/buzzwords.
- Address the reader – while describing your own career, don’t forget to bear in mind what the employer/recruiter wants to read.
- Update your profile headline – if you’re unemployed, instead of just stating exactly what role you work in, let employers/recruiters know that you’re looking for opportunities – e.g. “I’m currently searching for my next freelance copywriting gig in Sutton Coldfield”. However, if you’re employed, you should look to include keywords in there, as employers and recruiters will search for them. This will increase the likelihood of one of them stumbling across your profile.
Tell them what problems you solve
Once again, time is an issue, so you must let employers and recruiters know what sort of problems you can solve.
Either in your introduction or in a post, communicate to people what areas of expertise you provide. Have you helped multiple businesses earn X amount being a cold caller? Do you have the experience and credentials to work with young children?
Both recruiters and employers have a vacancy to fill, so they need the candidate to be the solution. Therefore, don’t shy away from all the things you can do for them. Tell them in a succinct way!
Remember, online attention spans are small, so your bio content and posts have to hook people in. Treat it like an author does when writing a blurb. They only have a few lines to grip an audience and persuade them to read their book.
Pro recruiter top tip
Including the right content is one thing, but if your LinkedIn profile is riddled with grammatical errors, you might as well kiss goodbye to that job offer.
Displaying poor grammar and making simple spelling mistakes will give the recruiter or employer the impression that you don’t take pride in what you do and/or that you’re lazy.
Is this really how you want them to perceive you?
Try using free tools like Grammarly. While it might not be as effective as hiring a proofreader or copywriter, it is a handy tip to help remove any glaringly bad errors.
Show them how wonderful you are
Blowing one’s trumpet might not come naturally to us all, however, it’s essential on LinkedIn.
What makes you different from the other professionals? How are you unique?
If you’ve worked for a company with thousands of staff with the same job title, try focusing the content on how you were/are better than the rest. Was there a particular time where you went above and beyond? Are you particularly passionate about a certain element of the job?
Tell the recruiter or employer why you’re fabulous. In this case, don’t be afraid to be different as it’ll help you really stand out from your competition.
You should also try to get previous employers and employees to write recommendations for you too.
Pro recruiter top tip
With 70% of employers snooping candidates’ social media profiles on a regular basis, you need to make sure that your profile picture is on point!
Don’t make the mistake of using the same snap on your LinkedIn as your Facebook, Twitter or Instagram accounts.
Remember, LinkedIn is for professionals, so you should get someone to take one for you with a plain white background and good lighting.
Strictly no selfies and no random arms in the frame.
But most importantly, remember to smile!
For more tips like this, check out our previous blog: ‘6 Ways to Make Your Social Media Look Professional to Employers’.
Final thoughts
Trying to make your LinkedIn profile stand out to employers and recruiters may seem like a lot of effort at first, but it’s actually not.
Unlike other social media platforms, once you’ve taken the time to write good copy and strip out any other bad elements, it doesn’t necessarily require a great amount of upkeep.
It’s just a matter of staying relevant by posting every so often and liking different pieces of interesting, industry-related content.
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