8 ways LinkedIn helps you land a job

If you're searching for a job, LinkedIn can shorten your search. You've probably been told this, but it's well worth repeating. Hopefully this article will be the push you need to dust off the profile you started years ago but forgot about it like your mother-in-law's birthday.

Will using LinkedIn alone guarantee that you land your next gig? No; LinkedIn is a great supplement to your in-person networking, but you need to engage in both for a strong networking campaign.

So, how can LinkedIn help you land a job? There are at least eight ways LinkedIn can be one of your best friends in the job search.

It's where hiring authorities hang out

Almost every recruiter I talk with says LinkedIn is the place to find talent. To them it's like their favorite diner. Estimates of the percentage of recruiters who use LinkedIn to find talent range from 87 to 95 percent. Either way you slice it, these figures are astonishing.

I'm never surprised these days when clients tell me they were introduced to a company from a recruiter who found their profile on LinkedIn. It also doesn't surprise me when I'm told my clients were contacted by the VP or president of an organization.

To this point, it's not only recruiters who look for talent on LinkedIn. Human resources departments, hiring managers, even C-level employees will utilize LinkedIn's search capabilities.

Your profile is similar to your online résumé but offers more

You might have noticed that the sections of your profile are anchored. Further, you might have noticed that your profile is ordered similar to your résumé. This is because recruiters prefer it this way.

Even so, recruiters will only find your LinkedIn profile if it's complete and keyword optimized—similar to your résumé up against an applicant tracking system. Like your resume, recruiters expect to see the value you'll bring to their client.

But let's be clear, your profile is not your résumé. I often run across profiles that are simply a cut and paste of their résumé. While the two are similar, there are some major differences.

One major difference is that your résumé is sent out in response to a job post, whereas your profile draws hiring authorities to you. Think of your résumé as push technology and your profile as pull technology.

Your résumé should be tailored to each job; your profile doesn't change as often. Therefore, your profile is more inclusive.

Your profile is also written in first-person- or third-person-point of view. It should tell your story through:

• a relevant background image,
• quality photo,
• branding Headline,
• accomplishment statements with quantitative results throughout, and
• personable About and Experience sections.

This last point is what makes the LinkedIn profile more enjoyable to read for me. I love a well-told story woven throughout the profile. The résumé comes across as factual and less personable.

Read 8 areas on your LinkedIn profile where you can make your voice heard.

Create a focused network of quality and quantity

Here's the thing: you can reach out to a bazillion people—LinkedIn's limit is 30,000—but what good is that if you never interact with a majority of them?

Nonetheless, your LinkedIn network should be focused more on quality, not quantity. What's a good number of connections I'm asked.

I tell my clients who have started their job search after many years of having to look that 250 connections is respectable. However, they won't be taken seriously until their network is closer to 500 plus.

The big question is with whom you should connect. The short answer to this is the people who will be of mutual assistance. Your former colleagues are a no-brainer.

Seek out like-minded people next. These are people who do work similar to you, are in the same industry. If you work with recruiters, connect with the ones who serve your industry. They have a pipeline of employers of whom you might not be aware.

I Strongly suggest connecting with people who work in companies for which you want to work. Do this before jobs are advertised at said companies. The idea is to build your foundation before jobs are advertised; penetrate the Hidden Job Market.

Read Ultimate LinkedIn guide, Part 2: How to optimize your LinkedIn network.

Research companies and the people who work there

As I've strongly suggested, you should have a list of companies for which you'd like to work. Your list can include 10-15 companies or more. Remember, these are only companies of interest. You can follow companies and research them on their LinkedIn company page.

Of more value is connecting with current and previous employees at these companies. To access these potential connections:

1. Type in Search the company's name. I chose IBM.
2. In the sidebar, click People. I came up with 583,133 employees.
3. Narrow your search with filters. Here's my string: IBM, Greater Boston, University of Massachusetts.
4. My count is now four people who follow that criteria.

With a manageable number of LinkedIn profiles, I can read them with ease. I'm interested in if they currently work there or worked there, their previous experience, their Volunteer Experience, and other information with which we have something in common.

Your next step is to send an invite to people of interest. Do not make the ask in your first invite; rather comment on their posts, send personal messages, and engage with them in other ways. When a job becomes available, contact them to see if they can be of assistance, tell you more about the position or possibly deliver your résumé to the hiring manager.

Engage with your network

Once you've developed your network, you need to engage with them. This means sending personal messages, commenting on their posts or articles, creating your own posts, providing information on your occupation or industry, etc.

You will further brand yourself by providing valuable content to your network. I challenge you to write articles using LinkedIn's Publishing feature. Although you might not get hundreds of likes and comments immediately, it's a start to demonstrating your though leadership.

It floored me one day when a client of mine told me that because he was out of work, he didn't feel he had the right to even write a long post. Hogwash. Anyone who has expertise to share, employed or not, has the "right" to share their expertise.

The bottom line: if you don't engage with your connections, you're out of sight, out of mind. There are some connections who I miss when I don't see their comments or shares with their thoughts. Also realize there's a difference between engagement and activity.

Read 6 ways to engage on LinkedIn, not just active

LinkedIn is the number 3 job board...for now

Polls are as good as a the source that provides the ranking. A more recent poll puts LinkedIn as the number 3 job board out there, with Indeed.com topping the challengers. I also saw a poll which put LinkedIn at the top and Indeed third. Go figure.

Nonetheless here are some notable benefits of using LinkedIn Jobs (its job board).

1. With the basic feature, you can use Easy Apply, which is...easy to use. The idea behind this feature is that you send your profile directly to employers (another reason why your profile needs to be strong) along with your résumé.
2. LinkedIn purported in April that there were 20 million jobs advertised on LinkedIn.
3. The company also claims, "a hire is made every eight seconds on LinkedIn..." I buy that!
4. LinkedIn Jobs also has some pretty cool features which allow you to choose the date it was posted, people who are in your network for each job, companies that are offering your desired position, experience level, and more.
5. One feature I enjoy showing my clients is who posted the position. I encourage them to reach out to this person to forward their résumé to them, or to learn a bit more about the position.
6. The Careers premium account shows you how many people have applied to the position, the skills you have or are lacking, the educational degrees applicants possess.

I'm not a huge fan of job boards—I rather see people use in-person networking coupled with LinkedIn. However, I never discourage my clients from using them. I know plenty of people who landed interviews by using them.

Introverts dig LinkedIn

As an introvert, I can attest to the comfort of communicating through writing. It allows me to compose my thoughts—multiple times if necessary—before releasing them to the world. Read 6 reasons why introverts prefer to write.

This said, I know plenty of great writers who are extraverts. My MBTI champion, Edythe Richards, always reminds me that both dichotomies are capable of demonstrating introverted and extraverted traits. She is an extravert and a great writer, by the way.

My belief is that introverts find it easier networking online than in person. Thus, they favor using LinkedIn over going to networking events. First of all, I get that. Second of all, this is not a way to conduct your Networking campaign.

Your connections aren't bona fide until you reach out the them in a personal way. This deserves repeating. Even if you aren't into large networking events, you can get together in smaller groups, affectionately called Buddy Groups.

I'll contradict myself here: one of my best connections is someone I've yet to meet in person. We have spoken on the phone many times and Zoomed on occasion. So I feel like I know him well. Jim, you know I'm talking about you. And, yes, we'll eventually meet in Maine.

You can take it on the go

Approximately 60% of LinkedIn members use their LinkedIn mobile app, which isn't a surprise; we bring our phone with us wherever we go. I'm constantly on my phone, checking email, LinkedIn, Facebook, my blog, and WhatsApp. You get it.

Using your LinkedIn app can help you stay in touch with your connections for potential networking opportunities, recruiters and other hiring authorities, as well as being alerted to jobs that might be appropriate for you.

In addition, you can write posts and reply to posts, further contributing to your engagement.

I'm highly encouraged when I ask my workshop attendees if they have the LinkedIn app installed on their phone; most of them do.

The computer UI has increasingly been developing to resemble the mobile app. You'll notice the look and feel is similar. There are some features the app has which the computer doesn't, and vice versa. Anyway you look at it, you should be using both platforms to enhance your job search.

These are eight ways you can use LinkedIn to shorten your job search. Keep in mind that in order to benefit from LinkedIn, you have to put effort into it.

The number one area I see lacking in job seekers is engaging with their connections. Let me reiterate, you have the right and reason to engage with your connections. Remember this.

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Bob McIntosh, CPRW, is a career trainer who leads more than 17 job search workshops at an urban career center, as well as critiques LinkedIn profiles and conducts mock interviews. Job seekers and staff look to him for advice on the job search. In addition, Bob has gained a reputation as a LinkedIn authority in the community. Bob’s greatest pleasure is helping people find rewarding careers in a competitive job market. For enjoyment, he blogs at Things Career Related. Follow him on LinkedIn.

Photo: Flickr, Christine Hueber