Resume vs. LinkedIn - What's the Difference?

Dear jobseeker,

Resume =/= Your LinkedIn Profile.

Let's just get that out of the way.

Maybe you didn't know there was a difference.

Unfortunately, I see a lot of mistakes that are costing your chances in reaching the right audience for both resume and LinkedIn, hindering the results you might be hoping for. Whether it's getting your resume reviewed, not getting any responses from LinkedIn connections, or advertising your skills effectively. As a result, you're frustrated.

Here's some of the things I'm seeing when I'm doing a LinkedIn search or reviewing resumes:

• Copy/paste of job duties for both resumes and LinkedIn
• LinkedIn - blank, not active, bio/taglines not helping/hindering
• Photos on a resume? Ooof -- not if you're applying to jobs in North America or doing a modelling gig. You're wasting prime real estate with that on your page!

There's a ton of similarities but if you know how to hack each tool to your advantage and understand the core differences, you can get yourself noticed both mediums. That will open the door to more opportunities, more connections, and a more fulfilling life. And we all want a good life, yeah? :)

So, let's start with understanding what the main objectives for resumes and optimizing your LinkedIn profile to its true intentions, ultimately maximizing on the underutilized features to bring a bit more traction.

Your Resume Objective

The goal of your resume is to get an interview with the recruiter/hiring manager.

You want to show that you've done the job, can do the job, and is the best person for the job.

It's no less different than a salesperson trying to convince someone to buy a pen --- only you're doing it with a document about yourself and can't see the person on the other side (majority of the time). The salesperson, aka you, are trying to convince them the need you fill and the value you bring.

How can you demonstrate that?

1. Tell me your achievements

Achieved. Past tense. Hence, dig through what you did in the past.

Keep track of the things you've done at work/school/volunteer. Keep a journal or work log. Your brain should be to used to think critically. Your journal will be become your second brain. The second brain will capture, organize, and archives all the information for future reference.

After noting down your tasks, main brain will be used critically here to ask yourself questions. To reflect on the value you brought. Examples of things to capture:

• What are some ways you have cut costs/generated income?
• How did you create efficiencies for your team/internal/external clients?
• How have you improved a process?
• How did you improved customer service to bring repeat customers?
• Where did you demonstrate coaching/leading/mentorship?

The key is to find patterns or experience in what you've done and align it for the type of roles you want. Make sure the math is also mathing. We like to see quantified numbers where possible.

Ex. Scheduled 50 weekly posts on our social media page in Q1 increasing brand awareness by 20%

2. Tailored bullet points to the job you're applying for

We want you to showcase the practical application/transferrable skill in some form.

How to tailor? Read the job description.

It's not hidden. It's the requirements are very much there in plain sight.

It's okay if you don't meet every single qualification but the closer you are to ideal checklist, the higher the chance your resume will be seen. If your experience doesn't match directly, find what the core nature of the job is asking someone to do. Bridge the gap by creatively telling us how the task is essentially the same but with a different client group.

If you don't have the experience for our nice-to-have traits, showcase how you're going out of your way to learn it and finding ways to apply it.

3. Quick Points

Some miscellaneous things to note:

• Resumes: 1-2 pages max. Just my attempt here to end the debate on which one is better or worse. Either is fine. Just no more than 2.
• We don't need to know your hobbies (unless it's related to the industry in some way). The keyword is related.
• You don't need to list ALL your experiences. That job you had serving ice cream in high school when you've been in your professional working career for about 5 years now? You can save me that story when we're at an ice cream shop :)

Optimizing your LinkedIn Profile

LinkedIn, first and foremost, is a social media platform. Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Pinterest, etc. -- all are social platforms. It's a place to share content, create content, engage in communities, follow and stay on top of brands/influencers/companies you're curious about.

The only difference its purpose is to connect people on a professional basis in its social essence. Here are things you should be doing on LinkedIn to maximize your potential as a job seeker, to grow your network, or to showcase your skills.

1. Become searchable

LinkedIn was exactly how I got my first corporate job after graduation related to what I studied. I'm an HR professional who happen to have experience in marketing from school and internships which was relevant to industry I was part of. My LinkedIn was filled with those relevant words 8 years ago and the rest is history.

I didn't know it at the time but I made myself searchable.

If you're new to the concept of SEO (search engine optimization)/organic search, in a nutshell, it's when you plug in certain keywords find something you're looking for. For example, if you're shopping for a used hybrid car in the colour black, and perhaps your interested in a certain brand like Acura or BMW, you might type in "used hybrid electric gas black Acura".

Recruiters are doing the same thing to you.

So, maybe you have the exact skills we're looking for in a job. Perhaps the job is for an accountant who's worked in both major accounting firms and in-house specifically for a retail or CPG brand. And you're looking to get out of your current role.

But -- your profile isn't updated and the person you knew at work ended up getting the job because we found their profile first. Eek.

Your goal is to set your profile up by including all your skills, keywords, experience. This is where it's okay to include duties similar to a job description. Add anything you think it's neat to know. Even ones you think are "irrelevant". You can even insert sections like "career break -- took time off to travel/became a new mom/exploratory studying phase".

2. Go network with people you might not normally cross paths

I reached out to a few individuals on LinkedIn because their experience and story were similar to my own background. I remember wanting to explore a different areas and afraid of making a choice I wouldn't be happy with or be stuck in my circumstances.

People who had a full bio of their experience gave me the courage to reach out and share my story and as well as why I was curious to connect with them. It gives them a sense of a genuine interest and more likely to be receptive to helping you. A lot of them today are mentors I never got in my younger years. I didn't grow up in the most advantageous circumstances and opportunities were seldom. Which is why in the digital age, LinkedIn is so powerful to connect with individuals I've been so grateful for being a stepping stone in my career.

As well, instead of just direct messaging people, interact with their posts. Leave a comment! They'll appreciate the community support and know you're enjoying their content.

3. Build your personal brand

You are uniquely you.

There will never be anybody else like you.

So how can you leverage that?

You could be a Consultant who was tired of feeling burnt out and didn't feel in alignment with your job. You used that passion to talk about wellness and transitioned into a wellness coach and personal trainer. Someone else who has that background might resonate. You could inspire others.

See how much we can learn as opposed to your resume?

Share your story. Show your personality. Write status updates once in a while.

People will begin to build a pseudo-relationship and eventually connect. You'll be known for what you decide to put out there.

Summary

To sum it up:

Resume = showcase your achievements

LinkedIn = showcase your personality, interact with people/content/write keywords you want to be known for and get into

Hope this helped or resonated in some way! I know it's a generalization and there's slight nuances in every industry. Happy to hear thoughts from other jobseekers, TA specialists, LinkedIn lurkers and the like :)