LinkedIn is your face to the business world. It’s often the place recruiters looking for candidates will meet you. It’s the place recruiters and employers who are impressed with your resume will go to learn more about you. While LinkedIn is considered a business platform, it’s important to remember that it’s also a social network. Like many things, you’ll get as much out of LinkedIn as you put into it.

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Over the years, I’ve talked to hundreds, maybe thousands, of people who are looking for a new job. They want growth opportunities or more money. Some of them hate their boss. The common thread is that they all want a change.

As with most things some are more successful than others. The successful ones are the ones who do the work. They don’t spend all day every day in front of the computer browsing job boards. (While that gives you a feeling of accomplishment, it’s not very effective.)

Successful job seekers develop a multipronged job search plan and work it every day.

Here is a basic job search plan that you can adapt to your needs. It’s broken down into job search preparation (PREP) and continuing activities (ONGOING). If you’re actively looking, as in you really want to find a job, follow A activities. If you’re passively looking, you’re open but not in any hurry, P is for you.

#1 TARGET EMPLOYERS

PREP – Create a list of 10 or so Target Employers, these are the companies where you would love to work for whatever reason.  Set up Google alerts for each of them so you’ll know when they are in the news.

ONGOING

Monitor the career pages on their company sites. A = 2-3X a week. P = 1X a week.

Contact friends, family, colleagues, etc. to see who they might know who works for one of your target employers (or any employer who’s ad piques your interest). FYI, your alumni association may be able to help with this too.  A = 2-3X hours a week. P= 1 hour a week.

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A few years ago, barely a week when by without news of someone getting fired because of something they posted on social media. As awareness grew people have become more careful.

That’s a good thing.

Particularly if you’re looking for a new job.

Today, 70% of employers research candidates on social networking sites and 47% say that they’re unlikely to contact a candidate for an interview if they can’t find them online, according to a 2018 Career Builder survey.

What are they looking for?

58% —Information that supports the candidate’s qualifications for the job

50%—If the candidate has a professional online persona

34%—What other people are posting about the candidate

22%—A reason not to hire the candidate

 What turns employers off?

Most, if not all, career professionals will tell you to avoid being negative. Even if your boss is the devil incarnate, it’s not something you should share. Here are some numbers: 25% of survey respondents said a primary reason they didn’t hire a candidate was because they bad-mouthed their previous company or fellow employee.

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There’s no doubt that looking for a job during a pandemic is exceptionally challenging. Right now, millions are furloughed, underemployed or out of work. The United States unemployment rate was 6.7% (with 10 million+ unemployed) in November 2020, according to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics latest news release. While this number has declined over the last six months, it’s not close to the 3.5% level reported in February 2020.

That said, looking for a job in a booming economy isn’t easy either. When people feel confident in finding another job, they often decide to begin exploring opportunities. As they move from being passive job seekers (those who need to be enticed to move) to active job seekers, competition for plum positions grows.

The truth is, standing out from your competition is essential in any job market. It’s particularly important when you’re pursuing executive roles. One of the most effective ways to do that is by establishing yourself as a thought leader. Someone that people can recognize as an authority in their industry.

While you can’t become a thought leader overnight, you can begin working toward that today by providing value to your colleagues and community.

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Anyone who’s looking for a new job or potential clients has been told they need to be on LinkedIn. That’s true.

It’s also true that you need to be on LinkedIn because whether you like it or not, your LinkedIn profile, or lack of one, is part of your personal brand.

Certainly, recruiters and hiring managers who receive your resume will review your LinkedIn profile. So will potential clients and people that you meet at conferences, seminars, or networking events who want to learn more about you. Make sure what they find is your best self.

That includes having a headshot.

Headshots Are Essential

I know there are people who resist putting up a headshot because they’re afraid of discrimination. Yes, it’s out there. There are people who will think you’re too old or too young. Too ethnic or not ethnic enough. They may take an instant dislike to you because you remind them of a former boss or a neighbor they don’t like.

However, the benefits far outweigh the potential risks.  

Despite its business focus, LinkedIn is considered social media. LinkedIn’s research shows that LinkedIn profiles with a photo get 21X more views and 9X more connection requests.

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Welcome to 2021!

2020 has been extremely challenging. Most of us have had our professional, and personal lives turned upside down. Many people found looking for a new job frustrating, exhausting, and disheartening.

Finally, 2020 has been kicked to the curb. The holidays are behind us, and a brand-new year, full of possibilities, stretches before us.

If your goal is to get a new job in 2021, it’s time to get going. Don’t wait for tomorrow. Start today.

Get Your Career Marketing Tools Ready

#1 Make sure your resume is recruiter and employer ready. Your resume is often how hiring managers meet you. A boring list of duties and responsibilities is unlikely to motivate anyone to contact you.

People in similar positions do similar things. The best way to differentiate yourself is by demonstrating your value. And the way to do that is by creating a results-driven resume in a modern, easy-to-scan format.

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You’ve heard the saying “you never get a second chance to make a first impression.” That’s particularly true during your job search

Certainly, having the right skills, experience, and, in some cases, education is essential. However, recruiters and employers may not contact you for an interview if you don’t make a good first impression.

At least good enough to make them want to learn more.

Recruiters and employers meet you different ways. It might be when they receive your resume. It might be when they view your profile on LinkedIn. It might be when they see something on social media. Since you have no way of knowing, it’s important to cover all fronts.

If you’ve been actively recruited for your last several positions, having a boring, task-focused resume has probably worked for you. It may have been not much more than a formality.

When you’re the one approaching recruiters and employers, however, replacing your boring task-focused resume with a results driven marketing tool and developing a robust, optimized LinkedIn profile will make you more marketable.

Both of those take time, effort, and maybe even hiring a professional writer. That said, there are a few fairly simple, often quick, things you can do to make a better first impression.

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Concerns about the Coronavirus are growing daily. It dominates the news and kitchen-table conversations. Here in Connecticut, events are being postponed or cancelled, some because of a State of Connecticut mandate.

If you’re looking for a new job or want to be prepared in case you need to, you’ll need to adjust your job search strategies.

Several months ago, I created a basic job search plan. I’ve adapted it here to be used during our current public health emergency.

The plan includes job search preparation (PREP) and continuing activities (ONGOING). If you’re actively looking, as in you really want to find a job, follow A activities. If you’re passively looking, you’re open but not in any hurry, P is for you.

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If you are looking for a new job having a robust LinkedIn profile is essential. Full stop. Sadly, most don’t use LinkedIn to their best advantage.

It’s not just the barely completed “skeleton” profiles still displaying LinkedIn’s generic blue background that make career professionals cringe. It’s the misguided things people do deliberately.

#1 Quotes in the Headline

A lot of people seem to think that having an inspirational quote as their headline will somehow help them. It won’t for a few reasons. First, recruiters search LinkedIn based on jobs, skills, etc. and it’s unlikely inspirational quotes include “skill” words like “performance improvement “ or “business development.”

Second, recruiters want to know if you’re qualified for the job they are trying to fill. If you do come up in a recruiter’s search but your headline doesn’t indicate your qualifications, they may go on to the next profile in their search.

If you feel a quote expresses your philosophy, management style, etc. by all means use it in the Summary section.

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A tight job market means tougher competition. People who hadn’t considered moving a couple of years ago are passively looking. Those casually looking have transitioned from passive to active job seekers.

Today, standing out from your competition is essential.

If you’re a senior executive or pursing those roles, one of the best strategies is to have others see you as an authority in your industry, a thought leader.

One way to be recognized as a thought leader is to share knowledge with your community.

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