LinkedIn can perform miracles for your career growth if you use it the right way. Ever since LinkedIn was launched in 2003, it has been considered widely the benchmark for professional social media platforms. With more than 700 million users, LinkedIn is one of the best ways to find a job and it is also why a lot of recruiters look for employees on LinkedIn now. In fact, according to the professional cv writing services in Pakistan, about 67% of companies go through the candidate’s LinkedIn profile before extending them a job offer.
Every week 40 million people use LinkedIn for job searches and this is why it is important you maintain your LinkedIn and keep it optimized to stand out from the crowd. LinkedIn is the perfect way to do personal branding to market ourselves, our skills, achievements, qualifications, and accomplishments. Recruiters also view LinkedIn profiles sometimes to verify the information that you have provided in your CV. Some benefits of using LinkedIn for your career include:
Networking:
LinkedIn is used by some of the most influential and important people in the world and they often post job offers for their personal businesses or for others. LinkedIn is the best way to stay connected and learn all about what is happening in the corporate world. Following the industry leaders will not only give you chances to apply for great jobs but it will also increase your connections and that is what LinkedIn is all about, building connections and networking.
Job Application Process:
More and more companies are moving towards online recruitment and more and more people are using LinkedIn’s upload your resume feature. Having a well-crafted CV will be a huge advantage for you, see professional cv writers in Pakistan, but recruiters will not only view your CV but will also go through your LinkedIn profile in depth. Also, even when it comes to offline recruitment. A lot of the recruiters and hiring managers often look up a candidate on LinkedIn after receiving a job application or resume to learn more about them.
Job Searches:
Millions of job offers are uploaded on LinkedIn every week and you are bound to find a role that clicks. There is no other platform that beats LinkedIn in having a huge variety of job offers, from every field and industry. LinkedIn can also help you research the company you have been called for an interview by or to which you are applying. Researching about the company where you might be an employee is an important step. It helps you figure out what is the company like, what its culture is, or how the people are. Also, you will be able to look up the people that will be interviewing you on the platform, which can help you prepare for it.
How to Optimize Your LinkedIn for Career Growth:
Using LinkedIn to your advantage can do wonders for you. If you are a beginner or do not know how to properly maintain your LinkedIn profile, then here is a short guide that will help you make your LinkedIn profile better:
- Profile Picture:
The first thing a recruiter judges you on is your profile picture since it is the first thing they see when they visit your profile. Make sure your profile picture is a well-photographed and professional picture. Do not ever use a selfie or a picture that has too many filters or too much makeup. The picture should also be recent so keep updating your profile picture from time to time. Also, using a background cover photo that compliments your profile picture can also work out for the better.
- Headlines:
Another way of impressing anyone who views your profile is to add an appealing and captivating headline. Maintain a formal and straightforward tone and avoid too lengthy sentences. Rather than adding your job title or company name, use your role to define yourself. Your headline should be inspirational and different from the other candidates. For example, “Motivational Career Coach” or “Aspiring Entrepreneur here to Change the Market”. Use power words in your headline and make sure it is formal. You can use any headline that is simple yet attractive, do not go overboard with using overrated words and instead make it savvy.
- Summary:
A profile summary will tell the recruiter exactly who you are, what you do, and how you can be an ideal candidate for them. A lot of people leave out this space without realizing its worth. Tell the recruiter all about yourself, your skills, how you acquired those skills, and your future aims or objectives. Take your time to come up with the perfect summary as it is the most personalized and important section of your LinkedIn profile. Use your profile summary to captivate the recruiter’s attention and connect with them. Make the summary as informative, engaging, and relevant to your field of interest as possible, and do not be shy to include your achievements and accomplishments in here.
- Skills Assessments:
LinkedIn is the perfect chance to prove all the skills you have mentioned in your CV are credible since it allows you to display verified skill badges on your relevant skills. LinkedIn offers skill assessments and if you pass them, your skills are given a verified badge. According to a study, recruiters are 30% more likely to hire candidates with verified skills. You can take assessments as many times as you want and you have complete control over displaying the results of these assessments. You can choose to display the result only after you have passed the assessment.
Optimizing your LinkedIn will take up a lot of time but it will do wonders for your career development and growth. You can also get a professional to optimize your LinkedIn profile if you are not confident enough to do it yourself or if it is your first time. Make sure to use formal and professional language and be the best version of yourself on LinkedIn to show your professionalism. Stay active, share interesting posts relevant to your field, and keep your profile updated all the time and you are good to go.