How To Optimize Your LinkedIn Profile For Job Search in 2022.

With a reported 310 million monthly active users, and 98% of fortuntne 500 comapnies on the platform, Standing out from the crowd can be daunting for most people since competiton is fierce. Linkedin is the go-to site for people who are actively seeking a new role or are simply open to new opportunities. With over 50 million companies on the platform, job recruiters are constantly searching for potential candidates. And if your page isn’t properly optimized then you'll find it hard getting jobs on linkedin.

How will job recruiters find your profile? How optimized is your linkedin profile?

The answer to these questions is quite simple: You need to have a full proof Linkedin SEO (search engine optimization) strategy. 

The overall goal of LinkedIn optimization is so that prospective employers and recruiters will be able to find you easily. Just listing your current job title, current employer, and work history are not enough.

How Does LinkedIn Work?

LinkedIn is a social network platform launched in 2003 by Reid Hoffman and Eric Ly. In June 2016 LinkedIn was sold to Microsoft for a whopping $26.2 billion dollars. 

LinkedIn is a tool you can use to build your portfolio and find jobs that are relevant to your industry. Some people also use LinkedIn to enhance their professional reputation by making posts in the news feed, and commenting on other people's posts.

LinkedIn Premium is a subscription version of LinkedIn that comes with additional features, such as. Online professional development classes, insights into who's viewing your profile, and the ability to instant message anyone on LinkedIn, even if they're not in your network.

Linkedin is quite similar to other social networking sites but it has features that can be hard to find elsewhere. Such as, a full-featured career board, where you can search for and apply for jobs. 

A lot of job recruiters and employment services are now using linkedin to find staff members and access their resumes. Job applicants can now be able to share their LinkedIn profile, which sometimes means they won't have to painstakingly enter their work experience into a long online form. 

8 Effective Tips For LinkedIn Profile Optimization.

Here are a few expert-backed LinkedIn optimization tips for job seekers that will help you get noticed by recruiters and land your next job.

Get to Know Your Target Audience.

Before you start optimizing your linkedin profile for job search you'll need to do some research on what recruiters and hiring managers are looking for in a candidate, As well as what industry professionals are doing. 

How did they optimize their linkedin profile? What keywords are they using? Questions like this will help you get a better understanding on how to optimize your profile for recruiters. Customize your profile based on your research findings. This will help you make sure that your profile is both professional and unique. 

Secondly, you'll focus on showing off your accomplishments, not just your job titles and work experience. It’s important to highlight what you’ve done rather than just what company you worked for or how long you worked there.

Turn Off Activity Broadcasts

When changes are made to your LinkedIn profile, such as adding a past work experience, LinkedIn usually notifies your connections’. If you don’t like this and don't want people to know that you are updating your profile. Then, you need to temporarily shut off this feature. In Order to do this, 

Click on 'Settings' from the menu under your name in the upper right-hand corner.

In the “Profile” tab, click “Turn on/off your activity broadcasts.” In the popup that appears,

You can then turn on the feature again after you have fully updated your profile.

Customize Your Linkedin URL.

When you create a profile, you'll automatically get a string of numbers as a URL. This auto generated URL can be customized to your liking.

Most people often use their name, initials or both. You can also add key certifications like PMP (Project Management Professional) if you have a generic name or want to be specific.

Having a URL with your name and certification in it is also important from an SEO perspective.

Use a Professional Profile Photo.

A profile photo can tell alot about a person. LinkedIn is a social networking site but it functions differently. It centers around professionalism and formality. So those selfies you took of yourself pouting won't work on linkedin. 

One of the common questions a lot of people ask is what's the best aspect ratio for a LinkedIn Profile pic? 

Well the best aspect ratio for LinkedIn Profile image is 400×400. The recommended ratio for a linkedin profile photo is 1:1 a perfect square with equal length on the length and width.

Your image should also be warm and inviting, you can check out what other people in your industry are wearing and go for something similar.

You don’t have to be wearing a million dollar suit, but you also don't want to be rocking your favorite worn-out tee with grease stains on it.

Make sure you look neat and clean

Go for a friendly look, not too stern, not too goofy. Most people take their linkedin profile with neutral coloured background. 

Your profile pic accentuates your face. So, make it a close-up, not a whole-body pic.

Your profile pic has to be recent, don’t use your graduation photos from high school, no matter how good you looked in it.

Quality is key, low resolution pics are a no-go. Make sure you use high quality images that are clearly visible. 

You can use a photo of yourself doing something interesting like a hobby or other professional interests.

If you want to design a linkedin cover photo, then you should try out Canva, it has free, customizable LinkedIn banner templates to use.

Write a Killer Headline.

Your headline is the first thing recruiters see when looking at your profile. So it should convey who you are in a short and concise sentence or a few phrases.

Having a good headline makes it easy to get found by job recruiters. Remember, the more specific you are about what sets you apart from the competition, the better. Avoid the less descriptive titles as much as possible.

Make sure your headline contains a keyword(s) that are relevant to your industry and can be used to easily find you. If you’re a private chef then, it’s best to put “private chef” as your title, instead of “chef”. You can use linkedin headline generators such as 

Don't Forget Your Keywords.

Keywords are the cornerstone of SEO, especially when it comes to linkedin. You can write over a 1000 word long resume but if it isn't optimized with the right keywords then all your efforts are all for nothing.

This tells the LinkedIn algorithm that your profile is relevant to certain search queries.

If you’re a job seeker, start in the Jobs section of LinkedIn to review job listings and identify your ideal role. Mine those listings for repeated keywords and core competencies and incorporate them throughout your profile to add keyword density and increase your chances of getting noticed in an employer’s LinkedIn search.

Follow all of the companies that you’re targeting to indicate your interest (recruiters can see who you follow) and stay up-to-date on company news. Change your “industry”—a field in your “Intro” that isn’t visible except to you and recruiters—corresponds with your target employer/role.

Finally, make sure your profile is “public” (in “Settings”). This makes your profile searchable so employers can find you even if they aren’t first-degree connections.

Now, don’t forget to make your profile professional, dynamic, and appealing, so recruiters and hiring managers want to read more once they find it!

Pro tip: Some people on LinkedIn use the third person when writing about themselves on their profiles.

Example: Emily is a lead generation expert who has helped over 20 companies generate leads for their business.

This is not advisable, you should always write about yourself in first person.

Example: I am a lead generation expert who has helped over 20 companies generate leads for their business.

Share Your Education and Accomplishments. 

If you have any certifications that are relevant to your desired position, then you should include them in your LinkedIn profile. You should compose a well thought out story that best describes your experience and achievements in your job industry. 

You should describe your skills, certifications and accomplishments. This includes what you've done, what the results were and how you did it.   

This will help job recruiters get to know you better. As I said earlier, try to be as descriptive as possible and give them a reason to consider you as a worthy staff member.

Don't lie about any job or previous work experience as false information can lead to linkedin banning your account. You can read Linkedin terms for false information.Try to be as honest as possible. You don't need to have a PhD inorder to find good jobs on linkedin.

Show Job Recruiters What You Have To Offer.

This is by far the easiest way to get a job quickly on linkedin with minimal effort. We've all heard the saying talk is cheap, right? When looking for a job on linkedin you shouldn't rely only on your work experience or your resume, because with $10 bucks or more, people can find resume writers online on sites like fiverr or upwork who can make even the worst job applicant look great. 

So nowadays job recruiters on linkedin are looking for something more, they're looking for proof, validation. If you can do this then you'll be landing jobs in no time. In order to prove to job recruiters that you're a worthy candidate, you'll need to present proof of your work.

You can do this by creating a simple portfolio website on Google sites then linking to it, So job recruiters can see all your work. If you're a Content writer then you could link to some of the popular articles you've written. Similarly if you're a UX/UI designer then you can share your mockups either directly on linkedin or on your portfolio site.

This is a great way to show job recruiters what you're made of.

Become an Active User.

Linkedin like every other social networking site requires users to be active inorder to get the most out of the platform. Remember you should choose what you post carefully as linkedin centers on professionalism so your casual home videos aren't the best type of content for linkedin.

Being active on the platform tells prospective job recruiters / employers that your profile is active. Imagine stumbling on a linkedin profile that has a few posts from 2010. This is an instant turn off for both users and employers on the platform.

This doesn’t mean you should spend your whole day on LinkedIn. Try making out time in your schedule to interact on the platform, so whenever a job is available in your industry, you’ll be the first candidate on the job recruiter’s radar.

You can schedule posts in advance on linkedin with help from any third-party tool(s) that integrate with LinkedIn Pages. You can use later's linkedin scheduler for this.

LinkedIn Learning is another great feature—you can use it to learn and develop a range of new skills and add completed courses directly to your profile. Connecting with people who have the type of job or work in the industry you’re interested in can help you find which courses you might want to take

• Request Connections.

You can start building your professional network online by connecting with like-minded people, they can be people you know personally, but you can always request connections from people you don’t know who might be able to help you grow in your career. 

Select relevant interests on your profile and follow experts, thought leaders, and others in your field who have careers you’d like to learn something from.

LinkedIn’s alumni tool can help you find other professionals who went to your college. Alternatively, you can request connections from people who work at companies you’re interested in.

Once you connect, you can start a conversation. Consider setting up an informational interview to learn more about what he/she does in the company they work for. You’ll also start to see each other in your feeds so you can comment on their posts and updates.

• Start Posting Consistently.

LinkedIn users can write posts or articles on the platform. You can post your perspective about what’s going on in your industry/field. Sharing these posts will help you build up your reputation and show off your writing skills and knowledge. You can even share relevant articles you’ve come across elsewhere online.

You can start by leaving thoughtful comments If you don’t feel ready to write your own posts just yet.

• Join LinkedIn Groups

LinkedIn Groups are an incredible way to find even more like-minded professionals in your job or industry. You can discuss relevant topics in a more focused setting and become more engaged in your field. Plus, the other group members are a large pool of possible connections.