LinkedIn’s New Features Help Job Seekers

LinkedIn recently released three new features that all job seekers should know about. These features aid in enhancing profiles and developing a stronger professional network. With more than 70% of jobs being unadvertised, a job seeker needs to take advantage of every networking opportunity they can to augment their job search.

Boost your network! The more people you connect with, the better your chances of hearing about opportunities. LinkedIn’s Contacts tool merges all contacts from your address book, various calendars and multiple email accounts. This is extremely helpful so you can arrange networking prospects and general connections into categories. Sometimes we look past a former co-worker, even neighbor, or college friend that may know of job opportunities and this Contacts feature brings these people all together for us. It goes one step further and pulls up an e-paper trail of past communications. Very useful to help you track conversations.

The summary, experience, and education sections of a LinkedIn profile have been seriously neglected by some job seekers. Did you know you can put in a link that leads to examples of your work? This feature allows employers who find you on LinkedIn to scan your profile and find highlights of your work that validate statements in your resume or points you bring up in an interview. You can be very creative in how you present your accomplishments and/or knowledge of your target industry. It is in essence an opportunity to have a visual online portfolio to showcase your talent and knowledge of products you’ve managed, fiscal predictions, trends, etc.

By enhancing this feature, LinkedIn provides you with more information about who has viewed your profile. This information can be valuable in several ways. First, it may be someone connected to a company where you are currently in the interviewing process. You now know they are checking you out online. Second, it may be a recruiter or hiring manager from a company who is interested in you because you popped up in their keyword search for a position they are hiring for.  And, the potential of other viewers is endless from former colleagues, to LinkedIn group leaders inviting you to join their network. Analyze who is viewing your profile and how they connect to you and the outside world to tap into new connections and advance your job search.

LinkedIn is a very important social media venue for any business professional. Make sure you are taking advantage of all it has to offer you as a job seeker.