What is the best way to get a job on LinkedIn?

You may have heard that 87% of recruiters are now using LinkedIn to source new candidates.

So you’re wondering how, with nearly half a billion LinkedIn Users, what do you need to do to stand out of the crowd and get noticed by recruiters.

There are many ways, but you asked for the best one, so I’m going to give it you.

It’s got nothing to do with your profile picture, or the number of connections you have, or if your profile is “All-Star”.

The best way to find a new job using LinkedIn is by helping people.

Now you might be thinking “Woah! Helping people? I told you I am the one that needs a new job. Why should I spend my time helping others when I’m the one that needs help?”

You might also be thinking “But I wanted to know what’s the best way to apply for posted jobs in LinkedIn. Is that what it’s for?”

Let me explain.

LinkedIn was design to be a professional networking tool.

Sure, it’s evolved since then. Part of that evolution was to be a tool for recruiters to advertise jobs.

Yes, you can apply for jobs on LinkedIn, but so can your competition.

So the question is, how can you best use LinkedIn to make you stand out from your competition so that you get the job and not them.

That is by using LinkedIn for what it was originally designed to be -a networking tool.

Now when you hear “networking” you picture a formal seminar with fancy PowerPoint presentations and a free buffet hosted at some hotel sponsored by a company.

But in it’s deepest sense, networking means offering value to the person you are trying to connect with first, leveraging the power of reciprocity.

Reciprocity - “In social psychology, reciprocity is a social norm of responding to a positive action with another positive action, rewarding kind actions”

In other words, “You scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours.”

In find-a-job terms, “You help me, and I’ll help you find a job. (When the time comes)”

80% of the job market is hidden.

You want to know the most effective way of finding a job? Start tapping into that hidden market.

The only way you can do that is by making it known to the people who have the power to hire for that hidden position that you are available to do that job - and they owe you!

So if you really want to start leveraging the power of LinkedIn, here are some basic back scratching steps to get you started in the right direction.

#1 Find the people

Do an advanced search and find people by:

• Country / Province
• Industry
• Target Company (if you know them)
• Job Title (1–2–3 levels higher up from your target job title)

Make a list of all the people you find.

#2 Do some research about them and their company

• Find and follow the company’s they work for
• Google them
• Read any articles they have written

#3 Connect with them (pay special attention here)

• Send a personalized note to each of them during your connection
• Personalize it. Use the Add Note feature from your desktop. Use the Three Dots or Arrow from your cell phone
• Nothing spells “Rejection” than a blank LinkedIn request. So use the research you gathered to personalize that note, or don’t bother sending it at all
• You can talk about the company they work for and what you like about it
• You can talk about an article they wrote and what you learned from it
• You can talk about a market trend in your industry and share it with them and ask their “valued” opinion

#4 Start Helping

Once you have made that connection, resist all temptations (and I do mean ALL) of asking them for a job.

Asking people for jobs when they are not bringing up the subject themselves puts them on the defensive and creates an awkward moment.

From that point on, that person will start avoiding you because they know that you might bring it up again.

Instead, start helping people, and as long as you are speaking to a human being with half a hearth, the power of reciprocity will gain their trust and eventually land you your next job when the time comes.

How can you help?

Try one of more of the following

1. Share content you read about your industry with them, making note of what you personally like about the article.
2. Follow the company’s they work for and quote any newsworthy content you find and ask questions and your opinions about it
3. Join LinkedIn groups they belong to and discover new content from there
4. Follow them on LinkedIn, and if they share any piece of content, make sure you like/comment/share and provide your insight on it.
5. For more advanced help offering, taken note of any volunteering opportunities from the company’s communities and offer your services.
6. In communities like North America, senior executives are big on community service. If you offer to volunteer and help them from that angle, you get the ultimate face-time with them.

When you’re on the search for work, LinkedIn should be your primary go-to for social networking.

Facebook, Twitter and Instagram can wait until after you find your job. (Unless you can leverage it for professional networking through volunteering for example)

Recruiters and hiring managers are always looking for the best talent to fill a job.

But they don’t owe you anything.

They won’t go out of their way to consider your application.

They will use the easiest channels to fill vacancies, and that usually turns up in the form of filtered lists of applicants that applied to the job posting or (and this is critical) people they already know.

And your resume may not turn up. Or they don’t know you.

So make them take just a little more effort to consider your application, even if it did not turn up on the filter listed from LinkedIn.

Make them trust you by getting to know you.

You can accomplish that by proving your value and commitment to your industry and the help you provided them in the past.

Once you have provided them adequate value and you see an opportunity arise, they will be more willing to consider your application when the opportunity arises.

The right opportunity to ask for help is after you have helped someone else and not before.

So what are you waiting for?

Thanks to social media, it’s never been an easier time to help people.

You can do it at the comfort of your own home while you touch people’s lives while sitting on your couch, engaging people’s interested via LinkedIn.

Start by tuning up your LinkedIn profile and stop making these 7 critical mistakes first.

Once you have setup your foundation, you can start helping people and you will be well on your way to that next job.