As an agency dedicated to IT recruitment with decades in the industry, we see many tech professionals are less than excited about using LinkedIn on a regular basis. Often, people feel they don’t have the time to use LinkedIn, while others would rather avoid being approached by recruiters on the platform. Yet there will come a time when you do need to search for a role, and that’s where a well-maintained LinkedIn profile comes in very handy.
Whether you’re a seasoned Java developer, an aspiring data scientist, or a mid-career UX/UI designer, we’ve got you covered with LinkedIn tips that will help your profile do the hard work for you and position you as a credible tech professional.
Making Your LinkedIn Profile Interesting
The best starting point with your LinkedIn profile is to make a few tweaks that will make it easier to read and more representative of who you are as a professional. If you’re aiming to expand your network so you can land job opportunities, it makes sense to have a profile that encourages people to learn more about you – instead of clicking away as fast as possible!
Master the Art of the LinkedIn Headline
Your headline serves as your profile’s gateway. The welcome mat at your front door, if you will. Instead of settling for something commonplace, choose a title that reflects your professionalism and experience. For example, consider a headline like ‘Experienced Software Engineer with a Passion for Innovation and Future Technologies’ – this is distinctive and captivating, and encourages further exploration of your profile. Aim to write a sentence that summarises what you’re all about.
About Section – Your Secret Weapon
Your ‘About’ section gives you space to expand on your professional narrative. Here you can highlight your passion for and experience with coding, your proficiency in certain programming languages or spotlight a project that resonates with you. Authenticity is key. A compelling About section can make you sound more human and personable, which is useful for making connections with potential recruiters or employers.
Let Your Experience Speak Volumes
Tech thrives on results. Instead of just listing your work responsibilities, emphasise what you’ve achieved – your project track record, results delivered for clients, reductions in error rates, increase in downloads, or anything else that might apply to your specialisation.
Highlighting achievements over duties demonstrates your tangible impact, serves as evidence of your skills and effectiveness and sets you apart from peers who merely list responsibilities.
Showcase Your Skills
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Skill Endorsements are Your Allies
Endorsements from other people in your network are like virtual high-fives. Don’t be too shy to ask colleagues and teammates for a quick endorsement; this boosts your credibility and ensures your skills are up-to-date.
Showcase Your Work with Examples
Don’t just tell, show! If you have projects or code snippets you’re proud of, flaunt them. Upload images, presentations, or GitHub links. Visual evidence of your work adds depth and credibility to your profile. Including visuals or links helps transform your abstract skills into real accomplishments and also enhances engagement on LinkedIn.
The Art of Recommendations
Recommendations offer social proof of your capabilities and provide valuable insights into your professional character. Aim to gather at least one recommendation for your profile – it’s a great way to show your trustworthiness and strengthen your profile’s appeal to potential employers.
Network Smarter, Not Harder
Networking is an established way to discover new job opportunities. That said, do prioritise quality over quantity when building your network. To enhance your chances of having valuable interactions, it’s best to connect with professionals or companies aligned with your interests.
When making connection requests, personalise them with a message – this will increase the likelihood of your requests being accepted. With the right message, you can show you’re genuinely interested in the people you’re connecting with.
Focus on Engagement
Engage, Don’t Just Scroll: LinkedIn is fundamentally a social platform. Regular engagement with other users – comments, likes, shares – is important for boosting your visibility on LinkedIn, as with any other social media platform. Save your likes and comments for sensible content and discussions about industry-relevant topics, as this will help demonstrate your professionalism.
Make Your Own Posts: Engaging with others also involves creating your own content. Consider making a post once or twice a week relating to your work or industry, with the aim of starting a conversation with your peers. This can position you as an informed tech community member, potentially catching the eye of recruiters or industry influencers.
Harness the Power of LinkedIn Keywords
Keywords are the breadcrumbs that lead recruiters to your LinkedIn profile. By optimising your profile with keywords relevant to your job and skills (e.g. cloud architecture, AWS, PostgreSQL), you can readily appear in search results when recruiters search for candidates using those terms. To work out which keywords to include, research industry hiring trends and consider your core areas of expertise.
Be Job-Ready
Statistics show that 95% of recruiters actively use LinkedIn to search for high-quality candidates. If you are genuinely open to new opportunities (which is likely if you’re reading this), one of our key LinkedIn tips is to signal your willingness to be approached for new roles. To do this, activate the Open to Opportunities feature. When a recruiter contacts you about an opportunity, be sure to respond to them quickly if you’re interested in the position.
Follow Your Dream Companies
Follow your dream companies to showcase a genuine interest and proactive approach to your career; this positions you as a committed and knowledgeable professional and could potentially capture the attention of recruiters from these organisations. Additionally, stay informed of their activities, job openings and latest news, and engage with their content to demonstrate your enthusiasm and expertise.
Maintain an Up-to-Date Profile – and Use Spellcheck!
As with your CV, it’s wise to keep your LinkedIn profile up to date with your latest accomplishments, skills and experiences. An up-to-date profile signals your active engagement in the tech industry, commitment to professional growth and increases your appeal to recruiters seeking motivated candidates.
Before you change any elements of your profile or make a post (or comment), be sure to give it a quick spell check. Even small errors can make you appear unprofessional, so beware!
We Know IT Recruitment
Whether you’re looking for career advice tailored for tech professionals or need to navigate a job search, Exclaim IT’s team is ready to support your every step. Contact us today to unlock your career potential and find the jobs you really want.
