6 Things Digital Recruiters Want From Your LinkedIn Profile

93% of recruiters now use LinkedIn to discover new talent, while 89% say they have hired a job applicant through LinkedIn. As a digital marketer your LinkedIn profile says heaps about you – from how invested you are in the industry to how good you are at marketing yourself and conveying your own value.

But with so much advice around, it’s not always clear the correct approach to take. That’s why we spoke to a number of leading digital marketing marketing recruiters and asked, “What exactly do you look for in a LinkedIn profile?”

The best answers were captured, highlighted and summarized into easy to digest snippets. And now we’re sharing them with you, our favorite digital marketers.

1. Become an Attention-Grabber

6 seconds – that’s how long you have to grab a recruiter’s attention. Best make those few seconds count then. Get a friend to take the “scan test” and ask them to feedback the key information that jumps out about you.

We bet it’s things like your heading, titles, the keywords in your summary and the amount of times you’ve been endorsed. Ensure that your copy is snappy, accurate, to the point and formatted for quick and easy scanning. Most importantly? Save recruiters valuable time by identifying your value proposition instantly.

Top Recruiter Tips:

Alan Murphy, Recruitment Consultant From Sigmar Recruitment Says:

“Your job title could include a creative one liner – this is your opportunity to sell yourself that little bit more so it could relate to an award/specialty (Spider winner 2014 for example).”

Alan Adds:

“The summary should be creative and concise as you will probably get about 10-20 seconds to interest someone. So tell me what you are good at and what you want to draw me in and then give me a little more information about your skillset.”

Keith O’Connor, Marketing Manager From Alternatives Says:

“Your summary is extremely important, you should think of it as your CV’s executive summary.”

2. Appeal to Your Target Audience

Before crafting your LinkedIn profile answer these very important questions: “What’s in it for recruiters?” “Why should they listen?” As a digital marketer you need to consider the impact your LinkedIn profile will have on your target audience. Will it engage, entice, intrigue? Does it communicate your value proposition?

Consider the information recruiters want and need to see before making an informed decision to recommend you. Speak their language and be kind, consistent and clear with your formatting. Your best bet? Make their job easier by ensuring your profile is foolproof to read, understand and scan. Identify what they are looking for and give it to them in bold, beautiful headings and unmistakable bullet points.

Top Recruiter Tips:

Cecilia Desmond, Recruitment Consultant from Morgan McKinley said:

“Know your audience: “Jot down the key skills, competencies and points you want to convey and communicate these through your profile. Ask yourself, who do I want to read my profile? What do I want them to know about me?”

Cecilia Adds:

“Be mindful of the reader: Read any content out loud & ensure it makes sense to the reader.”

3.Display Your Professional Side

A recent study revealed that when investigating a potential candidate’s LinkedIn profile, recruiters spend 19% of their time looking at the profile photo. It is, therefore, essential that you make the most of the visual power of your LinkedIn profile and reflect yourself in the best and most professional manner possible.

Don’t forget to take advantage of your custom background image too. Have a blog? Why not enter the URL and a call to action? Have you spoken at a conference? Upload a photo of you taking center stage for the instant “this is me” effect. Choose the best photo/image that truly reflects who you are in your career – the one that portrays your most confident and capable self.

Top Recruiter Tips:

Keith O’Connor, Marketing Manager From Alternatives Says:

“Make sure your profile picture is professional and reflective of the platform. Giving a thumbs up while holding a pint is not an appropriate look!”

Alan Murphy, Recruitment Consultant From Sigmar Recruitment Says:

“You need to ensure the picture is professional, the company wants to see you as you would be in a work environment not out with your mates!”

4.Showcase Your Achievements

LinkedIn is no place to be shy. And now that the powerful platform allows you to showcase your work and add rich, visual media to your profile it’s time you started taking advantage. You can, for example, add text or video to your summary and individual job sections and education section (this is a great way to show examples of the marketing work you have completed).

The LinkedIn Portfolio also allows your network to ‘like’ and discuss your portfolio updates (great for getting your work seen by those who matter). And it’s easy too – all you have to do is click ‘Edit’ on the relevant section and upload your content from your hard drive or from other popular sites.

Top Recruiter Tips:

Cecilia Desmond, Recruitment Consultant from Morgan McKinley said:

“Display your work: If you have worked on projects you’re proud of, a website, a blog or video production – you can link examples of your work to your profile – it’s advantageous both for the recruiter to gain an insight into your style and interests and of course it will increase your exposure.”

5. Connect, Engage & Get Involved

A quick glance of your LinkedIn profile can give recruiters a true insight into how serious you are about the industry. For example, they can check your connections, the influencers you’ve chosen to follow and the groups you’ve chosen to join. If you’re looking to demonstrate passion (and you should be doing just that) you need to ensure that you’re following and engaging with the right people.

Create a list of your favorite thought leaders and the most inspirational people in your industry – and then seek to follow, engage and connect with them. Keen to stand out? Contribute your thoughts, opinions and content to relevant groups to get seen by those who matter (including recruiters).

Top Recruiter Tips:

Keith O’Connor, Marketing Manager From Alternatives Says:

“It’s important to be strategic in the groups and companies you follow on your profile page, ensure these interests reflect your career path.”

Cecilia Desmond, Recruitment Consultant from Morgan McKinley said:

“Groups & networking: LinkedIn is a powerful tool. Seeking out appropriate online communities, joining relevant groups and subsequent conversations will envelop you further in your field and make your name stand out.”

6. Get Honest & Accurate

Just because you need to engage and excite your readers does not mean you want to mislead them about your achievements, titles or duties. An honest profile is imperative for building trust with recruiters – that trust will go a long way when it comes to getting a recommendation for a particular job.

Maintain accuracy too. Recruiters want to get a sense that you are capable of doing the job before putting you forward for an interview. If your profile is littered with typos, inconsistencies and poor grammar you risk the reader losing faith in your ability to effectively market to masses.

Top Recruiter Tips:

Cecilia Desmond, Recruitment Consultant from Morgan McKinley said:

“Accuracy & consistency: Ensure your current & previous job titles, your tenures, your education and any other information you disclose is accurate.”

“Spell check! So many people neglect this and as marketers you are expected to have an eye for detail.”

Keith O’Connor, Marketing Manager From Alternatives says:

“Ensure that your job titles and employment dates are all correct with any gaps in your history fully explained.”

Don’t forget to sign up to our free digital careers lecture taking place on January 28th in Dublin’s City Centre. The average digital marketing manager in Dublin earns €68,000 – find out how you can too.