What to Put on Linkedin When You're Unemployed

by Helen H. content manager

"I'm looking for a job", "Waiting for offers", "Opened for new opportunities" - such LinkedIn headlines, in theory, should attract employers, but this is not entirely true. To be accurate, 43% of employers use social media to recruit and 88% of them use LinkedIn, so this is your real chance to find a new job.

Before writing, that you are in an active job search, take note of the following arguments. There are several points that are strongly recommended for use when creating your profile on LinkedIn.

Before You Start

Your LinkedIn profile should be noticeable and written without mistakes to attract the attention of employers. In case you are not sure that you can cope with the task on your own, ask a specialist to help. You can ask for advice on forums or job search sites that often post tips or offer online consultation. One can hire a professional LinkedIn profile writer in order to proofread and improve the profile as there are plenty of online companies offering such a service.

It's necessary to hire a reputable specialist, who knows all the trends and rules. Can't find a reliable and professional one? Make use of LinkedIn profile writing service reviews and check the feedback before making an order.

Employers Will Find You

Your profile on LinkedIn signals that you are an active person, a good specialist, you follow the labor market, communicate with colleagues, and you are ready to consider the proposals of employers.

For easy job search, you need:

- fill the profile as full as possible,

- reflect the achievements in it,

- have a list of proven skills.

The profile tells everything about you, and if in search there are the criteria for which the employer selects applicants, they will contact you. And "looking for work" in the status, in this context, is not necessary.

Effective Use of the Headline

Under your name, there is a place on LinkedIn with 120 characters, which you can use effectively. You can't write that you are unemployed, but write the phrase "looking for new opportunities." When HR recruiters search for employees, they enter keywords in the search. And it is your headline where these words should be.

So do not waste space on writing that you are looking for work, but indicate your specifics and strengths in the headline (for example, excellent IT specialist with 12 years of work experience).

Tricks in Specifying Dates

If you are searching for a job for a long period of time (for example, since January), and now it's December, you do not need to specify both month and year in the date column. Just type there, for example, 2017 and it will be enough.

Mark Your Aims and Advantages, Not Your Lay-off

Do not use words such as "unemployed," "laid off" in describing your present situation, because these words have refusal implications and they are not practiced by recruiters searching for good candidates.

It is better to add your skills, keywords, work experience, which can be useful for finding work and attracting attention. But never lie and do not embellish your dignity.

Place Your Recommendations

The availability of recommendations is very important for the LinkedIn profile. But recommendations should only be from reputable people who describe your qualifications, not universal ones. Make sure that your recommendation does not apply to another candidate. You can get recommendations by sending requests through LinkedIn to your former boss or colleagues.

Do Not Allow Typos in Your Profile

Recruitment specialists say that users often make mistakes and typos in many words, even in job titles and their names.

Unfortunately, LinkedIn does not have a built-in spelling checker, but your browser can help you. For example, Safari, Chrome has a feature that highlights all the errors in writing words in red. You should be as careful on LinkedIn as if you were writing a regular resume on paper.

Place a Presentable Photo on Your Profile

Adding an image to your profile on LinkedIn can play a decisive role for the recruiter when viewing your profile. Researchers show that LinkedIn profiles with photos are considered by recruiters 14 times more often than profiles without photos.

Brown recommends not to be confused with Facebook and LinkedIn. Facebook is for private photos, and LinkedIn is for professional. She says that you should not link your profile on Facebook to a page on LinkedIn. It is better to have two different profiles.

So, make your LinkedIn profile professional and make it an excellent way for showing your experiences and skills.