It’s no secret – LinkedIn is the playground for recruiters. In the dynamic landscape of professional networking, it is an indispensable platform for career growth and opportunities. And as we navigate the terrain of 2023, the significance of LinkedIn in shaping our professional trajectories has only deepened.
But if you’re still using LinkedIn as you did last year – or the years prior – you’re probably making mistakes that unknowingly sabotage your LinkedIn results and limit your outreach potential. And knowing that 87% of recruiters already use it to find new candidates, the stakes and competition are higher than ever. The algorithms, now more attuned to authentic interactions and relevant content, demand a fresh perspective on engagement tactics. But how can you stand out from the crowd, embrace the changes, and have some time left to do your actual job?
Well, Firefish has got your back.
Ignoring the power of content
Yes, it’s no surprise that producing original content is key to visibility on any social media platform. But with the 2023 changes, LinkedIn puts more authority than ever on educational and in-depth pieces. The feature which enables users to write their own articles is the perfect way to showcase expertise and add value to your network of prospects clients and candidates, without encouraging users to leave the platform which is something LinkedIn is keen to avoid.
What’s more, with over 45% of LinkedIn article readers being in high-level positions, it’s not just a chance to share your expertise, but also build a relevant network of high-value connections.
Never actually networking
It’s not just content – it’s also how you use it to build your network. And whilst staying on top of your ivory tower as the expert might get you some followers, the best way to build a network of like-minded professionals who can actually help your business is through interaction. And LinkedIn recognised that, allowing users to write collaborative articles this year.
Outside of working together to create valuable pieces of content and building your network in the process, LinkedIn has some built-in interaction tools such as leaving reactions on posts, sharing the content of others and now even writing collaborative articles – excellent for reaching new people by leveraging the connections of your colleagues to broaden your respective networks.
Yet with all of these avenues, many recruiters will spend hours absorbing industry insights and blog content without ever popping up with an inMail or direct message. Having a small chat with a prospect or candidate is always useful in building relationships, especially when you aren’t asking for anything in return.
Moreover, pointing people in the right direction and sharing industry insights or best practice content where relevant is a great way to develop relationships within your network by adding value and building reciprocity for a later date.
Playing the aggravator
On the other side of the coin from the passive LinkedIn user is the over-eager comment section warrior. Whilst never reaching out directly to your network can make it difficult to build valuable candidate and prospect relationships, being overly keen to fly into the comments section and act the know-it-all can be even worse.
We can all think of someone we see constantly jumping from post to post and leaving a trail of arguments, controversial statements, and negative reactions. Whilst LinkedIn can be a good place for open debates, the comments section is also visible to vast extended networks, and coming across as brash or outright rude is not the personal brand you want to be creating.
Take disagreements to the DMs or offline where you can and maintain a level of professionalism in your public responses to ensure that you can add value with your views not simply fan the flames of conflict.
Treating it like Facebook
On the subject of keeping it professional, it can be easy to confuse LinkedIn with another social media platform – Facebook. And it’s there that you should post your messy weekend party pics and hungover Sunday morning thoughts.
This is all a case of personal preference, but generally speaking, LinkedIn is a place for candidates, clients, and prospective (and current) employers to see you as a business professional. Oversharing on private issues and tackling controversial topics in a very public setting isn’t likely to yield many benefits in most cases.
Ignoring the AI features
With the overall AI takeover, LinkedIn also started incorporating some AI-powered tools onto the platform – and whilst you might be a skilled writer yourself, there is a fair share of potential benefits of using the tools LinkedIn provides. It might not be groundbreaking yet, but as AI continues to be a hot topic, LinkedIn is pushing these features to more users – so incorporating them in your everyday posts or utilising them to write profiles and job descriptions (which you can now generate directly in LinkedIn) might not only save you time but also increase visibility.
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