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8 essential LinkedIn profile tips according to recruiters

Your LinkedIn profile can be a useful tool in helping you to find a new job, with your online profile effectively becoming an online CV of your work experience. Recruiters, hiring managers and industry professionals see it as an essential tool in finding new candidates to fill their job vacancies.

We asked members of the First Recruitment Group team to give their advice on how to get the most out of a LinkedIn profile. Take a look at what they said below.


Ensure contact information is up to date

The first step is to ensure that any contact information is up to date. Andrew Curran, Senior Recruitment Consultant for our Permanent Recruitment team says, "Any success that may come off the back of any job search would be wasted if recruiters and hiring managers cannot get in touch with you. Make it as easy as you can for people to communicate with you."

Use a professional photo

Research has shown that LinkedIn profiles that have a picture are 11 times more likely to be viewed. ‘Professionalism’ should be the priority here, as you work to reinforce your personal brand.

First Recruitment Consultant Katie Marnell recommends using a recent photo of yourself in office attire, with a simple plain background.

Write an effective summary

This is your opportunity to sell yourself and really stand out using 2-3 sentences. Think of it as an opening gambit, or the summary paragraph at the top of your CV, including information that highlights your skills and capabilities.

As Ryan Kirkpatrick, First Recruitment Group Delivery coordinator suggests, "Mention your areas of expertise, key projects or achievements, management experience and any essential qualifications. The summary should be concise, punchy, and packed full of content."

Use key words in your profile

Recruiters often search for candidates using a set of keywords from the job description or by using a selection of similar job titles; you want to make sure that you’re appearing in these searches.

Mark Wallace, Business Manager for our Oil & Gas team says that "If you are a Structural Engineer looking to work in the Oil & Gas industry, for example, include keywords such as ‘Offshore’, ‘Oil’, ‘Gas’, ‘Gas’ and ‘Engineer’ throughout your profile, along with any key competences or skills."

Join groups and participate

Groups on LinkedIn exist across practically all sectors and specialist areas. These groups offer a great opportunity for like-minded people to share content, offer advice or steer people in the right direction, when you need advice on a work related topic.

Kevin Riley, Business Manager for IT recruitment at First, recommends finding a group that matches your area of expertise; "Use the group to digest relevant industry, career driven content, increase your market knowledge and confidence in your field. The more you interact with these groups, the more you are likely to get out of them."


Get recommendations & endorsements

Your business reputation is a powerful thing, so an excellent recommendation is essentially a publically visible testimonial or reference. Contact those people you have worked with and provide your own recommendations for them, then follow up by asking if they could also provide one for you. Think about those clients, colleagues that you have worked with best and produced the best results for.

Endorsements are similar to recommendations but are not written posts – a person can simply click to ‘endorse’ a skill that you have put on your profile. As with recommendations, don’t be afraid to endorse the skills of others; chances are they will return the favour.

Follow your dream companies

Follow companies that you’d love to work for. Why not keep up with the best? Seeing a company’s news and updates will keep you in the loop of what is happening in that industry and at that particular company. These bits of information can be used when planning your own movement, and can be strategically referenced throughout a CV or cover letter when applying for related jobs.

Upload your CV today

Once you’ve followed our LinkedIn tips and your profile is looking as good as it can do, it is a good idea to check that your CV reflects the same positive image. Check out our article here for tips on enhancing your CV.

Feeling motivated to pursue your next career? Start your proactive approach to job hunting right now by registering your details and uploading your CV here and we’ll contact you if we have any jobs matching your skills.

Testimonials

"Their knowledge of the industry, our organisation and candidates is one of the leaders in the market. They have always been able to supply us with the right calibre of engineering candidate no matter what the discipline or regional location is.

"First Recruitment Group’s service delivery has always been to a high standard and the customer service provided by the team has ensured that First Recruitment Group will remain a preferred supplier of engineering personnel to WorleyParsons on our future engineering projects."

WorleyParsons

"In my dealings with First I have found them to be responsive, knowledgeable, quality-focused and engaging in their approach. I would have no hesitation in recommending the services of First Recruitment Group to any prospective customers."

Global Engineering Consultancy

"We have a good working relationship with First Recruitment and they always put every effort in to filling our positions whether it's on a permanent or contract basis. First have an honest and open approach to recruitment and their clients which is refreshing. First offer an excellent payroll service which compliments their overall delivery service to MWH Treatment."

MWH Treatment

“As the biggest services supplier to the nuclear industry our demand for personnel is significant, when I have an urgent requirement I know I can rely on First Recruitment to rise to the challenge.

“As a preferred supplier for temporary labour and a fundamental part of our permanent recruitment process we get the right people at the right time. Whether its highly technical/specialist resources or back office support personnel the approach is to the same high standard.”

Veolia Nuclear Solutions

"It’s great to work with a recruitment agency we trust. The team at First Recruitment Group are friendly and straight talking and they continue to provide an excellent service. We’re proud to still be working with them after 20 years."

Simon Carves Engineering Ltd

"First Recruitment are on the 1st Tier of Sweett Europe’s preferred supplier list. We have found First recruitment to be hugely supportive and value adding partners to Sweett, helping us source a wide range of roles. The consultants at First are hugely knowledgeable and have a real desire to listen to, and understand, our needs. They have shown an unrivalled desire to work on hard to fill roles using innovative methods to ensure they always supply us with CVs.

"I have been hugely impressed by their willingness to support us, even when we have simply been after guidance which would not attract them a fee. I would be more than happy to recommend First Recruitment Group to any prospective organisation, and to discuss in more detail their capabilities."

Sweett Group

“We’ve worked with First Recruitment for over 12 years and have built up a great relationship with their team. They’ve helped us in sourcing contractors for our chemical division, maintaining consistently high standards in delivery, and we hope to continue building on this relationship in the future. I have no hesitation in recommending First to others.”

Haden Freeman Limited

"We have used First Recruitment to support the recruitment of several key roles within our business. The quality of the candidates put forward were extremely high which helped enormously in our ability to fill all roles, also the candidates have all been a success since joining our business. They were prompt, knowledgeable and very professional and made the recruitment process for us extremely simple. The service we have received has been first class and I would highly recommend the services of First Recruitment to any Company looking to fill a vacancy."

Meadow Vale Food Group

“I have worked with First Recruitment frequently over the last couple of years. Their ability to understand our business and support me in terms of recruitment has been excellent. Candidates are screened initially to meet our requirements and taken through the process in a professional way. I would have no hesitation in recommending First Recruitment to any employer who needs that little extra support in their recruitment process."

Bokomo Foods (UK) Limited

“I have found First Recruitment to be very efficient and professional in their approach to recruitment. They were able to gain an in depth understanding of the needs of our business and source high quality candidates. I would highly recommend their services to anyone with a recruitment need.”

AAK

"First Group are one of the key suppliers to Cobham. The team are quick to respond, friendly and professional, and as such have made a massive difference to the account. The team have supported and filled a variety of roles. Without hestitation I would recommend First."

Cobham

Read all Testimonials

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