Digital First Impressions Make or Break Your Job Search [Infographic]

Most job seekers are aware that a very large majority of companies now use social media to recruit and research potential candidates… Facebook, LinkedIn and/or Twitter (at least).

However, few understand how to best leverage social networking during a successful job search. Check out this infographic by Jobvite for all you need to know about a positive social media presence; a digital first impression that can get you hired… or not.

Ben Martin, Social Media, Recruitment

Have you had first hand experience? Did you get hired from your digital presence alone?

Say hello and drop your comments below.

Connect with me on Twitter: Ben Martin

Category: Careers | 1 Comment »

Adding video to LinkedIn is now so easy!

LinkedIn’s new look is clean and image-centric. The development team have added a new Rich Media tool that allows you to easily add video, presentations, your blog and other media to your Summary, Experience and Education sections.

We all know how important video is to marketing, and with this new media link, LinkedIn acknowledges its importance. So make sure you add video to your profile. (But remember, this is a business tool. No dancing cat videos, please.)

I will now show you how to add a video to a section.

1) Select “Edit Profile under” the “Profile” tab

Scroll down to Experience. You will now see this:

2) Click on the add symbol (circled above)

3) Insert the URL from where the video is hosted. For example YouTube.

Hey Presto!

I added two

I think this is fantastic, what do you think? What videos will you be adding? Come and say hello below.

Category: LinkedIn, YouTube | No Comments »

How LinkedIn Has Turned Your Resume Into A Cash Machine

via Little #LinkedIn Changes you’ll want to Ignore — Integrated Alliances.

Everyone now has “Skills and Expertise”, which is a much more data-rich section full of keywords that can be compared, measured, and analyzed

– No one told people they should list skills in order of importance. Instead, like I first did, you likely listed them in the order you thought of them.

– LinkedIn didn’t tell anyone when they started Skills and Expertise that they would soon be listed in order of the number of endorsements (with the most endorsed skills being at the top).

– The way Skills are offered to people to endorse is a) how they are related to you and then b) how they already rank in your profile. And they even nicely list the “Top Ten Skills” based on the number of endorsements.

LinkedIn doesn’t care if the method is not the most accurate, it just keeps pushing to gather the data of YOU so that it has more value to offer those who purchase that data: subscribers, marketers and advertisers, and of course, recruiters (who will want to search for endorsed skills!).

 

Category: LinkedIn, Social Media, Uncategorized | No Comments »

LinkedIn: Edit On The Go Feature

Just days ago LinkedIn released an update to their app, for both iOS and Android. In this update one of the most requested features appeared. Now you can update your profile with a new headline, add recent skills, or add a new position so your professional identity is always up to date.

There is also this video to show how easy it is to update your profile from your phone:

A feature I would like to see on LinkedIn app is the ability to tailor the message when sending an invite.

What would you like to see? Enter you ideas in the comments below

Category: LinkedIn | No Comments »

How should your Linkedin profile be written? 3rd or 1st Person? [The Results]

LinkedIn is one of the most powerful tools to demonstrate the value of YOU. I have always pondered what is the best way to convey your persona, should your writing style be in the third person “Ben always takes time to help” or the first person “I enjoy helping people”

To answered this I ran a poll on LinkedIn and I was delighted to have one hundred and seventy one people respond, here are the results

What were the demographics for each answer?

 

 

There were over 28 comments add here are some of the highlights:

Guy likes when an applicant can express themselves to Guy effectively and accurately.

I for one think that first person is the only way to go with both. To me, a CV or LinkedIn profile written in the third person reads like a film promotion

I think your LinkedIn profile should be written the same as a resume where you never use the word “I”

I think in case of 1st person, too much of “I” sounds arrogant.

1st is always the best in speaking or in writing terms.

3rd person implies arrogance or ignorance, both of which are an automatic turn-off

Unless you’re royalty, I think the 1st person reads better… makes one sound less pretentious

I think first person definitely, after all its all about you!

The first person unless you are a novelist!

 

To summarize the comments there seems to be two trains of thought. If you are using the platform to find your next job most are saying that a third person style is preferred. If you are using the platform to build relationships and demonstrate the value of YOU then first person wins hands down.

If you would like to read more of the comments please see the link below.

 

As the poll is now closed why not add your thoughts in the comments and keep this debate going! Thanks for reading

Category: LinkedIn | No Comments »

LinkedIn unveil new Profile layout

LinkedIn are rolling out further changes to their members over the next three months. These enhancements will help you to; tell your professional story easier with better visual elements, discover people and opportunities with greater insights and simpler ways to uncover common interests and engage with your network.

If you’d like to be one of the first ones to get the new Profile, you can sign up here: http://www.linkedin.com/profile/sample.

Meet the New LinkedIn Profile: A Better Way to Connect and Build Relationships

With this many changes so quickly is the platform at risk of losing members?

Category: LinkedIn | No Comments »