3. Take a step back!
First, define your goals:
• Where do you want to go with your career?
• What do you expect from a new job?
• What kind of function or role do you want?
• What kind of organization do you want to work for?
• Which industry appeals to you?
• Where do you want to work?
Then ask yourself:
Who are the people in the best position to help
me reach my goals?
Sarah Barbee
@Sarah_Barbee
www.sarahbarbee.com
4. Setting Yourself Apart
Professional Headline
Describe yourself as the job you want or how
you can help, not your title.
Sarah Barbee
@Sarah_Barbee
www.sarahbarbee.com
5. Setting Yourself Apart
Instead of: Sarah Barbee, Marketing Assistant/IT
Specialist for the Lumberton Visitors Bureau
Try: Marketing Specialist and Everyday Problem Solver
in Lumberton, NC
Instead of: President of Office Computer Concepts,
LLC
Try: Building the Tools that Make Your Business Life
Easier!
www.linkedin-makeover.com
Sarah Barbee
@Sarah_Barbee
www.sarahbarbee.com
7. Setting Yourself Apart
Profile Summary – Always First Person
• Why should people care about you?
• What do you bring to the workplace that is different than anyone
else?
• What are you passionate about?
• What was something you did in your past that you were proud
about that's related to the career or industry you are interested
in?
Look at what professionals are saying and build off of that.
Sarah Barbee
@Sarah_Barbee
www.sarahbarbee.com
8. Connections
Groups
The company you keep says a lot about you.
• Builds network, helps connect to people, builds visibility
• Alumni, University, Former employer, Professional groups
• Job seeker groups in your field, trade leads and referrals. Help
more than you receive.
• Find industry specific groups and start and add to discussions.
Sarah Barbee
@Sarah_Barbee
www.sarahbarbee.com
9. Connections
Recommendations, Give and Get some!
• Three are required for getting 100% of your profile
completed
• Get one for each job, school, and/or volunteer
position
• Only ask people who you would want to write one for
and ask if its okay if they be edited
Sarah Barbee
@Sarah_Barbee
www.sarahbarbee.com
10. Connections
Build Infrastructure and Create Personal Social
Branding Campaigns
• Connect your Social Media - Twitter
• Whatever you are doing - Should be doing to set a professional
image
• Use #in hashtag for professional and appropriate tweets and
updates
• LinkedIn settings: share only tweets that contain #in or #li
Sarah Barbee
@Sarah_Barbee
www.sarahbarbee.com
12. Connections
Always Be Connecting
When you meet people off-line: connect with them on
LinkedIn
• say thank you and have a brief conversation about
safe, mutually relevant topics
Get to know your 1st degree connections.
• Let them know you are looking, what you are looking
for, and who you would like to get in front of.
Sarah Barbee
@Sarah_Barbee
www.sarahbarbee.com
13. Connections
Always Be Connecting
2nd degree connections are where the action is.
Ask for an introduction to 2nd, through 1st.
Things to do with your introduction:
• Ask for a job.
• Ask for advice.
• Ask for a referral that might be able to help
Sarah Barbee
@Sarah_Barbee
www.sarahbarbee.com
14. Searching
Always be Searching
Find every company you would like to work for and follow it,
and keep up to date on what they are doing.
– who are the 1st and 2nd connections
Search by industry
– who are the 1st and 2nd connections
Search for subject matter experts in jobs, fields, or
companies you intro want. Ask them to help, provide
feedback, etc.
Sarah Barbee
@Sarah_Barbee
www.sarahbarbee.com
15. Searching
Use it to prepare for interviews
Find the person who is interviewing you, who
are their connections
Find the company interviewing you, their
competitors, vendors, leadership, who in the
organization is already connected to you
Sarah Barbee
@Sarah_Barbee
www.sarahbarbee.com
16. Wanna know a secret?
Sarah Barbee
@Sarah_Barbee
www.sarahbarbee.com
17. HR Professionals and
Talent Recruiters use
LinkedIn all the time.
Sarah Barbee
@Sarah_Barbee
www.sarahbarbee.com
18. Why HR Professionals Use LinkedIn
• They use LinkedIn because budgets are tight
• Monster and CareerBuilder serve a purpose, but you have
to pay to post positions and look at resumes
• Not as easy to gauge quality like LinkedIn where you see
recommendations and connections
• Helps them do the same thing a job seeker wants to do:
Research companies, similar industry and position types,
group discussion and former colleagues
Sarah Barbee
@Sarah_Barbee
www.sarahbarbee.com
19. Why HR Professionals Use LinkedIn
Advice from HR professionals:
• This is a professional forum to network with not only recruiters
but others in your field. Keep it professional.
• Recommendations - make sure to have at least 3-5
• Photo - A must have. It makes you more marketable and gives
people a sense of who they are dealing with. A professional
picture is preferred.
• Groups - Target groups that interest you and are in your field.
Signup for the updates so you can learn more about what is going
on around you and stay up to date with industry trends.
Sarah Barbee
@Sarah_Barbee
www.sarahbarbee.com
20. Why HR Professionals Use LinkedIn
Advice continued:
• Give details - Do not just list the title of your company and the
years you worked there. Give details on what you did in the role.
Results make you stand out, and apart from the crowd
• Recruiters want to see results. Quantify them. “I worked on a
collaborative team at Chilis to find new ways to increase sales.
The results being that we were # 1 in the chain for the Summer
of 2010.”
• All things being equal, the better you show results, the more you
are likely to get an interview.
Sarah Barbee
@Sarah_Barbee
www.sarahbarbee.com
21. Why HR Professionals Use LinkedIn
Advice continued:
• Include info on any related work and internships. “If
they can get the hiring managers they interned for to
give recommendations that is valuable.”
• LinkedIn introductions via first degree connections: “I
will read those resumes out of a sense of duty to the
person doing the recommending when they may not
otherwise get my attention. “
Sarah Barbee
@Sarah_Barbee
www.sarahbarbee.com
22. In Conclusion
Update your profile regularly.
Every time you update your whole network will
be notified and you’ll get exposure. Keep doing
this regularly when you get a job.
Help more than you receive.
The next person you help may help you in the
future.
Sarah Barbee
@Sarah_Barbee
www.sarahbarbee.com
