Beginners Guide for Job Search on Linkedin. A workshop presentation by Imran M. Ismail at Kitchener Public Library on Nov. 8, 2010.

1. Beginners guide for job search
Facilitator
Imran M. Ismail

2. Disclaimer
• I am not an expert
• I am a student of social media
• I will learn from you too
• There is only one absolute constant -
Change

3. Question?
• How many of you…
o Are searching job?
o Are on LinkedIn?
• Yes - Why are you on LinkedIn?
• No - Why are you not on LinkedIn?

4. Why you need LinkedIn?
• Scary stats
o Fewer jobs + more grads and laid off workers
o More competition
• It’s a Google world
o Just like you Google a company, they Google
you

5. LinkedIn Statistics
• Executives from all Fortune 500 companies are LinkedIn
members
• 560,000 professionals are visiting LinkedIn homepage everyday,
and the number is still growing
• 50% of users are business decision makers in their company
• 70% of people using LinkedIn for job hunting whereas 80% of
people use LinkedIn for recruiting
• Moreover, a study conducted by NetProspex has revealed that
43% of employees of the largest companies in America use
LinkedIn. In contrast, only 11% of professionals are using
Facebook.

6. What is LinkedIn?
Professional social network
What it does for you - It allows you to:
• build a professional network
• stay in contact with colleagues
• access top experts
• job hunt more efficiently
• enhance your career goals
• manage your online id/image
• http://press.linkedin.com/

7. Why you must use LinkedIn
• Your professional life live and breath on the
internet, whether you realize it or not
• It drives your internet presence
• Gain control of what people are most likely to
learn about your from searching the web
• It is your virtual home, spend sometime every
week, people visit you regularly!
• To demonstrate your thought leadership

8. Using LinkedIn
Create a profile and they will come…
NO
You need a strategy

9. Strategy
Perception = Reality
• Manage the way other see you
• “Marketing is a battle of perception not
product”
• Job seeker is a product in job market
• How to build a positive perception?
• How do you want to be known?
Solution?

10. Personal Branding
• Discover (VPs)
• Create
• Communicate
• Maintain

11. How to create and
communicate with LinkedIn
Create
• Go to www.linkedin.com.
• Fully complete your professional profile
Communicate
• Begin browsing connections for people you know
• Send invitation to your email contacts through
LinkedIn
• Join any groups that interest you
• To learn more visit http://learn.linkedin.com/

12. Beginner’s Checklist
• Headline – Professional Title
• Post an update - Say what your are doing, Update frequently
This will show in your connections "Network Update“ “Twitter”
• Summary - 30 second elevator speech or brief bio. Who you are, what you do,
what you are interested in. Craft a smart, succinct first-person summary
• Specialties - Keywords and acronyms specific to your industry
• Applications - Blogs, Slideshare, twitter, reading list, polls, documents …
• Experience – Keep them brief and to the point
• Education - List schools, majors, activities and achievements in and out of
school
• Recommendations – Get few but relevant and reliable recommendations

13. Beginner’s Checklist
Recent Addition
• Skills
• Publications
• Languages
• Patents
Additional Information's:
• Interests - Hobbies, interest, volunteer work
• Groups and Associations
• Honors and Awards
• Personal Information
• Interested in

14. Optimizing LinkedIn
• Personalize your URL
o Add this to your email footer and business
card
o When commenting on blogs or websites
leave it so people can connect with you.
• Ask Questions
• Write Recommendations

15. Communicate and Network on
LinkedIn
1st, 2nd and 3rd Degree Connections
Communication Methods
• Invitations
• Add Connections (by email address)
• Get introduced (limit 5)
• Messages
• InMails (limit 5)
• Groups
• Question and Answer

16. Benefits
Through your network, you can:
• Manage your information about you as professional
• Find and be introduced to potential contacts
• Create and collaborate on projects and solve
problems
• Gain new insights from discussions with like-minded
professionals
• Discover inside connections that can help you learn
about or gain job opportunities

17. Benefits
Benefits resulting from active participation in LinkedIn:
1. Ability to be known.
2. Ability to be found.
3. Ability to find others.
4. Opportunity to learn and share.
5. Ability to connect with Group members.
6. Opportunity to show you are plugged in to current
technology.

18. Additional Tips
• Check your profile frequently
• Update your status daily (weekly)
• Personalize your invitations to connect
• Acknowledge those who want to connect with you
• Post and answer questions
• Join groups or start a group
• Give and ask for recommendations
• Look at the companies you’re interested in
• Five "I Don’t Knows" from people you have emailed can get you
in trouble with LinkedIn

19. Using LinkedIn for Job Hunt
• Your status line – open for opportunities
• Recommendations
• Help other (network)
• Research companies
• Used advanced search feature
• Search Job – Get job alerts

20. Golden Rules
• Build relationships first. If you wouldn’t ask
a stranger on the street for a favor, don’t
think it’s OK on LinkedIn.
• Pay it forward
• Remember 20/80 rule

21. Questions