There’s no doubt that LinkedIn is one of the best online platforms when it comes to finding or applying for a job.
For one, it allows confidentiality of your job application. And secondly, it’s possible to find choicest jobs over LinkedIn.
However, most people find it hard to upload and add Resume to LinkedIn and use it like a pro to bag that dream job. Why’s that, you may wonder.
That’s because a LinkedIn resume is quite different from the one that you’ll email a prospective employer during job searches.
And it’s vastly different from Resumes that you’ll upload on any recruitment website too.
Therefore, let’s first check why a LinkedIn resume is different.
Regular Resume v/s LinkedIn Resume
A regular Resume usually is written as third person account of your achievements, written in a chronological order, starting with your education.
When you upload your resume to LinkedIn, there’s not much focus on your education. Instead, the employer will check your LinkedIn Resume for skills and relevant experience.
Secondly, regular Resumes can span anything between two and four, A-4 size pages. On LinkedIn however, it cannot exceed over a page-and-half under any situation.
And finally, it’s extremely important to update your Resume whenever necessary on LinkedIn.
I’m not saying that you update it daily or monthly. However, you should update it whenever you achieve something significant at work.
A Resume you send while applying for work has limited validity that usually ends when you get the job, appear for an interview or assume your application was unsuccessful.
Resumes you post on recruitment portals don’t need to carry specific and latest details.
You’ll have to send the latest one to an employer before an interview. And normally, most jobseekers delete their accounts on recruitment portals once they get a good job.
In stark contrast, a LinkedIn resume can be seen by anyone around the world anytime. And this can include the founder of some big Multinational Company too.
I’ll emphasize that employers actually go through LinkedIn profiles and Resumes thoroughly. And usually, an interview call translates as job offer.
Furthermore, LinkedIn is also the preferred platform for companies to look for talent.
They don’t have to spend on advertising vacancies but can easily find people they need from that vast talent pool on LinkedIn.
And the person they find could be you. If you know how to add resume to Linkedin and use it like a pro, you could land that amazing job with a fabulous salary.
Therefore, let’s see how to go about doing this.
Important Facts to Learn Before You Upload Resume to LinkedIn
There’re two important things to bear in mind when learning how to add resume to Linkedin and use it like a pro.
- You can upload a Resume that you want people within your professional network and prospective employers to view, even while not looking for a job. This enables you to utilize the Easy Apply feature on LinkedIn that allows you to send the Resume quickly, should you require a job.
- The second option is using the Job Application Settings. These settings enable you to upload resume to Linkedin with an employer while looking for vacancies or applying for a job. Here, it’s not necessary to have a Resume on your LinkedIn profile at all times. Therefore, you can customize a Resume and send it across to the employer asking for vacancies or respond to a job posting on LinkedIn.
It’s also possible to keep your Resume online on LinkedIn and send a customized one while applying for jobs. However, you’ll have to ensure that both Resumes are consistent with one another.
How to Add Resume to LinkedIn & Use like a Pro
Now, let’s see how to upload resume to LinkedIn and use it like a pro. To do so, here’re three important tips.
Tip-1: Leverage Your References
The first and most important tip I would give is to leverage your references.
You can get reference letters and mentions or testimonies from your previous or current bosses, colleagues or any other person that’s relevant to your field of work.
Provide their exact name and designations as well as contact details on your LinkedIn profile.
However, before doing so, it’s best to ensure your references are also connected on your LinkedIn.
Often, such references work best when the employer knows your references personally or because they have an excellent reputation in your field.
When your Resume and LinkedIn profile displays such references, there’re better chances of getting an interview call and the job itself.
In some cases, you might have some company or employer indicating interest in your services.
However, ensure that your references are aware that you’re applying for a job or are mentioning them on your LinkedIn profile.
Because nobody likes to be caught unawares if an Employee Background Screening (EBS) agency or somebody from your employer’s office calls them up.
Tip-2: Create Amazing Posts on LinkedIn
This is something I’ll emphasize: that your LinkedIn profile and Resume on LinkedIn work in synergy.
That means, they’ll work jointly to impress or put off a prospective employer. Therefore, your LinkedIn profile also needs to be as impressive as your Resume.
And one of the best ways to do this is by creating short, relevant, timely and interesting posts on your LinkedIn profile very frequently.
I’ll suggest you create short posts daily but if that’s not possible, make such posts at least thrice a week.
The posts that would impress an employer are ones that are relevant to your profession or industry. You can present them as personal opinion or news, speculation or projections.
Also embellish your posts with supporting pictures that don’t infringe on anyone’s copyrights. You can find a lot of such free pictures from Google itself.
Tip-3: Diverse Professional Network
This is something that most people don’t bother about while creating a LinkedIn profile and adding resume to LinkedIn. Keep your introduction brief and precise.
At the same time, develop a professional network that covers almost every sphere of your work. It could be anyone from a mechanic or freelancer to a CEO or some top executive.
As I mention earlier, an employer or company official will also view your professional network.
Therefore, the best way to expand your professional network is by linking up with people of similar interests and in same profession around the world.
Generally, few people turn down a connection request on LinkedIn, if you have excellent credentials.
Furthermore, stay in contact with these professionals by developing an excellent rapport. This can be done by comments on their posts and responding to comments on your posts.
You can also try sending short messages and exchange ideas about your work or notes regarding doing something.
Importance of LinkedIn Resume Tips
If you’re wondering why I’m providing these three tips, the answer is simple. A Resume by itself on LinkedIn is useless.
Employers use LinkedIn because it provides them some or limited insights into your professional network and viewpoints.
You can add and upload a Resume on LinkedIn and use it as a pro only when it goes hand-in-hand with your LinkedIn profile.
Closing Thoughts
Using these three tips, you can create and add a Resume to your LinkedIn profile and use it like a pro. I won’t recommend using the services of a Resume writer.
Instead, study some Resumes posted by your LinkedIn contacts and you’ll stumble across something that really catches the eye. That’s the best way to write a LinkedIn Resume to use like a pro.
And before concluding, I’ll also add that emphasize on your skills and experience on a resume you’ll post on LinkedIn. Regular Resumes have the education listed first.
