How to Source More and Better Candidates with LinkedIn

With more than 57 million companies and 756 million members scattered across 200 countries, it’s no wonder that LinkedIn calls itself the “world’s largest professional network.”

In addition to that, studies have also shown that LinkedIn is used by the majority of Eurozone companies and is sought after by talents because of the wide variety of benefits that it offers.

As you can see, millions of users and companies are all vying for each other’s time on LinkedIn. This means that your next asset is most likely to be found on this networking site–all you have to do is to learn how to look for them.

In this article, we’re going to examine how you can source more and better candidates on the world’s largest professional network, LinkedIn.

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Why LinkedIn is an Important Recruitment Channel

So, what exactly makes LinkedIn such a powerful tool for recruitment?

In a nutshell, there are three core benefits that LinkedIn brings to the table: price, reach, and ease.

Creating a LinkedIn profile costs less, in terms of time and money, than other advertising channels. Companies and individuals alike have the option to create a free account that is posted instantaneously. This means that LinkedIn accounts can generate value from the day they’re first created.

Next, LinkedIn has an incomparably wide reach. Since it’s a global social networking site, it can expose both a company and an individual’s profile to a much broader and more diverse audience.

Lastly, the hiring process is much more systematic on LinkedIn. The site provides a deep well of information and a robust set of tools that can be used for recruitment. This benefits both the employer and the employee because of the efficient matching process, saving both sides time, effort, and even money.

With the undeniable benefits of LinkedIn, it’s no wonder that it’s one of the most prominent recruitment channels around.

How to Use LinkedIn to Find Great Talent

Here’s how you can use LinkedIn to source the next perfectly matched talent for your company.

LinkedIn Job Posts

Just a few years ago, sourcing meant going through a tedious, time-consuming process of sorting through piles of resumes from hundreds of potentially unqualified applicants. With LinkedIn Job Posts, however, such scenarios are now merely a thing of the past.

Although one of the platform’s simplest features, Jobs Posts is nevertheless a powerful tool for finding great talent. Unlike posts from traditional social media networks, LinkedIn combines job listing with proper candidate matching and trustworthy referrals. 

This means that the website’s algorithm will only show your job posting to those who actually have the qualifications to apply. Compared to the free-for-all nature of job boards, this strategic algorithm makes it much easier for recruiters to sort through a smaller number of qualified, interested applicants.

Direct Messages

Most social networking sites have some form of direct messaging, and LinkedIn is no different.

LinkedIn Direct Messages is a free feature that comes with every LinkedIn account. With LinkedIn Direct Messages, you can recruit more and better talent by facilitating seamless, real-time communication between the two parties. The only downside is that you can only send a message to someone you’ve previously connected with.

Through this feature, recruiters and candidates can talk directly to each other without switching to another platform. Even public conversations in the comments can be seamlessly continued in the DMs.

The DM portal also allows you to easily switch between multiple messages, just like other social networking sites. This makes conversations with multiple recruiters or multiple candidates much more efficient.

InMails

InMails is a special feature that is only available to premium users. It works similarly to Direct Messages, except this powerful feature allows you to message even those who are not on your list of connections.

Due to this, InMail is a valuable tool for lead generation. Since you don’t need to be connected to the profile that you want to message, you can reach out to all kinds of people on the platform. It helps that InMail is marketed as the go-to messaging feature for individuals who are looking for employment, information, or assistance.

Brevity is the soul of wit, so they say, and writing InMail messages is no exception. When sending messages to a potential applicant, always state clearly what is needed in the fewest words possible. It also costs nothing for recruiters to be courteous. Small but important things like these go a long way towards elevating candidate experience.

Company Page

Your company page is perhaps the most important part of your business on LinkedIn. After all, anyone who visits your personal profile can see your company page. 

When properly filled in, your company page can afford you three key benefits: showcase pages, effective job listings, and, most importantly, an authentic following.

First of all, a company page allows you to display showcase pages. These are pages in your company profile dedicated to specific things, like achievements, products, or services.

Showcase pages help you display your company in a more comprehensive and organised manner. Visitors and potential talents can engage with you better if they have a clearer image of your company.

Two, your company page is where you can post job vacancies. This gives potential applicants a good idea of whether or not they are fit for the position. The more detailed your post is, the better and more effective it will be.

Lastly, an authentic following isn’t merely a vanity metric–it’s indicative of candidate engagement rates. According to LinkedIn’s own research, about 58% of your company page’s followers are potential applicants.

Followers are also more likely to accept and respond to InMail messages than non-followers by a significant percentage, 98% and 85%, respectively. This makes having a decent following a necessity for sourcing.

In short, a well-thought-out company page gives you a decent and authentic following, a chance to present your company in the best light possible, and a good avenue for job postings.

LinkedIn Groups

At its core, LinkedIn is still a social networking site. Authentic and organic human interaction is valued above all else.

Just like other social networks, LinkedIn offers users the ability to bond together over common grounds. From high schools to universities to hometowns and even to specific industries, you can easily find people who share the same interests and backgrounds on the platform.

This is where LinkedIn Groups comes in. This feature delivers you straight into a group of people who are already interested in what you have to offer.

Be warned that you have to properly utilise this feature if you want the most qualified candidates. Since Groups are primarily a space for human interaction, popping in just to post vacancies in your company can be seen as opportunistic and should be avoided.

Make sure to invest some time and energy to engage in positive, meaningful, and respectful discussions about interesting topics. A respected and approachable company that participates positively in group discussions is likely to attract more and better talents.

What is LinkedIn Recruiter?

If you’re looking to fill a large volume of vacancies, a LinkedIn Recruiter account is a worthwhile investment. 

LinkedIn Recruiter is a premium account type that gives you access to more powerful tools to optimise your recruitment efforts. 

For example, each candidate search with a Recruiter account brings up 1,000 results–a far cry from the 100 results of a regular profile. You can also see every candidate’s full profile and get access to advanced search filters, more InMail credits, and even performance tracking and analysis for your InMail campaigns.

To fully utilise LinkedIn Recruiter, you should give premium access to all relevant team members and recruiters. This gives them higher capabilities to source the right candidates and increases the chance of engagement and acquisition.

Final Thoughts

Overall, we can see that LinkedIn offers companies the right set of tools when sourcing more and better talents. Features such as job posts, direct messages, InMails, company page, groups, and the LinkedIn Recruiter account are clear necessities to have in any modern company.

Additionally, pay special attention to how you utilise these tools. Present your company in a nice way, be polite and courteous when reaching out, and value human interaction above all else. 

With this, you will gain an impeccable reputation that will inevitably attract the best talents on the platform. Paired with LinkedIn’s powerful features, you’ll definitely have no problem sourcing more and better candidates for your company.