Are you using LinkedIn Groups to build your personal brand and accelerate your executive job search?
Let’s say you’ve done the work to define your personal brand and you’ve built brand-reinforcing content to support your value to the employers you’re targeting.
And you’ve wisely built out your LinkedIn profile with plenty of that good content (including all-important relevant keywords), making you a more visible and findable candidate.
LinkedIn is sitting there, passively working for you.
But what’s next?
Take advantage of all the proactive ways LinkedIn can help you land a great-fit new gig.
LinkedIn Groups should be on your to-do list.
Why Are LinkedIn Groups Valuable in Executive Job Search?
Groups help you:
- Generate interest and build credibility for the value you offer your target employers.
- Keep your personal brand top-of-mind.
- Share content and network with like-minded people.
- Position yourself as a thought leader and subject matter expert in your field.
- Learn from other experts in your field, and other experts in other fields.
- Bring new people into your network, to open yourself to more opportunities.
- Find the right people to connect with to advance your job search and career.
- Connect directly with people who are not first degree connections.
The last point here needs to be stressed. You can send free InMails directly (and privately) to Group members, no matter what your LinkedIn connection status. But there are limits, as noted in the LinkedIn Help pages.
These free InMails can be used to reach out to people at your target employers, as well as others who can help you reach your career goals.
Executive recruiters, who rely heavily on LinkedIn to source candidates, also belong to various Groups. When you both belong to the same Group, you already have something in common. A Group InMail from you puts you ahead of candidates who send them a generic InMail.
And when you’re a fellow Group member, you’re more likely to be initially contacted by recruiters, especially if you’ve been actively participating and building credibility as a subject matter expert. You’re that much easier to interact with.
LinkedIn Groups Have Improved
For some time Groups were stagnant, not doing much for anyone. Not many people were using them. I heard plenty of talk that LinkedIn was going to shut them down.
Andrew Hutchinson said in a Social Media Today article:
“They became useless, spam-filled, link-drop forums, where professionals would go to try and spruik their own wares, as opposed to actively engaging.”
Then LinkedIn rolled out “the new LinkedIn Groups experience” based on feedback from Groups members.
Stating that they’ve “rebuilt Groups from the ground up, making them available right in the main LinkedIn website and app“, Group conversations are now more in the forefront.
Now you can communicate with your professional communities easier with things like the ability to:
- Record and share videos
- Message people from anywhere onsite
- Determine whether your connections are online
New Group features include:
- Add video captions to give more context
- Share quotes from articles to spark conversations
- Save posts as drafts to share when you’re ready
- See translations of posts to stay in touch with your global connections
- Easily access the content you’ve created
- Navigate to your groups more easily
- Keep the conversation going from your LinkedIn Feed
- Easily discover new groups that match your interests
One of the changes I really like is having Group conversations pop up right within my main LinkedIn feed, instead of having to navigate to a separate tab for that.
How to Use LinkedIn Groups
At first, just look around and get a feel for how that Group operates. Then:
- Regularly share good information by starting new discussions. Post relevant blog posts and articles you’ve come across, or those that you’ve written.
- Add a few brief thoughts of your own that reinforce your Subject Matter Expertise (SME).
- Check out existing discussions and add your own SME-reinforcing comments.
- Always respond to any comments others make about your contributions, as quickly as possible.
- Carefully proofread any of your comments before you post. Along with showcasing your knowledge, you’re also demonstrating your communication skills.
How to Find the Right LinkedIn Groups To Join
LinkedIn allows you to be a member of up to 100 Groups, at this writing.
Check out general limits for other aspects of LinkedIn Groups.
Over time, expect to leave some Groups and join others, depending upon their relevance to your job search and career goals at the time. Stay away from Groups with only a few members. Look, instead, for those with lots of members.
Functionality on LinkedIn can change in an instant. So instead of laying out step by step instructions here on using LinkedIn Groups, I refer you to LinkedIn Help, which gives you up-to-date info.
In the Help pages, you’ll find various topics to optimize your Groups experience, including:
- Find and join a LinkedIn group
- Post content in LinkedIn groups feed
- Change the group display logo on your profile
- Contribute as a group member best practices
- Visibility and impact of your social activity in groups
- Connect with group members
- Send, receive, and manage message requests
You can also create your own LinkedIn Group and build up membership with like-minded people.
You’ll be the owner of any group you create, and you can also assign other members to be owners and group managers.
Go to LinkedIn Help for instructions on how to create your own Group.
IMPORTANT !!! If You’re Job-Hunting Under Cover …
It’s okay (in fact, a good idea) to join job search and/or career-related Groups, and check in regularly to pick up valuable advice about navigating today’s executive job search, but:
- DON’T show the Group logo on your profile.
- DON’T participate or post anything here (or in any Group, or anywhere else online) that will “out” your search.
More About LinkedIn and Executive Job Search
Essential LinkedIn Guide for Today’s Executive Job Search