How to Master LinkedIn Recruitment - Successfully hire without a LinkedIn Recruiter Licence

Welcome to all of this week's new subscribers to The Link Tank®️ newsletter; my newsletter always focuses on the practical: Real, implementable strategies to increase your LinkedIn ROI, sometimes focusing on the what but always focusing on the how.

LinkedIn recruitment has become indispensable for talent acquisition professionals seeking to connect with top candidates. However, many recruiters believe that success on this platform requires an expensive LinkedIn Recruiter subscription and / or hiring an executive recruiter. This misconception often leads to high expenditure and missed opportunities.

This article demonstrates how HR professionals and small business owners can master LinkedIn recruitment without relying on LinkedIn Recruiter. We will explore techniques to maximise a free account, employ advanced search methods, craft effective outreach strategies, and leverage LinkedIn groups.

Additionally, we will discuss how to use company pages and the alumni 'tool' (not the retired one of yesterday!) and implement cross-platform sourcing to enhance your recruitment efforts.

By following these strategies, recruiters can achieve impressive results and build a robust talent pipeline using LinkedIn’s free features.

Maximising Your LinkedIn Profile to Attract Top Candidates

As a CEO or HR head, your LinkedIn profile isn't just a professional portfolio, it's a powerful tool for attracting top talent to your company. To ensure you’re catching the eye of the right candidates, it’s crucial to optimise your profile for maximum visibility.

First, complete all sections of your profile, ensuring you have a professional headshot, a clear and engaging headline, and an About section that conveys your company’s mission, culture, and the value you bring as a leader. Use keywords related to your industry and leadership to improve search visibility, helping candidates who are aligned with your business and values find you.

Make connections with industry leaders, peers, and potential hires. Regularly engage with their content; like, comment, and share posts that align with your company’s vision. This not only boosts your profile’s visibility but also helps you build credibility and relationships within your industry.

Share your insights and expertise by posting articles, blog posts, and company updates that highlight your leadership and your organisation’s achievements. Providing valuable commentary on others' posts further strengthens your presence as a thought leader, which attracts professionals interested in working under impactful leadership.

A great example of a CEO doing exactly this is Frank Vella of Constant Contact .

Joining relevant LinkedIn groups and participating in discussions is another effective way to showcase your expertise and your company’s workplace culture. Engage in industry conversations, answer questions, and share knowledge. This can position you as an approachable leader and give potential candidates a glimpse into what working with your team could be like.

Finally, make the most of LinkedIn’s analytics tools to monitor your profile’s performance. Keep an eye on who’s viewing your profile, how many people are seeing your posts, and which content resonates most with your audience. Use this information to fine-tune your approach and ensure you’re continuously improving your reach and engagement.

Master Advanced Search Techniques

LinkedIn's advanced search filters are a powerful tool for recruiters to find the perfect candidates. By leveraging Boolean search strings, filters, and saved searches, you can streamline your candidate sourcing process and uncover top talent that may otherwise be overlooked.

Boolean search strings allow you to combine keywords with operators like AND, OR, and NOT to refine your search results. For example, searching for "software engineer" AND "Python" will return profiles that contain both terms, while "software engineer" OR "developer" will broaden your search to include either term. You can also use quotation marks to search for exact phrases and parentheses to group terms together.

LinkedIn's filters help you narrow your search results based on specific criteria such as location, industry, and company size. Experiment with different combinations of filters to find the most relevant candidates for your open positions. For instance, if you're looking for a senior marketing manager in London, you can use the location, job title, and experience level filters to quickly identify qualified candidates.

You can find a full guide to using Boolean Searches here

Saved searches and alerts are another valuable feature: By saving your search criteria, you can easily run the same search again in the future without having to manually enter the keywords and filters each time. With a free account, I suggest saving book marks in Google; with a Sales Navigator account, you can save up to 50 searches.

To maximise the effectiveness of your LinkedIn recruiting efforts, it's essential to use a combination of Boolean search strings, filters, and saved searches. Start by identifying the key skills, experience, and qualifications required for your open positions. Then, create targeted Boolean search strings that include relevant keywords and synonyms. Apply filters to further refine your results, and save your searches for future use.

It's also important to regularly review and update your saved searches to ensure that they remain relevant and effective. As your hiring needs evolve, you may need to adjust your search criteria to find candidates with different skills or experience levels. By continuously optimising your searches, you can stay ahead of the competition and build a robust talent pipeline.

Leveraging LinkedIn groups, utilising the platform's analytics tools, and crafting compelling job postings can all help you attract top talent and build your employer brand.

Craft Effective Outreach Strategies

Crafting personalised and compelling outreach messages is crucial for engaging passive candidates and encouraging them to consider your job opportunities. LinkedIn provides several features that can help you create effective outreach strategies and build relationships with potential candidates.

Personalised connection requests

When sending a connection request to a candidate, take the time to personalise your message. Mention something specific about their profile that caught your attention, such as their skills, experience, or recent accomplishments. This demonstrates that you have taken a genuine interest in them and are not simply sending a generic request.

Research shows that personalised InMails can increase acceptance rates by up to 40%. By tailoring your message to the individual candidate, you are more likely to capture their attention and encourage them to respond positively to your outreach.

Example:

Hi [Name],

Your work in X caught my attention. We’re seeking a leader for [Position] to drive [initiative]. Your expertise in [field] aligns perfectly. Please may we discuss this key role? Looking forward to engaging wiht you.

Best regards,

InMail alternatives

While LinkedIn's InMail feature is a powerful tool for reaching out to candidates, it is not the only option available. Consider exploring alternative communication channels, such as email or direct messaging on other social media platforms, to diversify your outreach efforts. The world does not end with LinkedIn but it does start with it ;) Email is the perfect complement to LinkedIn outreach strategies.

According to a survey conducted by the Society for Human Resource Management, 84% of organisations use social media for recruitment, with LinkedIn being the most popular platform. However, expanding your candidate sourcing strategies beyond LinkedIn can help you tap into a wider pool of talent and increase your chances of finding the right fit for your open positions.

Follow-up techniques

Following up with candidates after your initial outreach is essential for maintaining engagement and building relationships. If a candidate does not respond to your first message, consider sending a polite follow-up a few days later. In your follow-up message, reiterate your interest in their skills and experience, and provide additional information about the job opportunity or your company culture. Remember to continuously refine your approach based on candidate feedback and LinkedIn analytics to optimise your recruitment efforts and improve your candidate experience.

Leverage LinkedIn Groups

LinkedIn groups provide an excellent platform to connect with professionals in specific industries, engage in meaningful discussions, and share job opportunities. By strategically leveraging LinkedIn groups, recruiters can expand their reach, build relationships with potential candidates, and enhance their sourcing efforts.

Join industry-specific groups

To maximise the benefits of LinkedIn groups, it's essential to join groups that are relevant to the industries and roles you are targeting. Search for groups using keywords related to your recruitment strategies, such as "wealth managers" or "FX" Joining industry-specific groups allows you to gain insights into the latest trends, challenges, and opportunities within those fields.

You can be a member of up to 100 groups.

Engage in discussions

Once you have joined relevant groups, actively participate in discussions to establish your presence and build credibility. Share your expertise by commenting on posts, asking thought-provoking questions, and providing valuable insights. By consistently engaging in group discussions, you can attract the attention of passive candidates who may not be actively seeking new opportunities but are open to exploring their options.

A study conducted by LinkedIn revealed that 70% of professionals are passive candidates, meaning they are not actively looking for a new job but would be open to the right opportunity. By regularly contributing to group discussions and showcasing your knowledge, you can pique the interest of these passive candidates and encourage them to consider your job openings.

Share job opportunities

LinkedIn groups provide a targeted audience for sharing job postings. When posting job opportunities in groups, ensure that the roles are relevant to the group's focus and align with the interests of its members. Avoid spamming groups with irrelevant or excessive job postings, as this can damage your reputation and lead to being removed from the group.

To increase the visibility of your job postings, you really need to optimise for SEO.

How on earth do I do that? I am not a marketer!

I hear you.

To optimise your job postings for SEO, follow these specific strategies:

• Keyword Research: Identify relevant keywords related to the job position using tools like Google Keyword Planner. Focus on terms that job seekers are likely to use, such as "software engineer" or "remote work"

• Optimise Titles and Descriptions: Use clear, concise job titles and descriptions that include primary keywords. Avoid jargon or internal terms that may not be commonly searched

• Meta Tags and Descriptions: Craft compelling meta descriptions and title tags with relevant keywords to improve click-through rates from search results

• URL Structure: Create search-friendly URLs by including keywords and making them descriptive and easy to read, such as "company.com/asset-manager-remote"

• Use Headers and Subheaders: Structure your job postings with headers (H1, H2) that incorporate keywords to enhance readability and SEO

• Mobile Optimisation: Ensure your job postings are mobile-friendly, as many candidates search and apply via mobile devices. This can significantly increase your applicant pool

By implementing these SEO techniques, you can enhance the visibility of your job postings and attract more qualified candidates.

In addition to sharing job postings, utilise LinkedIn's analytics tools to track the performance of your group activity. LinkedIn provides insights into the engagement levels of your posts, the demographics of your audience, and the effectiveness of your recruitment strategies. Use this data to refine your approach and optimise your efforts for maximum impact.

By leveraging LinkedIn groups strategically, recruiters can tap into a vast pool of talented professionals, build meaningful relationships, and enhance their candidate sourcing efforts. Remember to join relevant groups, actively engage in discussions, share targeted job opportunities, and utilise analytics to measure your success. With a consistent and thoughtful approach, LinkedIn groups can become a powerful tool in your recruitment arsenal, helping you attract top talent and achieve your hiring goals.

Utilise Company Pages and Alumni Tool

LinkedIn company pages provide a platform for organisations to showcase their brand, share updates, and engage with their followers. By leveraging company pages effectively, talent acquisition specialists can attract top talent and build a strong employer brand.

Target company followers

Followers of your company page are more likely to be interested in job opportunities within your organisation. In fact, 79% of followers are interested in job opportunities from companies they follow. Additionally, followers are six times more likely than an average member to view your LinkedIn Careers page.

With a Sales Navigator account (significantly cheaper than a Recruiter licence), you can see who is already following your company 👇🏻

Explore alumni networks

LinkedIn's Alumni tool is a valuable resource for recruiters looking to tap into the vast network of professionals who have graduated from specific colleges or universities. By navigating to a university's LinkedIn page and clicking on the "Alumni" tab, recruiters can access a wealth of information about alumni, including where they work, what they do, and how they are connected.

The Alumni tool allows recruiters to filter alumni profiles based on various criteria, such as location, industry, job function, skills, and more. This enables targeted searches for candidates with specific backgrounds and experiences. For example, a recruiter looking for a software engineer in the London area who graduated from Oxford University can use the Alumni tool to quickly identify relevant candidates.

Bonus tip: You can also use this to search by age (the ONLY way to do this on LinkedIn)

When using the Alumni tool, recruiters can browse through alumni profiles and identify potential candidates for open positions. By leveraging the shared educational background, recruiters can establish common ground and build rapport with candidates.

To initiate contact, recruiters can send personalised connection requests or InMail messages, highlighting the shared alma mater and expressing interest in the candidate's experience and skills. This approach can increase the likelihood of a positive response and open the door for further conversations about job opportunities.

In addition to sourcing candidates directly, the Alumni tool can also provide valuable insights into the career paths and trajectories of alumni from specific universities. Recruiters can analyse this data to identify trends, such as the most common industries or job functions pursued by alumni, and use this information to refine their sourcing strategies and target their outreach efforts more effectively.

Implement Cross-Platform Sourcing

This newsletter would not be complete without mentioning the benefits of:

Google X-Ray Search

Google X-Ray Search is a powerful tool that allows recruiters to search for candidates across multiple websites and platforms simultaneously. By using advanced search operators and Boolean logic, HR professionals can refine their searches to target specific skills, locations, and experience levels.

To maximise the effectiveness of Google X-Ray Search, it's essential to use a combination of search operators and Boolean logic. The "OR" operator can be used to broaden the search to include multiple keywords or phrases, while the "AND" operator narrows the search to only include results that contain all specified terms. The "NOT" operator can be used to exclude certain keywords or phrases from the search results.

EXAMPLE: To conduct X-ray searches on Google to find sustainability directors, you could use the following search queries:

1. LinkedIn Profiles:To locate LinkedIn profiles of sustainability directors, use: "Sustainability Director" site:linkedin.com/in

2. Resumes or CVs:To find resumes of sustainability directors, try: (intitle:resume OR intitle:cv) "Sustainability Director" -job -jobs -sample -examples

3. Company Websites:To find sustainability directors listed on company websites, use: "Sustainability Director" site:companyname.com

This approach allows for a more targeted and efficient search, saving time and resources while increasing the likelihood of finding the perfect candidate for the role.

By integrating social media into their recruitment strategy, recruiters can expand their reach and connect with a wider range of potential candidates. This approach allows for a more informal and conversational style of engagement, which can help build trust and establish a positive relationship with candidates from the outset.

Conclusion

Mastering LinkedIn recruitment without a Recruiter subscription is not only possible but can yield impressive results. By leveraging free account features, implementing advanced search techniques, and crafting effective outreach strategies, HR professional sand SMEs who do not have an HR department can build a robust talent pipeline without hiring a professional recruiter. The use of LinkedIn groups, company pages, and the alumni tool further enhances sourcing efforts, allowing us to tap into niche communities and engage with passive candidates.

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