"You appeared in XX LinkedIn searches this week" - how many is good?
August 27, 2019 1:40 AM Subscribe
I'm employed, but I've been looking for a new job for awhile now. I get these notifications from LinkedIn, and it seems like I'm getting an impressive amount of attention, but I don't know what to do with it.
I'm averaging probably 60 searches a week. That seems pretty good to me, no?
I've also applied to over 100 jobs, with about a 10% interview rate. But few of those responses come from LinkedIn, and I still haven't found a new job.
If 60 searches a week isn't good, maybe I'm just too impressed with myself. But if it is good, what am I doing wrong? Why aren't any of my search appearances turning into interviews?
Admittedly, I'm not in a STEM-field, though my work is tech-related, and I'm paid in the low six-figures with more than two decades of experience, so the right job is harder to find.
If anyone has any experience with job-finding coaches or advisories, I'd love to hear about them. Thanks!
I'm averaging probably 60 searches a week. That seems pretty good to me, no?
I've also applied to over 100 jobs, with about a 10% interview rate. But few of those responses come from LinkedIn, and I still haven't found a new job.
If 60 searches a week isn't good, maybe I'm just too impressed with myself. But if it is good, what am I doing wrong? Why aren't any of my search appearances turning into interviews?
Admittedly, I'm not in a STEM-field, though my work is tech-related, and I'm paid in the low six-figures with more than two decades of experience, so the right job is harder to find.
If anyone has any experience with job-finding coaches or advisories, I'd love to hear about them. Thanks!
If your name is similar to someone else's name, you may be appearing in searches intended to find them. They don't have to be truly famous to get a lot of searches on LinkedIn, just big in their field.
There may be parameters other than name involved. Maybe you've listed a skill and a location in your profile, and there are lots of recruiters looking for people in that location with that skill. You're appearing in those searches.
I agree with rd45 that you might want to target your applications more thoughtfully. Are you a member of your professional organization? Their job board may be helpful. And you're right to look for a coach to help you look for any unknown unknowns in how you present yourself in interviews.
posted by Former Congressional Representative Lenny Lemming at 3:24 AM on August 27, 2019
There may be parameters other than name involved. Maybe you've listed a skill and a location in your profile, and there are lots of recruiters looking for people in that location with that skill. You're appearing in those searches.
I agree with rd45 that you might want to target your applications more thoughtfully. Are you a member of your professional organization? Their job board may be helpful. And you're right to look for a coach to help you look for any unknown unknowns in how you present yourself in interviews.
posted by Former Congressional Representative Lenny Lemming at 3:24 AM on August 27, 2019
Maybe I’m using LinkedIn wrong but I appear in that many or more searches and I’m not looking, nor do recruiters/hiring managers contact me all that often. I assumed it was research for a variety of things that brings my name up, not actively hiring people.
posted by warriorqueen at 3:27 AM on August 27, 2019
posted by warriorqueen at 3:27 AM on August 27, 2019
Wrong metric. This is basically like how many times you were a Google search result that wasn't clicked. If you want opportunities, profile views is the better metric.
posted by bfranklin at 4:33 AM on August 27, 2019 [9 favorites]
posted by bfranklin at 4:33 AM on August 27, 2019 [9 favorites]
I'm currently doing research in the online recruitment field, and as part of that I've signed up at Vettery.com, Hired.com and Honeypot.io, with a similar profile to yours. I don't know if you've created a profile on any of those yet, but if not I'd say it's worthwhile. After a couple of days I've had some interview requests already. They also provide some advice on editing your Linkedin profile to attract more hirers.
posted by snarfois at 6:46 AM on August 27, 2019 [4 favorites]
posted by snarfois at 6:46 AM on August 27, 2019 [4 favorites]
LinkedIn likely nowadays is more of a background check post-identification, I think. Profile views is the one to look at, though I assume a large percentage of even those profile views are curiosity or a bot hits versus someone viewing for purpose.
Indeed gets a lot of press, but I don't know if it has a good conversion rate.
I always advise that most jobs will be filled through your network versus straight applications. Find a job at a company, contact someone you know there, and ask them to put you in through their referral system.
posted by rich at 8:02 AM on August 27, 2019
Indeed gets a lot of press, but I don't know if it has a good conversion rate.
I always advise that most jobs will be filled through your network versus straight applications. Find a job at a company, contact someone you know there, and ask them to put you in through their referral system.
posted by rich at 8:02 AM on August 27, 2019
I suspect LinkedIn's verbiage is slightly disingenuous. Except for the link actually clicked, every other link returned in a search is a kind of fail.
They'd be more honest to say, "Your profile may or may not have been part of the error pool in 60 searches this week!"
As rd45 notes, LinkedIn is not in the business of connecting professionals together for their shared benefit. It is in the business of selling subscriptions to professionals. Any metrics they brag about are oriented to serve that goal, not your goals.
When I was seeking an employment change 8 years ago LinkedIn was not a tool that returned great results. Responses I received through the platform were, by weight, at least 50% spam/spammish/spamoid. (I ended up in a new position via a lucky situation that arose entirely randomly in meat-space, by the by.)
I maintain a profile now as a last resort means of communication. That is, if a professional someone has lost my contact details (perhaps by moving positions), I know I will turn up in at least 1 LinkedIn search, and I'll get to be the clicked-on link (along with users "Construction Connect", "Obstruction Concern", "Construction & Co.", and so on.) Basically it's free a cloud-based business card for anyone with the wherewithal to remember my name.
Maybe that's just my field. Are there fields for which LinkedIn actually works as a practical solution to getting newer/better jobs?
posted by Construction Concern at 8:20 AM on August 27, 2019 [1 favorite]
They'd be more honest to say, "Your profile may or may not have been part of the error pool in 60 searches this week!"
As rd45 notes, LinkedIn is not in the business of connecting professionals together for their shared benefit. It is in the business of selling subscriptions to professionals. Any metrics they brag about are oriented to serve that goal, not your goals.
When I was seeking an employment change 8 years ago LinkedIn was not a tool that returned great results. Responses I received through the platform were, by weight, at least 50% spam/spammish/spamoid. (I ended up in a new position via a lucky situation that arose entirely randomly in meat-space, by the by.)
I maintain a profile now as a last resort means of communication. That is, if a professional someone has lost my contact details (perhaps by moving positions), I know I will turn up in at least 1 LinkedIn search, and I'll get to be the clicked-on link (along with users "Construction Connect", "Obstruction Concern", "Construction & Co.", and so on.) Basically it's free a cloud-based business card for anyone with the wherewithal to remember my name.
Maybe that's just my field. Are there fields for which LinkedIn actually works as a practical solution to getting newer/better jobs?
posted by Construction Concern at 8:20 AM on August 27, 2019 [1 favorite]
I set my LinkedIn profile to "interested in new opportunities" and got many more cold calls from recruiters. In fact, that is how I got my current job -- a few months ago. I am in the STEM field, however.
posted by elmay at 9:23 AM on August 27, 2019 [2 favorites]
posted by elmay at 9:23 AM on August 27, 2019 [2 favorites]
it means that they use broad search terms and lots of people are searching for skills you have. LinkedIn sells Job Search/ want ads, so they want lots of people to click on ads.They seem no better or worse than other ads. I dislike the way they have made themselves sort of important, but I pretty much despise most marketing.
posted by theora55 at 3:13 PM on August 27, 2019
posted by theora55 at 3:13 PM on August 27, 2019
This thread is closed to new comments.
Given your long work experience, my guess is that your search could probably be better targeted. I'm surprised that you found 100 different realistic opportunities after two decades of working.
It's not about the numbers - you only need one opportunity, but it needs to be the right one.
posted by rd45 at 2:08 AM on August 27, 2019 [4 favorites]