LinkedIn, the world's largest professional network with 810 million members in more than 200 countries and territories worldwide. People join the platform for many reasons; some seek professional connections, others are looking for a job. According to the Jobvite Recruiter Nation Survey, 87 percent of recruiters use LinkedIn as part of their candidate search, so landing a job opportunity with the help of Linkedin is very possible.

However, joining LinkedIn is not even a part of the job. To get the most out of this platform and maximize your potential there, you need to have at least three things sorted. First, it’s keeping your profile up to date. Second, it’s being comprehensive about current skills and objectives. And third, it’s highlighting your recent experience. And although these key points highlighted by LinkedIn's CEO Jeff Weiner seem pretty obvious, many people still struggle to get them sorted.

In order to find out how to best present yourself from the professional side, Bored Panda spoke with Graeme Jordan, a CV writer and interview coach who happily shared some insights. “The belief is that it is all about ‘key words’ and if you put enough ‘industry content’ in there you will magically be chosen,” Jordan said. “The truth is that none of that stuff is going to get you chosen ahead of all of the other people who are going to be writing the same thing,” he added.

One basic thing you need to start with while job hunting is a resume. And yes, you will have to upload one even on Linkedin. “A resume is a personal document about you. The more of you that you put in it, the more likely you are to be chosen,” Jordan said. The interview coach suggested focusing on what the employer has told you they are looking for, and give examples.

When asked if cover letters are still relevant these days, Jordan explained that they will never be as important as the resume, but yes, they are important. However, you should provide them if a recruiter asks for one, since “not sending one should rule you out instantly.”

“If they don’t ask for one then you should include one as a professional courtesy, unless it’s impossible to do so, e.g. an online resume upload, in which case there may be other fields to complete in place of a cover letter,” Jordan told us. Moreover, be prepared that the recruiters won’t necessarily read your letter. “I’ve seen it done and it’s frustrating. But, really, a cover letter is a summary of what you’ve already written on your resume. It can be done in less than 20 minutes,” he concluded.

According to Greg Lewis, the Content Marketing Manager at LinkedIn, we are now living in the era of “the Great Reshuffle: a moment in the talent market when everyone is rethinking everything.” That means that many employees are reconsidering where they work and why, while employers are recalibrating their business models, talent needs, and company culture.

After the coronavirus pandemic happened, the work dynamics changed along with candidates' priorities. Today, candidates are being much more selective about where they work, and workers are more vocal about what they want. According to survey data from over 100,000 LinkedIn members around the globe, flexibility is the fastest-growing priority for candidates considering a new job, growing 12% more important from April 2020 to June 2021.

But Lewis warns that not all companies are equally ready to adapt to the changes. “Many seem to be falling short where it matters most: work-life balance. While flexibility saw the biggest increase in importance during the pandemic, the most important priority overall is work-life balance — and it’s only becoming even more important in the age of hybrid work,” he wrote. Turns out that work-life balance is where companies are getting the worst marks from their own employees.

But the line between work and not-work starts to blur, and the LinkedIn feed is a perfect reflection of that. The Oakland writer and LinkedIn communication expert Simone Stolzoff argues that the LinkedIn feed is starting to look more and more like the feeds of other social networks. “Couples have begun to post their engagement photos. Creators have started to post Snapchat-style selfie videos. Work is becoming a larger share of individuals’ identities,” he explained and added that “Whether you’re sharing an update about a promotion or confessing your love of junk food, on LinkedIn, it’s all an opportunity to build your brand.”

With the rise of LinkedIn, the career dynamics and job search are in constant transformation. It has become less formal, less regulated and free of the middle people who guard, let’s say, the hiring process. Here the communication is as direct as it gets, where candidates can talk to CEOs, comment on their potential employees’ posts and build the brand. This is something that would not have been possible not so long ago.