Posted by Michael Donelly

This is a Guest Post by freelancer Timothy Martinez Jr.

Read this: To add one more string to your bow in that jobs hunt

Gone are the days when you’d have to trudge around businesses and find “Now Hiring” signs or scan the newspaper ads for a job you might want. With the explosion of career-finding sites and social media, it’s become increasingly easy to find and apply for jobs. No social media site is more conducive to a job hunt than LinkedIn. If you’re on the prowl, here are some tips for using LinkedIn to find a job.

Create an account and completely fill it out

The first step is to actually create your account, and once you’ve created it, it’s essential to make a strong profile. The site tells you how complete your profile is and you want to make sure it’s 100% finished. That means you’ll need updated information about your previous jobs, a flattering profile picture, skills, summary and resume.

Network as much as possible

One of the main purposes of LinkedIn is to network with people you know and people you want to know. A great start is to network with your friends or past workers. LinkedIn has a number of ways to add connections and find people you already know. Build up your network by adding as many connections as possible because that will extend your reach.

Let people know you’re looking for work

A great function recently added to LinkedIn is the status update that comes up on a News Feed. Your updates shouldn’t be similar to those made on Facebook or Twitter, but should be professional and informative. Let people know that you are on the hunt for a job.

Seek recommendations

Tell your friends or coworkers to give you positive recommendations because these always make your profile much more appealing, especially to recruiters who sometimes look around LinkedIn for viable candidates.

Check out the profiles of companies you’re interested in

If you’ve done some research online or have a good idea what type of job you’re looking for, you should check out company profiles. If you’re not sure yet, see where people in your field are working and look at those company profiles. These are helpful because they give a lot of information about company. More importantly, there is a career section that helps you find what jobs are available.

Look at the jobs section

There is also a jobs section on LinkedIn that gives a list of available jobs. This is also a good resource to check out when you’re browsing through jobs. When you’ve found something that’s piqued your interest, don’t hesitate to send a message or a introductory email.

Connections are key

You should never underestimate the power of connections. While going through the traditional route of finding a job on LinkedIn (such as looking at company profiles or job boards), there is always more power through connections. Even though we might try to hide it, it’s always about who we know. If you are somehow connected to a recruiter or HR person through a friend, use that to your advantage.

Be persistent and aggressive

Let your personality shine through LinkedIn during your job hunt. Being persistent is an essential trait when looking for jobs anywhere, so you should not assuage your assertiveness on the Internet.

Read more:

The Secrets of a Successful Job interview

Leave a dead-end job and become a successful consultant

Leave the Job you Hate

Timothy Martinez Jr. is a freelance writer and blogs about a number of topics, including camping supplies and bird baths.