Summary: Do you ever wonder why your finely-crafted
LinkedIn profile never yields results or views? In this post, I explain
exactly why this happens and what you can do to start seeing real
results on LinkedIn.
Recently, I've set my sights on LinkedIn to study a little more
in-depth how their search algorithm works, and what I've found so far is
a bit disappointing: it's simply not enough to have a well-put-together
profile. If you hope to come up in someone's search for keywords
related to your profile, you either need to essentially spam your
profile with those keywords, be in a LinkedIn group related to those
keywords, or you had better be connected with someone the
person searching is connected to. Long story short, LinkedIn appears to
favor networks of connected people, LinkedIn groups, and profiles
chock-full of the same keyword(s). If you're not engaging in one or more
of those facets, then you can count on your profile almost never being
seen in LinkedIn searches, no matter how qualified you are. First and foremost, what I've found thus far has convinced me to
start being proactive with adding anyone and everyone I can -- even if
they're people in completely unrelated industries to me who I would have
no reason to otherwise connect with. Also, I will soon be revising my
profile (again) and seeking out (over the course of time; not
immediately) as many LinkedIn groups as I can to join.
On one hand, favoritism of networked people is a great thing. I mean,
if someone you know happens to know someone else that fits the bill for
what you're searching for in a job candidate, then you can inquire
about the candidate with the person you're directly connected to who
knows them. On the other hand, what if they don't know them at all? What
if there are other FAR more qualified candidates who are connected to
no one you know? The problem there is that LinkedIn (like any
custom-built search solution) uses an algorithm to determine relevance,
but how does an algorithm determine who is "better" than someone else in
the same market? The answer to that for LinkedIn is simple: it doesn't.
Sure, initial search results are filtered by something they call
"relevance," but there is simply no accounting for human logic,
deduction, and reasoning -- especially with something like searching for
the right candidate for a job (be it an employee or employer you're
seeking). Instead of using crazy parameters and algorithmic magic to produce
the "most qualified" candidate(s), LinkedIn favors networks of people.
That is a completely logical thing to do for the type of site they are,
but it's not the most evenhanded or apparent. On top of that, LinkedIn
favors high keyword density (keyword stuffing, basically). That means
that currently, it's REALLY EASY to game LinkedIn by
stuffing your profile full of the same keyword(s) you want to show up in
search results for. If you want a prime example of this working, fire
up LinkedIn right now, log in to your profile, then do a search for
"sports" (without the quotes). Most likely, you're going to see this guy on the first page of results -- if not right at the top. As it happens, that guy has a whole course about how to take
advantage of LinkedIn and rank at the top of keyword searches. The proof
is painfully obvious by the fact that he ranks as high as he does for
all the people I've had search for "sports." But what are his
qualifications? Why is he the best result for "sports?"
The thing about his profile is not only is he stuffing it full of the
keyword "sports," but he also has TONS of connections. LinkedIn only
says "500+" for people with over 500 connections, but the actual number
is far greater in his case -- so great, as a matter of
fact, that there's a good chance you'll see a "2nd," "3rd," or "GROUP"
next to his name in your profile. That's because he's either connected
with someone you're connected to, connected to someone who is connected to someone
that you're connected to, or in a group that you are also in. In the
following example, I show evidence that stuffing your profile full of a
particular keyword is the one thing that can help you outrank connected
networks of people.
To start, when I search for "freelance writer" (without quotes) on LinkedIn, this is what I see.
If you will notice, every single person there is 2nd, 3rd, or in a
group that I'm in... except for one person: the very top result! I am
not connected to them in any way, shape, or form, yet they're beating
out everyone that I AM somehow connected to. Taking a look at their profile,
it becomes pretty obvious. Look at how filled it is with "freelance
writer" in every possible field you can manually enter text in. That
person only has 108 connections, too; far less than the 500+ the second
result in the search yields.
Speaking of the second result from my search, let's have a look at his LinkedIn page.
Good grief, I can tell right off the bat that he probably ranks on the
first page for "social media" searches. But we're interested in
"freelance writer." Scrolling down (and down and down and down) that
infinitely ginormous profile, you see numerous references to "freelance
writer" peppered throughout. Now, although he has it about as many times
as (if not more than) the first profile we looked at and has far more
connections, he doesn't have it in every field you can populate! He does
with "social media," though, so try a search for "social media"
(without quotes) on LinkedIn and see if he pops up for you.
So, as you can see, having your main keyword in as many places as
possible seems to make a huge difference in your visibility; however,
this isn't a holistic conclusion. Certain fields might hold more weight
than others. Past that, some combination of your main keyword and number
of connections seems to be at play. Whatever the case may be, here are
some actionable steps you can take to better your performance on
LinkedIn:
If you're seeking an employee:
1: When performing keyword searches relevant to
your industry, use the search filters on the left-hand side. For
instance, selecting "3rd + Everyone Else" will filter out a lot of the
connected networks of people, but you will still have to take the time
to dig deeper than just the first page or three of results.
2: Consider paying for a business account (~$30
per month). Doing so will allow you to see profiles from individuals not
in your network. It will also give you access to more advanced search
filters, as well as show you who has been viewing your profile
(potential candidates you seek who may not have been able to contact
you, or were hesitant to for one reason or another).
3: Consider searching for candidates of interest
in Google using information from their LinkedIn profile. This can not
only allow you to gather more information about them, but if you can
find their resume, portfolio, or Web site, then you can reach out to
them via email instead of wasting one of your small handful of InMail
credits you receive each month with a paid business account.
If you're seeking a job:
1: Make connections with people and join
LinkedIn groups until the cows come home! If you see someone you're not
connected with, try adding them no matter who they are. As we've seen,
it's not about who you know; it's about others knowing you and people who are searching for your talents!
2: Figure out how to walk a fine line between
stuffing keywords in your profile and not making it look spammy. Put
simply, LinkedIn's algorithm doesn't care if you did work for Bill Gates
or Sergey Brin; it cares about who/how many people you're connected to
and how many times you mention "search" (or whatever) throughout
multiple sections of your profile. It's not fair, but in a time when
people are fighting for jobs, this is how you get the upper hand on
LinkedIn in your industry.
3: Consider paying for a business account (~$30
per month). Doing so will allow you to contact recruiters and executives
via "InMail" that may otherwise have no contact credentials elsewhere.
It's an amazing benefit if you seriously have your heart set on
contacting specific individuals within companies to make your
impression.
4: The aforementioned steps are useless if your
profile doesn't provide value to those who see it. Just remember that
the steps above are tools in your toolkit; you still need to accurately
represent yourself after you successfully attract eyeballs. In other
words, a spammy profile looks like a spammy profile.
And with that, I'll wrap this up. I hope you've found this post
enlightening and/or informative. It's a bit disappointing to me that
LinkedIn operates like this, especially after all the effort I've put
into my profile in the past; but when I take a second to think about it,
LinkedIn's search features do make sense for the type of site they are
-- though, with that said, keyword stuffing is so 1999 and LinkedIn
should seriously consider algorithmic tweaks to combat its current
effectiveness. Thanks for reading and good luck with your LinkedIn
endeavors!
