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Julbert Abraham, MBA – is the CEO of AGM, a LinkedIn Marketing and Training firm in New Jersey. He is a serial entrepreneur and a social media marketing instructor.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average professional in America now only stays in a role for about four and a half years. Prior to being an Entrepreneur, I had my share of career changes. I was able to learn from each of the phases and I have used social media to facilitate my transitions. One of the main tools that I used during my career changes was LinkedIn. Here are the top 3 tips that will help you as a career changer to maximize LinkedIn for your journey:
Tip #1- Developing a professional LinkedIn profile
With over 347 Million professionals on LinkedIn, you have to create a powerful presence with a complete LinkedIn profile. To achieve that goal, you need the following:
– A professional headshot and background header
– Attention grabbing headline that describes the value that you bring to an employer in 120 characters or less
– A personalized and optimized summary section that makes it easier to find you and speaks directly to potential recruiters and employers about your capabilities and your accomplishments
– Highlighting your past experiences with bullet points on how you were able to make a difference in your prior positions
– Three to five recommendations from your peers and/or past clients who had an opportunity to work with you
Tip #2 – Connecting with strategic industry recruiters
Now that you are changing careers, you have to answer the following questions:
– What exactly are you looking to do?
– What industry would you like to work in?
– Where would you like to work?
– What are the top 5 companies that you would like to work for?
Once you are able to answer these questions, you can now work with alumni and recruiters to help you with your search. You can use the Advanced Search tool on LinkedIn to help you find these key recruiters that you can connect with then reach out to them for a conversation. There are thousands of recruiters out there and it is very important that you find two to three recruiters that can work with you and help you find your next career.
Tip# 3- Participate in LinkedIn Groups
As a career changer, think of this opportunity as your own business where you have to create a personal brand and market yourself effectively. With LinkedIn groups, you are able to join some niche communities. These communities may also be where your next employer goes to learn from industry experts. You can establish a presence in these groups by doing the following:
– Participating in current discussions
– Sharing valuable content that may benefit the group as a whole
– Interacting with some of the key contributors and other members of the groups
Within a few months, you may become the “Go-to Guy or Gal” in the group who is providing value. This strategy will not only allow you to create a personal brand it will also allow you to interact with your potential employers, develop a relationship with them on and off LinkedIn which may lead to an interview and hopefully your new career.
To learn more tips like this from Julbert Abraham, be sure to reserve your spot at the Career Changers Conference on Friday, October 16th 2015 where he will be hosting a session on “Using LinkedIn for your Career Change.”
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