Recruitment expert reveals the six mistakes most people make on LinkedIn that ruin their chances of getting hired

Could your LinkedIn profile be turning away potential recruiters — or even preventing you from getting the jobs you’re applying for?

Many of us make critical mistakes on our LinkedIn profiles without realizing it, says job search expert Rachel Campbell, managing director at recruitment firm Michael Page & Page Personnel South Regions.

According to LinkedIn statistics, five million recruiters actively use LinkedIn to find talent, and eight people are hired via LinkedIn every minute – so leaving a profile neglected and dusty can cut off potential opportunities.

Campbell told DailyMail.com: ‘Even if you’re not actively searching, updating your profile is good practice because you never know if your dream role is just around the corner.

LinkedIn tends to rank very high in search results, so that’s often the first thing a recruiter sees when they search your name on Google, Campbell said.

“Recruiters are looking at profiles more than ever to find the right talent, with visibility increasingly important in today’s job market,” she said. “Ultimately, the better your profile, the more credibility you have in your network, leading to more opportunities.” ‘

Do not refer to yourself in the third person

You should never refer to yourself in the third person on your LinkedIn profile (for example, “Rob does,” instead of “I do”).

It’s surprisingly common for people to do that, and it’s an instant turn-off to recruiters, Campbell said.

Referring to yourself in the third person sounds artificial and pretentious and will cause recruiters to look elsewhere, Campbell said.

“You wouldn’t talk about yourself in the third person in any walk of life, so don’t do that on LinkedIn either,” she said.

“Using the third person in your profile can be annoying and more like a sales pitch than a personal profile.”

Don’t write too much in your About section

Rachel Campbell, Managing Director at recruitment firm Michael Page & Page Personal Southern Regions (Michael Page)

The first two lines of your About section, which appears above the Activity and Skills sections, are very important – that means you shouldn’t write too much, because it will cut off.

The “about” section tends to be the first thing recruiters see, so you should make sure it contains clear and compelling information about who you are and why someone might want to hire you, Campbell said.

So, for example, describe yourself as a “motivated sales professional with a long list of happy clients and the ambition to go anywhere,” rather than delving into a long list of skills and accomplishments.

She said your description should be simple, straightforward and to the point.

“The ‘About’ section originally only shows the first two lines, before inviting the viewer to ‘See more.’ People often forget this and fill their section with irrelevant information that doesn’t grab anyone’s attention,” she said. “Keep those first lines short, and snappy.” And interesting.

Don’t develop the skills needed for your current job

Just like the old adage, “Dress for the job you want, not the job you have,” Campbell said, you should highlight the skills needed for the job you want, not necessarily the ones you use today.

So the skills you highlight in your profile may not relate to your current job at all — and this can improve your visibility for keywords recruiters might be searching for, she says.

“If there’s a role you’re aiming for, or an industry you want to break into, your profile should reflect that,” Campbell said.

“Make sure to include custom keywords and highlight skills that are transferable to the role you want.

“Try to highlight your personality and present recruiters and potential employers with a confident self-portrait, backed by tangible experience listed.”

Don’t hide the gaps in your work

Hiding gaps in your work can backfire badly

Trying to hide gaps in your business will always backfire, Campbell warned.

“Honesty is the best policy,” she said.

Instead, you should highlight what you learned during these periods.

“Often, job seekers will try to avoid talking about gaps in their CV that can raise doubts in interviews.

“LinkedIn now has an option to add a career break to your work experience section, underscoring the recent trend of employers accepting the potential to gain highly valuable skills and knowledge during these periods.”

Make sure you have a good photo and background image

A good header photo and background photo help sell your profile to recruiters – if you’re putting effort into your LinkedIn profile, it reflects your desire to work and learn.

Many users still forget to upload good photos to LinkedIn, Campbell said.

With a “good photo,” she said, a company-style headshot is ideal, rather than a smiling selfie — you should highlight your “work personality,” so have someone else take a photo if you need to.

“Recruiters and employers like to put a face to a name, so including a believable headshot goes a long way as it serves as their first window to them as a person and a candidate,” Campbell said. Through it, the chances of someone accepting your connection request or wanting to share an opportunity with you improve dramatically.’

Adjust who can see your profile

When people update their LinkedIn profile, they often forget that their connections can see the changes they’ve made.

Think carefully before changing your profile — and adjust who can see the changes you’ve made, Campbell advises.

“This may not be an issue for some, but for those looking to change jobs, announcing a desire to leave may cause some unwanted friction with their current employers,” she said.

“Remember to update your privacy settings by clicking your profile picture in the top right corner of the screen to make sure you don’t share more than you want to.”