by Anthony Stough

Whether you are getting ready to transition out of the military or have already taken the plunge, you have most likely heard of LinkedIn. For those of you who have been on the site for longer than a minute, let’s be blunt, it can be a bit overwhelming. With over 500 million members, 20 million posted jobs, and unlimited networking opportunities, it’s no wonder that people get a bit lost when building out an effective profile on the site.

So what exactly is LinkedIn and why should you be on it? Think of LinkedIn as a professional Facebook or [insert trendy social media site here]. People build profiles based on their professional experiences. They have the opportunity to expand their network by “connecting” with other professionals on the site across all industries and levels of responsibilities (CEOs, managers, recruiters, military advocates, veterans, etc.). The other best part about LinkedIn? Companies post jobs on the site and actively search for candidates (yes, you) to fill those roles.

Over the years, I have assisted hundreds of people (veterans, military family members, and civilians) on everything LinkedIn. Drawing from my personal military transition and roles ranging from HR Director to Corporate Recruiter, I have put together my top must-do’s in order to take advantage of your LinkedIn profile to help you get started.

sign up for a LinkedIn profile:

Often times I hear, “Well, I’m not looking for a job, so I don’t need a profile” or “I already have a job lined up when I get out”. In the military, career progression is a bit different and sometimes automatic based on years of experience (rank progression and job assignments). In the civilian world, it’s important to maintain an active role in your personal growth and development. With LinkedIn being a free professional site, this is one of the best ways to ensure you are doing everything possible to take care of your professional career post military. I get it, it takes time to build the profile, and it takes a bit of effort to stay active on it. But why turn down an opportunity to land a meaningful job outside of the military? Planning ahead, you never know what opportunities may arise just because you are on the site.

Understand what you want out of LinkedIn:

With your profile, take some time and think through the reason you are using the site in the first place. Are you seeking a mentor, first job outside of the military, promotion, or networking? Having a strategy that works towards your mission and purpose is essential for the site.

Write a resume:

Yes, I know this is more work just to create a profile, but trust me on this one. Having a complete resume is not only essential to your job search, but it will help you build your LinkedIn profile in an organized manner. Similar to your resume, LinkedIn allows you to list out your professional and volunteer experiences (company, title, dates, and responsibilities). It’s a great way to ensure your resume and profile are similar (yes, some recruiters will check your profile for accuracy). Also, when you’re networking on the site, it’s always great to have a resume readily available to attach to those messages.

Browse other profiles:

Just remember, you aren’t the first person to transition out of the military. It’s okay to check out other people’s profiles to see how they translated their military experiences. One thing you will notice is that there is not a specific “military must” format that everyone follows. Just like a resume, it’s all about personal preference and goes back to your LinkedIn strategy.

Use a professional picture for your profile:

For those of us who have taken part of military promotion boards/reviews, we know that a picture is worth a thousand words. Your LinkedIn profile picture is no different and is one of the first things a person will see when looking at your profile/connection request. Part of building an effective profile, starts with a professional picture that builds trust for you as an individual and most importantly, a job seeker.

Dress for the job that you want. I recommend dressing as you would for an interview (business professional or casual depending on the work environment).
Although available, you don’t have to pay for a professional headshot. Find a friend with “portrait mode” on their cell phone. With an appropriate background (not too distracting) and lighting, your picture will look great for LinkedIn.
Even if you normally don’t smile in your pictures, I highly recommend having a positive expression on your face. Imagine receiving a connection from someone on the site with a scowl. Not the greatest first impression for a job seeker.

A few things to avoid when choosing the right picture:

Don’t use your military photo. It’s too formal and just not the right attitude you want to convey. You’re trying to get a job, not intimidate someone.
Even though I’m sure you looked professional, don’t use a wedding picture or any type of group picture (especially if it’s one that you crop someone out of).
Avoid the selfies. It’s just not a great look for a professional site.

Let Recruiters know you’re open to opportunities:

Remember I mentioned that recruiters can search for you? In your profile, under your dashboard, there is an option under career interests to let recruiters know that you are open to opportunities. Recruiters that search for candidates on the site have certain access to you as a candidate. If you list out what you are searching for, it betters your chances of being found by the recruiter. You can list out the following:

Location
Job titles
Type of job (full time, part-time, etc.)
Where are you in your search (active, casual, not looking but open, not open)

LinkedIn Etiquette:

As you begin to familiarize yourself with LinkedIn, you’ll notice certain individuals pop up on your news feed based on their activity. Similar to other social media sites, you can comment and react to other people’s posts and activities. This means that what you interact with will populate on other people’s feeds. Keep your activity professional and you’ll have no issues here.

Quality over quantity:

Just like any other media site, LinkedIn has its fair share of “influencers”. These are individuals who have gained a following with the intention of posting something profound, insightful, and sometimes controversial to attract readers. It’s okay to interact with these posts, but remember that you are on this site for one thing: your strategy! There is no need to comment and post on everything that you see. If building a personal brand is something you are seeking, that’s fine, but it will take time. If you’re a job seeker, a recruiter is not going to look down on you because of your lack of comments and reactions. Be strategic with what you say and post on LinkedIn.

Be patient:

In a future article, I’ll share some best practices on how to message a recruiter or hiring manager. Just like with everything else about the job search, there is an art and strategy to it. Finding a job takes time, especially the right job and environment. When you are on this site and messaging people, it may feel like weeks go by without anyone reaching back out to you. Keep in mind that recruiters and companies utilize LinkedIn differently. In my recruiting days, I knew recruiters that would spend all day on it. Others that I knew only checked it once a month. Whatever your strategy, you’ll find your tempo on this site. I find that there are some genuine people that want to help others find jobs on LinkedIn. Just be patient if they don’t get back to you in a timely manner.

Sign up for a free year of Premium:

LinkedIn is a strong advocate for transitioning military veterans. They will offer one free year to a Premium military veteran profile which provides access to LinkedIn Learning (military and civilian career courses). For job seekers, it also includes access to additional information on posted jobs, salary information, and additional InMail messages (think of Premium like an exclusive club with some great benefits). One of the reasons I did not list this at the top is that the offer is for one year only. Prior to signing up for the offer, I highly recommend spending time on LinkedIn to better understand the site. Once your year begins, you want to ensure you are getting the most out of it, as Premium is not free after your year with rates starting at $29.99 per month.