Stop Being a LinkedIn Lurker: Job Search Tactic #3

Sounds like something you could be arrested for – maybe even a felony conviction.

Seriously, if you want to take your job search to another level, you’ve got to engage in communicating and interacting on the primary social media forum for professionals, managers, and executives.

Studies show that 90% or more of all users of social media (including LinkedIn) are lurkers.

What the heck is a LinkedIn Lurker?

A lurker is someone who reads the news feeds in groups, reads the questions in groups, reads the questions and answers in the Q&A section, and observes the status updates of those to whom they share a 1st degree connection.

Are you a LinkedIn Lurker?

YOU CANNOT CONDUCT AN EFFECTIVE JOB SEARCH BY LURKING?

Lurking is like hiding behind your mother’s skirt when you were 3 years old. Why do we do this as intelligent, sophisticated, cosmopolitan, confident adults? I wrote another article a few months ago on this same subject titled “STOP Being A Job Search Voyeur – Let Your Voice Be Heard“

I don’t get it.

I don’t even buy the introversion excuse since you’re not having to meet these people on-line or build a deep relationship. There is no rejection phobia here either.

Engaging in the conversation on social media sites like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter is just about the most friendly, safest environment to give your job search a little booster shot in the arm.

Here’s a few simple things you could start doing right now:

How many of you are posting questions in our LinkedIn Discussion Forum and how many of you are helping others in the Group by answering/commenting on the discussions they started?
Are you looking at the wealth of news feeds in our LinkedIn Discussion Group and commenting on those valuable links?
When was the last time you commented on a connection’s status update?

We’ll tackle further engagement on LinkedIn in future tactics.

By the way, My Partner, Brad Remillard, will be leading a webinar on March 26th on how to leverage ALL the different elements of LinkedIn to conduct an effective job search.

Click on the link in our sidebar to learn about this very popular webinar.

If there was one place you could invest your time and get the biggest bang for the buck, it would on LinkedIn. Sadly, most job seekers are not leveraging even 10% of the tools, personal branding, engagement opportunities, and other inexpensive techniques to help themselves be found.

Brad and I did a couple of Programs on LinkedIn in our Weekly Radio Show. You can download these from our FREE Job Search Audio Library.

You know it’s much easier to be found than to find the right job.

What’s holding you back right now from signing up for a one-hour webinar (from one of the top experts in this country on using LinkedIn) in which you’ll learn at least a dozen core tactics that you’ll use every day in your job search?

Barry Deutsch

If you’re NOT a member of our LinkedIn Job Search Discussion Group, JOIN US NOW to start your engagement process and move beyond lurking.

Tags: FREE Job Search Audio, Job Search Social Media, LinkedIn Job Search, Networking Failure, Networking Mistakes, Networking Plan, Personal Branding Mistakes, Personal Branding Techniques

Job Search Mistakes, Networking, Personal Branding | Barry Deutsch March 10, 2010

About the Author

Barry Deutsch is a founding Partner of IMPACT Hiring Solutions, co-author of "You're NOT the Person I Hired", and "This is NOT the Position I Accepted". Barry is an award-winning international speaker, retained executive recruiter, and expert on hiring and retaining top talent, and executive job search.

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11 Comments

By careersherpa, March 11, 2010 @ 6:10 am

Barry:
The moon and stars must have been aligned. I posted something similar this morning about LinkedIn Groups. Thanks for pushing them! You have to play to win!
By Teresa, March 12, 2010 @ 8:11 am

Thank you foe this slap…it was much needed. After six weeks of aimless job searching I will take your advice and “get in the mix”!
By bradremillard, March 12, 2010 @ 8:19 am

Teresa If you don’t know where to start or how to start on LinkedIn, we are having a webinar on March 26th to help those with this. It will be very comprehensive. If you are interested you can check it out at http://www.impacthiringsolutions.com/index.php/linkedin-webinar-special-offer. Just cut and paste the link into your browser.
By JAD, August 21, 2010 @ 12:37 pm

Thanks for the LinkedIn push! My question is, how can I effectively network on LI for several different careers without looking like a job grabber? I am an out-of-work teacher who is still pursuing classroom positions, but at the same time searching for careers in other fields (I was in journalism/editing before switching to education). Because my primary work experience is in teaching high school English, I have a wealth of marketable skills that don’t neatly translate into the private sector – yet it seems that companies don’t want much to do with teachers. And, when a teacher is out of work, a four month-long minimum unemployment gap is practically a given on a resume. Suggestions? Help? Any advice is appreciated.
By Barry Deutsch, August 24, 2010 @ 9:32 pm

JAD,

Why do you feel like you would be a “job grabber”. There is absolutely nothing wrong with exploring different career options. The only problem is when you build you profile on LinkedIn – who are you trying to attract and for what type of job?

How do you make the leap into the private sector with an english background? There is an increasing trend today in both freelance/consulting work and for actual positions where companies are seeking writers, editors, publishers, copywriters for web content – whether it be for their website, internet informational products, or blogs. The explosive wave of companies embracing content publishing over the next few years should be a great boon to people like yourself with a strong english writing background.
By Peg Rhodes, April 25, 2011 @ 8:32 am

Do you plan on having any more of these LinkedIn webinars? Or is there a PDF or video of the webinar you already had?
By Art, May 6, 2011 @ 11:02 am

I first heard of linkedin from a recruiter at Ingersoll Rand in Charlotte. I didn’t get a call, but I got on linked in and found it to be very useful.
By Sue Ellen, May 16, 2011 @ 5:09 pm

I see I’m a late comer to this site, but by chance are you doing anymore webinars in the future? I’ve joined Linkedin, but am afraid to admit I don’t know how to participate properly.
By bradremillard, May 18, 2011 @ 6:50 am

Sue;
We don’t have any scheduled at this point in time. However we all both our linkedIn webinars available to download. These are the complete webinar and teh price is less than a third the cost if you attended both. You can check them out at http://www.impacthiringsolutions.com/index.php/linkedin-ebook-special

Hope this helpful
By Steve Faber, June 26, 2011 @ 9:51 am

People on all forums are mostly lurkers. Only a small percentage actually contribute, and many of those don’t provide anything really useful. Although LinkedIn is really a social media site, not a forum, many of those same rules apply. I am definitely guilty of it myself. Despite having well over 100 connections on LinkedIn, and being a member of several groups, I rarely interact, although I do give reviews and recommendations when asked. It is a shame really, because there are many valuable relationships waiting to be had there.