It’s no question that LinkedIn has revolutionized how hiring managers find potential candidates. This social platform allows Austin headhunters to efficiently search for employees.
Every position is unique and requires vastly different skill sets. Using LinkedIn allows you to find qualified applicants much more efficiently than usual.
Be assured that your employee search methods are saving you time, not costing more of it.
Finding applications that match your criteria just got a lot easier. Read on to learn more about how Austin headhunters use LinkedIn to find the best candidates.
Keyword Searches
What makes LinkedIn such a wonderful tool is its advanced search capabilities. Headhunters are able to search by the specifics, such as skills and experience.
It also allows employees to show their job location preferences. As a headhunter, you are able to locate profiles that specify if they are willing to move.
Experience level is one of the most important factors that headhunters must consider. Through LinkedIn, you are able to browse through candidates by specific experience level.
If you are looking for someone who is already in a specific position, you are able to browse that as well. Using specific phrases such as “Crime Reporting Journalist” or “Business to Business Salesperson” are recommend.
LinkedIn’s basic search capabilities are free. But, we recommend Austin headhunters to use the Recruiter Lite version.
This subsidiary of LinkedIn Premium allows you to conduct even more thorough searches. It offers over 10 advanced search features. Over 75% of recruiters have been more successful with Recruiter Lite.
Industry Based Groups
LinkedIn offers a platform for industry specific professionals to join together. These forums allow Austin headhunters to find more candidates much faster.
Joining an industry specific group is beneficial for several reasons.
One major advantage is it allows you to casually interact with potential candidates. This gives you better insight on a person than traditional hiring strategies.
As a recruiter, you are able to join and follow along with conversations silently if you choose. You can ‘listen’ in and find candidates who do more than just talk the talk in an interview.
These groups you can find an individual who communicates their knowledge and capabilities.
Also, you are able to engage with other headhunters. Learn from their experiences and share what has and hasn’t worked for you.
Use this tool to reach out to other Austin headhunters and hiring managers. Perhaps you will be able to gain an understanding of other search processes.
Track Potential Candidate Behavior
There are ways for Austin headhunters to identify candidates who are about to begin a job search.
This can be as obvious as actual postings from candidates that declare they are on the market.
Also, many times recruiters can make other nonverbal observations.
For example, say a contact you have not heard from in years suddenly viewed your profile. This could mean that they remember you are a hiring manager and are considering reaching out.
Another noticeable habit many recruiters witness is LinkedIn candidates who suddenly post more. Also, be on the lookout for major profile changes, especially from users who usually do not post much.
This could mean that they are working to upgrade their profile to begin applying for jobs. Using these signals can help gauge where a candidate is in their job hunt.
Even if a person isn’t fully ready to begin their hunt, it is still worth taking note of their profile. They could be potential candidates for future positions and worth reaching out to.
Learn Boolean Search
For positions that require very specific skill sets, you should take advantage of boolean commands.
Boolean commands are similar to how most search on Google. The phrases we search through Boolean provide more relevant results.
There are five primary methods to conduct a boolean search: quotes, and, or, not, and paratheses.
Quotation Marks
Placing search terms inside two quotation marks will retrieve an exact phrase. Many times, two or more word searches aren’t as efficient. They retrieve profiles with the search terms yet they aren’t in a specific order.
‘And’
Including ‘and’ between your search phrases will retrieve profiles with both terms.
For instance, pretend you are looking for a marketing professional who understands Hootsuite. You could type “marketing and HootSuite” to find someone who is in the field that understands the mentioned platform.
‘Or’
Searching with ‘Or’ specifies that you only want candidates with one or the other phrase, not both. If you are an Austin headhunter looking for candidates nationwide, this is a great tool for you.
Let’s say you are looking to hire someone from Tampa or Atlanta. You could search “account manager Tampa or account manager Atlanta” to find profiles from both locations.
‘Not’
Using ‘not’ or a ‘-‘ within your search will allow you to specify what you aren’t looking for. This is good for broad searches that pull in hundreds or thousands of profiles.
If you were looking to hire a college professor, you could search “University of Texas not student”. This will end browsing through every student profile that’s associated with the university.
Paratheses
Lastly, including two paratheses to the text is a great way to narrow your search. Use this when searching for candidates that have two or more certain qualifications.
For example, pretend you’re hiring an IT professional who understands search engine software. This is a very broad search and alone would retrieve too many unqualified profiles.
But, typing ‘IT (search engine software)’ will locate profiles with an exact match to the phrase.
This is an advanced way to find candidates when the role requires a certain skill set within an industry. Boolean search cuts back on browsing through profiles that only somewhat match criteria.
Austin Headhunters- Let us Help!
At Crawford Thomas, we are committed to fulfilling all your staffing needs. We serve as a liaison between headhunters and employees.
When your candidate hunt begins, visit us first. We conduct an in-depth assessment of your company’s needs to match with a best fitting employee. Contact us today to learn more!