What Key Words are Key In Your Online Resume?

I’m always astounded at how bad people’s social media profiles look on LinkedIn. The reason that the site has a gazillion users is that everyone in business recognizes the value of it as a professional networking tool.  So, how come so many people do so little to make themselves look good on the site?

Yesterday, I wrote a post on using Twitter to promote your job search.  Although some recruiters may use Twitter  to do research, I can tell you right now that LinkedIn is still the #1 tool we rely on for research purposes.   If I have a job in NY in which I’m looking for a salesperson with CPG experience, I’m gonna go to LinkedIn (among other things) and do a search for just that.  I’ll type in “ad sales, NY, CPG.”  I might then refine my search and type in “P&G or Unilever,” etc.  Similarly, if I’m looking for an Editor with health and beauty expertise I’m going to type in “beauty, health, fitness, etc.” to find potential candidates.

TheLadders reported the other day the top 100 key word searches used by recruiters on the site between April and October ’09.  Some recurring phrases include:  sales, business development, marketing, healthcare, insurance, retail, pharmaceutical, sales manager, food, product manager, operations, director, inside sales, technology, CPG, financial services, IT, sales engineer, telecommunications and CRM.

Too many job seekers throw up their LinkedIn profiles without giving them much thought.  Instead of simply listing the jobs you have held, along with the years, make sure to describe your overall responsibilities, keeping in mind some potential key words that hiring managers and recruiters might use to find a candidate like yourself. If you don’t, your profile is just gonna sit their and gather cyber-dust.

Carpe diem…