By Sarah Breen, Inside Recruiter Resume Editor

So you’ve heard several people say to you, “Find me on LinkedIn!” Or they ask you in shock, “You don’t have a LinkedIn?” And follow up with, “You should definitely have a LinkedIn.” Now you’re curious – what is this LinkedIn that everyone keeps telling me about? At its most basic, it is an online networking tool to connect with current colleagues, stay in touch with previous ones, and help make connections to potential future ones. It is the social media platform of professionalism.

You may have read my article on Social Media in the Interview Process, where I wrote about ensuring your online presence was set to private. This is due to Hiring Managers checking online social media platforms for candidates’ profiles to see who they are outside of the office. (Check out the article to find out more!) When it comes to LinkedIn, it is the one social media platform that can be kept more public than the others. This is because it is all about professionalism.

The first step is easy

Head over to www.linkedin.com and start your free account. The LinkedIn system walks you through a tutorial on how to begin your profile and how to utilize the major aspects like its search features. There are specific actions you want to complete on your profile, which includes: uploading a professional photo, adding in previous work experience and listing education.

Build your network

Once your photo, work experience, and education are in, its time for the next step; building your network. Start with current colleagues/peers and type their name into the search bar at the top of the page. You will likely see a list of people with the same name all over the world! Either scroll through to find your person or click on the ‘Filters’ button and to narrow down your list. Once you find them, click the ‘Connect’ button and voila! You’ve officially started building your new community!

Join groups

As you get used to the system, you will find additional helpful features. Every company has a LinkedIn profile where you can read more about them and see a list of employees and open positions. You can find groups to join based on your industry or area of interest. These groups are a great place to find professionals you’ve never met and connect with them through the messaging feature privately. It may seem strange to message someone new, but that is what LinkedIn is for exactly!

All Star Status

You’ll notice that LinkedIn has an ‘All Star Status’ notification, this will show you other aspects of your profile you can add to level up when you’re ready. It is recommended you work towards this status because, as an ‘All Star,’ you will be more likely to find/receive job offers and expand your networking circle. The new status will mean adding more to your profile, including pieces such as skills, recommendations and a headline. The more information you put into LinkedIn, the easier it is for recruiters to find you and add you to their top candidates. Essentially – the more information you add, the more likely you are to be found.

So have you started building your LinkedIn profile yet? What’s stopping you? Head on over to LinkedIn to create your free account and start connecting! Remember, Inside Recruiter has options for LinkedIn Optimization when having your resume created or updated that can help you modify your profile to its ultimate All Star Status!