Let’s call it what it is: if you’re a recruiter and you’re not showing up strong on LinkedIn, you’re leaving money, candidates, and credibility on the table. 🚀

And yet… after running dozens of LinkedIn profile reviews (powered by many mugs of strong black tea), I keep seeing the same rookie errors over and over again. The kind that make your profile blend into the background faster than you can say “open to relocation.”

But here’s the good news: it’s dead easy to optimise your LinkedIn profile for recruitment. Let’s sort it out, shall we?

☕ TL;DR: Fast Track Your LinkedIn Glow-Up

Your LinkedIn profile is your recruiter shopfront. If it’s dusty, confusing, or impossible to find, you’re losing candidates and credibility daily.
Here’s how to optimise your LinkedIn profile for recruitment success — without the cheesy “open to work” selfies or cringey buzzwords.

📬 1. You’re Hiding Your Contact Info Like It’s Classified

The slip-up:
Your “Contact Info” tab is quieter than a hiring freeze meeting. No phone numbers, no email(s), no WhatsApp link.

Why it matters:
If someone wants to reach you — a hot candidate, a hiring manager, even a dream client — and they can’t? They’ll bounce faster than you realise to a Recruiter’s profile with their contact details easily visible.

Fix it to optimise your LinkedIn profile for recruitment:

• Add both work and personal email addresses (because inbox disasters happen).
• Include your mobile number with your country code.
• Add a Calendly link or WhatsApp click-to-chat link (especially if you’re agency-side).

🕑 Bonus Tip:
You won’t get midnight spam calls if you use “Do Not Disturb” — don’t let fear keep your contact details hostage.

🚫 2. Boring Headlines Sabotage Your LinkedIn Profile for Recruitment

The slip-up:
Your headline just says “Recruiter at [Company Name]” — and that’s it. That’s boring!

Why it matters:
That headline is your first impression and your SEO goldmine. If it doesn’t explain who you help or how you help them, it’s doing absolutely nothing for you.

Optimise it like this:

✅ Call out your niche.
✅ Mention your value proposition.
✅ Include keywords people actually search for.

Examples that pop:

• “Scaling SaaS Sales Teams Across EMEA | B2B Tech Recruiter”
• “Connecting Irish Finance Talent with Top Employers | CIMA | ACCA | FP&A”

🔍 Remember: your headline helps you show up in searches — don’t waste that prime real estate.

🌍 3. Your Location Doesn’t Match Your Market

The slip-up:
You’re recruiting exclusively in London, but your LinkedIn profile says you’re based in Cape Town.

Why it matters:
LinkedIn’s search filters are brutal. If your location doesn’t match your market, you’re invisible.

To optimise your LinkedIn profile for recruitment:

• Set your location to where your candidates or clients are based.
• Clarify remote status in your About section: “Recruiting UK-based Software Engineers, remotely from South Africa.”

📍 It’s about alignment, not where your office chair physically lives. More importantly, it’s about building trust.

📌 4. Your Featured Section is Collecting Dust

The slip-up:
Your Featured section is emptier than my snack drawer on a Friday afternoon.

Why it matters:
This is your chance to show, not just tell. The Featured section is your portfolio. Most recruiters leave it blank — tragic, really.

Optimise it like this:

• Turn on Creator Mode in LinkedIn.
• Add:
  • A link to your open jobs.
  • A post that got solid engagement.
  • A short “Why Work With Me” video (keep it real — authentic > polished).

🧲 Real story:
One recruiter I coached added a simple ‘Top 5 Open Roles’ post to their Featured section — and their inbound leads doubled within a month. Proof that small tweaks = big results!

📉 5. You Post Once and Then Ghost

The slip-up:
You posted once in March, panicked when no one liked it, and ghosted harder than a bad blind date.

Why it matters:
Visibility = credibility. If you want to optimise your LinkedIn profile for recruitment success, you have to show up. This is something that I work on daily, so feel free to follow me to copy what I do…

Content rhythm that works:

• Post 3x per week (consistency wins).
• Post before 9AM (catch the coffee scroll crowd!).
• Stick around for 30 minutes after posting to reply to comments.

💬 You need to think of every post as a mini networking event. Don’t ghost your guests.

⚡ Rapid-Fire Fixes While You’re at It:

Still in LinkedIn glow-up mode? Here’s what else you can tweak today:

✅ Close off any old jobs still marked “Present.”
✅ Cut the fluff — use punchy, results-focused bullets in your Experience sections. Keywords, keywords, keywords….
✅ Ask for as many recommendations as you can (because social proof = trust).

✨ The Bottom Line:

If you’re a recruiter, now’s the time to optimise your LinkedIn profile for recruitment, not just for vanity metrics, but for visibility, trust, and actual pipeline growth.

🚀 Show up better. Get found faster. Build relationships more easily. You’ve got this!

📥 Shortcut to LinkedIn Glory:

Want a LinkedIn profile that brings candidates to you — instead of you chasing them? Book a one-hour 1-2-1 Consultation with me to review your LinkedIn profile and your activity on the platform.

🎓 Ready to fully transform your LinkedIn game?
Join my Online Academy — free training videos included. Bring your mug of strong black tea — we’re going all in.

What about you?
Which one of these LinkedIn mistakes are you guilty of? 👀
No shame — we’ve all been there. Drop a comment below — I’d love to hear! 👇