We know LinkedIn is a goldmine for sourcing job candidates. The numbers speak for themselves: the platform has over one billion members from 200 countries, with seven hires happening every minute.
But that doesn’t mean tracking down top talent is easy. As a recruiter, you can spend hours scrolling through profiles and even longer sending messages met with dismal response rates.
Fortunately, there are many ways to speed up the process and yield fruitful results. We’re here to help you crack the code to becoming a true pro in LinkedIn candidate sourcing.
Set yourself up for success
Before jumping into the deep end of the LinkedIn talent pool, it’s essential to lay the groundwork.
Here’s how:
Clarify your ideal candidate persona
The most obvious first step is to determine who you’re looking for. Documenting these details now will help you narrow down what keywords to target and search filters to apply later.
Ask yourself what technical skills, proficiency levels, experience, and certifications the candidate needs. Also, consider what soft skills and personality traits align with the role and company culture.
Level up your LinkedIn profile
Recruiters aren’t the only ones scrutinizing LinkedIn profiles. Yours is often the first point of contact with candidates, so you want to make a good first impression.
Tips to copy and paste:
- Use a professional headshot and remember to smile (look personable, but not like you just won the lottery).
- Craft a clear and keyword-rich headline. Consider going beyond your job title with a headline like “Talent Acquisition Specialist | Connecting Top Candidates with Top Careers.”
- Write a summary showcasing your industry passion, area of specialization, and key achievements.
- Build credibility with testimonials and recommendations.
Nail the job posting
Treat your job posting as a pitch requiring marketing copy rather than an official notice. Here’s a breakdown of the core components:
- A magnetic headline: Grab attention from the get-go. Replace the generic “We’re hiring a full-time marketer” with “Looking to make waves in the marketing industry?”
- Company mission statement: Summarize the company culture and values, detailing why it’s an amazing organization to be part of.
- Role expectations: Give a clear indication of responsibilities and tasks. Consider framing it as “A day in the life of…”
- Benefits and growth opportunities: Entice candidates with mention of competitive compensation, flexible work arrangements, opportunities for advancement, and any unique perks.
- A strong call to action: Encourage candidates to apply, giving clear instructions and contact details.
Bolster your employer’s brand
Candidates evaluate the company as much as the job itself. Your LinkedIn company page is another opportunity to attract top talent. Use it to showcase achievements, exciting projects, and employee stories. Remember to respond to comments, share noteworthy industry news, or even host LinkedIn live events.
Streamline sourcing with LinkedIn search techniques
Now’s the time to start sourcing. Here’s how to make LinkedIn’s search features work best for you:
Master the Boolean search
While it may sound techy, a Boolean search can be a major boon to recruiters. This strategy involves using operators like “AND,” “OR,” and “NOT” to create complex and precise search strings. In other words, they allow you to filter and narrow down search results quickly.
- AND: Narrows the search by requiring multiple terms. For example, “software engineer AND python” will only pull up profiles mentioning both terms.
- OR: Expands the search to include alternative terms. For example, “marketing manager OR brand manager” will widen your search to include either role.
- NOT: Excludes specific terms. For example, “executive NOT intern” will rule out less-experienced candidates.
To take your Boolean game a step further, use quotation marks for exact phrases and parentheses to create complex search logic. You can also combine all of the above for hyper-targeted searches.
An example to take note of:
If you’re looking for a senior machine learning engineer in San Francisco, your Boolean search could be:
(“Machine learning engineer” OR “ML engineer”) AND (senior OR lead) AND “San Francisco” NOT (intern OR junior)
Maximize LinkedIn’s search filters
Using LinkedIn filters will help narrow down your candidate search results even further. The best part: they’re simple and intuitive to use.
Here’s how they work:
- Use the search bar: At the top of your screen, type the relevant keywords related to the position you’re sourcing for. Then hit “Enter” or click “See all results.” (Bonus points if you include the Boolean operators we just discussed).
- Select “People:” Directly below the search bar, click on the “People” button. This ensures you’ll only get individual candidate profiles in your results and no jobs, groups, or posts.
- Apply filters: You’ll now see options to filter your results. Select “All filters” on the far right. You’ll be able to filter based on connections, location, company, school, industry, and more. Using your freshly created candidate persona, select all those that apply.
For example, if you were searching for a SaaS sales executive, you could apply the following filters:
- Location: San Francisco Bay Area
- Current company: B2B Tech Companies with 500+ Employees
- Skills: Cloud Computing; IT Infrastructure; Technical Sales
- Industry: Software Development; Technology, Information, and Internet
Bonus tip: Check out LinkedIn Sales Navigator for even more advanced filters.
Leverage LinkedIn Recruiter
While you can use the search bar and filters above with any LinkedIn account, LinkedIn Recruiter requires a paid subscription. However, for many professionals, it’s worth the investment. It offers a wealth of capabilities that help you work smarter, not harder.
When I tested LinkedIn Recruiter, these were some of the features I found to be most useful for scouting job candidates:
Spotlights
Spotlights has been such a help in automating some of my sourcing efforts. It works its magic by analyzing candidates’ LinkedIn activity and predicting who’s likely to respond to my outreach. These recommendations have noticeably ramped up my response rates, and LinkedIn reports an average 64% increase in reply rates.
InMail
The holy grail of LinkedIn messaging. While connecting with candidates is ideal, InMail allows you to DM anyone, including those outside your network. My advice, however, is to be mindful about your messaging. You don’t want to deplete your InMail credits on the 7th of the month.
Keep these limits in mind:
LinkedIn plan | Monthly InMail credits |
Recruiter Lite | 30 |
Recruiter Professional | 100 |
Recruiter Corporate | 150 |
Sales Navigator Core | 50 |
Premium Career | 5 |
Premium Business | 15 |
Similar Profiles
You’ve done the grunt work and found a promising candidate. But alas, one is never enough. The Similar Profiles feature finds other individuals with similar experience and qualifications to help extend your sourcing success. While they’re not always the perfect match, you’re bound to spot a few great candidates this way.
AI-Assisted Search
What list of sourcing tools would be complete without AI enhancements? I find its AI-Assisted Search particularly useful. It can interpret job descriptions — yes, that includes contextual understanding — to recommend candidates you might have overlooked. By understanding your hiring intent, Recruiter identifies and applies a set of applicable filters so you don’t have to do it manually.
AI-Assisted Search does the heavy lifting for you by understanding who and what you’re looking for, which allows you to quickly and accurately find the talent you’re looking for.
Optimize your outreach and engagement
When it comes to sourcing, tracking down your list of LinkedIn candidates is only half the battle. The other half involves your outreach.
Get personal
No one wants to be treated like a name on a list. Show candidates that you value them as individuals by personalizing your messages. Reference something unique to them and let them know why they’d be a good fit for the role. You’ll need to do some homework, so read their entire profile and any recent posts or publications.
To illustrate the difference, let’s look at a weak, generic example vs a targeted message.
Bad example:
Hi Marisa, I came across your profile and was impressed by your skills and experience. I think you would be a great fit for a vacancy we have at [Company Name]. Please contact me for more information.
VS
Good example:
Hi Marisa, I loved your recent article on sustainable design—it’s a topic close to our hearts here at [Company Name]. We’re looking for a senior planning specialist, which I think aligns with your expertise in energy-efficient building design. Would you be open to a chat?
Nurture relationships
Once you’ve sent that first message and have your foot in the door, it’s essential to keep the door open. The extra effort makes future communication smoother, keeps you on their radar, and builds trust. Small gestures can go a long way, so follow candidates, like and comment on their posts, or share helpful content with them.
Follow up with finesse
Another key way to foster positive relationships is by sending follow-up emails. Even better, these emails ensure your initial message wasn’t accidentally missed or forgotten. As a result, response rates are typically higher.
Gem, a recruitment software giant, can back this up. Here’s a quick overview of key findings from their large-scale study:
Open rate | Response rate | |
First email | 61.4% | 8.3% |
First follow-up (second email) | 73.5% | 15.8% |
Second follow-up (third email) | 77.4% | 20.2% |
To get a response to your LinkedIn message, ensure your follow-ups are personalized, concise, and polite. Keep things fresh and relevant by referencing specific details from the candidate’s profile.
Additionally, ensure your emails are value-driven by highlighting career opportunities or emphasizing a positive company culture. End with a clear call to action, like scheduling a call or replying with their availability.
Here’s an example of an effective follow-up email:
An example to copy and paste:
Hi Emmanuel,
I hope you’re doing well! I wanted to follow up on the message I sent last week about the Frontend Developer position at [Company Name].
This role offers a chance to work on exciting projects, including designing intuitive user interfaces for leading clients in the fintech sector, which I see is your area of expertise.
I’d love to chat about how this could fit with your career goals.
Would you have 15 minutes this week to discuss the role? Feel free to reach out directly at [contact number].
Looking forward to connecting!
Best regards,
[First and Last Names]
Talent Acquisition Specialist
[Company Name]
Think outside the box
Many sideroads can lead to the same end destination of sourcing success. In these competitive times, it’s important to diversify your approach and get creative.
Here are a few innovative sourcing strategies to consider:
- Revisit previous candidates you didn’t hire: Someone who didn’t make the cut in the past might be the perfect fit now. It’s helpful to create a systematic tracking database for future reference.
- Join LinkedIn Groups: You can often find hidden talent in industry-specific groups and alumni networks on LinkedIn. There are also niche tech communities, like AI or blockchain technology for startups, where you can find specialists.
- Leverage mutual connections: Ask shared connections for warm introductions or referrals for added credibility.
- Target passive candidates: Get proactive and reach out to people who aren’t actively job-seeking but could be open to the right opportunity. Personalized communication highlighting a unique value proposition is vital here.
Let tech do (some of) the heavy lifting
You’d probably agree that candidate sourcing via LinkedIn isn’t a quick or straightforward process. The good news is that there’s a tech solution for (virtually) every sourcing challenge. You’ll find tools for:
- Optimizing your searches
- Personalizing outreach
- Automating engagement
- Analyzing campaign metrics.
The key is knowing what’s available and choosing the right one for your needs. One of our go-to tools is Wiza, offering a potent combination of features for recruiters.
Here’s how it can help:
Easy filtering
The tool helps you whip up perfect-fit candidates with over 30 advanced filters, including all the essentials like:
- Location
- Job title
- Skills,
- The university they attended.
Profile enrichment
What sets Wiza apart is its ability to enrich candidate profiles with more than 40 data points. This means you’ll know if they’re open to new opportunities, how long they’ve been in their current position, and their full career history. These insights are gems for personalizing outreach campaigns.
Bulk exports
Wiza takes automation a step further by allowing you to bulk export up to 2,500 candidates from LinkedIn Recruiter searches or saved lists to CSV. What’s more, its robust integrations enable you to export candidate data directly to your ATS or CRM.
Here are a few of its key integrations:
Sourcing and verifying contact data
Then, there’s Wiza’s Chrome extension that tracks down email addresses and mobile numbers straight from their LinkedIn profiles. Its real-time email verification feature is the perfect accompaniment, giving you peace of mind that your carefully constructed emails do, in fact, land up in inboxes as intended.
Strategic sourcing is stress-free sourcing
Scouting suitable candidate profiles on LinkedIn needn’t give you gray hair. You can significantly streamline your search with a strategic approach.
Start by giving your LinkedIn profile and company page some TLC, define your ideal candidate, and craft a killer job listing. Then, combine LinkedIn’s search filters with a few Boolean operators for more targeted search results. For those with LinkedIn Recruiter, there are many excellent features to put to the test.
Once you’ve found the right candidates, nail your outreach with personalized content and well-timed follow-ups. Don’t underestimate the strategic power of technology, either. Wiza is a standout tool, offering advanced filters, bulk exports, and contact data verification.
Commonly asked questions
Which LinkedIn features are most helpful for sourcing candidates?
To start, LinkedIn’s Boolean search capabilities and advanced search filters are invaluable for narrowing down your search to the most relevant candidates. Once you’ve found a potentially strong fit, LinkedIn’s Similar Profiles feature is great for identifying those with similar qualifications and experience. LinkedIn Recruiter’s InMail messaging is another indispensable tool, allowing you to reach out to candidates outside your network.
How can I enhance my LinkedIn company profile to attract top talent?
Ensure your company description is well-written — it should be clear, engaging, and keyword-optimized for discoverability. Communicate the company mission, vision, and core values. Post content regularly, showcasing your workplace culture, employee satisfaction, and company initiatives. Another top tip is to include plenty of visual content, like high-quality photos, infographics, and videos.
Can I automate some of the tasks involved in candidate sourcing on LinkedIn?
Yes! Gone are the days of spending endless hours on menial tasks. Tools like Wiza are a huge time-saver, helping you find contact info on LinkedIn and export data in bulk, complete with enriched data. Other tools for automation include the following:
- LinkedIn Recruiter’s AI-Assisted Search and Projects to organize candidates into pipelines
- Meet Alfred and Dux-Soup for managing connections
- Expandi and Zopto for personalized outreach at scale.
How should I follow up with candidates on LinkedIn?
Start with a friendly, concise, and personalized message referencing your initial contact. However, navigating follow-ups thereafter can be a bit trickier. Wait several days to a week between messages to avoid coming off as too pushy. In your second or third follow-up, offer additional value rather than rehashing the same message in different words.
