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Real talk: a lot of LinkedIn profiles look like they were set up for a class assignment in 2022 and never opened again. No photo, no headline, and a summary that just says “Student.” Then people wonder why recruiters never reach out.

Here’s why it matters. At Semper Consulting in Longwood, FL, we find a lot of our candidates through LinkedIn and ZipRecruiter. So do plenty of other companies. If your profile is doing the bare minimum, the right opportunities are scrolling right past you. These seven LinkedIn profile tips take about twenty minutes, so let’s fix that.

Why Recruiters (Including Semper Consulting) Use LinkedIn

Recruiters don’t just wait for applications to roll in. They search. They type in skills, locations, and job titles, and LinkedIn shows them matching profiles. If yours doesn’t include those words, you don’t show up. So if you’re wondering how to get noticed by recruiters, it starts with showing up in those searches.

That’s also why getting a message out of nowhere isn’t automatically weird. We explained exactly how that works in So Semper Consulting Reached Out About Your Resume… Now What?

1. Use a Real Photo (Yes, You Need One)

Profiles without a photo look abandoned, or worse, fake. You don’t need a professional headshot. A clear photo of your face, good lighting, and a plain background is plenty – no sunglasses, no group shots, no cropped-out friend’s shoulder.

2. Write a Headline That Isn’t Just “Student”

Your headline is the first thing a recruiter sees in search results. “Student at UCF” tells them almost nothing. Try something that says what you’re good at and what you want:

• “Communications grad | Customer-focused | Looking for entry-level sales and marketing roles”
• “Former server turned people person | Interested in business development”

Specific beats vague every time.

3. Add Your Location

Recruiters filter by location constantly. If you want to work in Central Florida, make sure your profile says so. Leaving it blank or listing a city you moved away from two years ago means you won’t show up when recruiters search for entry-level jobs in Orlando and the surrounding cities.

4. Count the Experience You Think Doesn’t Count

Serving tables, retail, coaching a youth team, captaining a club, working a campus job: all of it counts. Those roles build exactly what customer-facing careers need: communication, handling pressure, and dealing with all kinds of people. Describe what you actually did and what you got better at, not just the job title. We cover this more in The Career Advice Semper Consulting Wishes More College Students Heard Before Graduating.

5. Fill Out Your Skills and “About” Section

Add real skills (communication, customer service, public speaking, teamwork), so you match more searches. Then write a short About section in your own voice: who you are, what you’re good at, and what you’re looking for next. Three or four sentences are enough.

6. Turn On “Open to Work” (the Smart Way)

LinkedIn lets you signal that you’re open to new roles. You can show it to everyone with the green photo frame, or only to recruiters. Either way, it tells recruiters that you’re worth messaging.

7. Show Up Once in a While

You don’t have to post daily, but liking, commenting, or sharing something occasionally keeps your profile active. An active profile looks like a real person who’s paying attention, because it is.

Bonus: Make Sure the Recruiter Is Real, Too

Getting found is great! Getting scammed is not. Before you reply to any recruiter, check that the message comes from a real company email that matches its website. Our recruiting outreach, for example, only comes from ad***@***************ng.com. If you want the full checklist, we broke it down in Job Offer Giving Scam Vibes? Semper Consulting’s Guide to Spotting the Fakes.

Your Profile Is Your First Impression

Before a recruiter ever talks to you, your LinkedIn has already introduced you. Give it twenty minutes this week, and you’ll be a lot easier to find. And if a career where your people skills really matter sounds like your thing, check out careers at Semper Consulting. Maybe we’ll be the ones reaching out.