How to use LinkedIn to land a job—without sending a single DM

Sending LinkedIn DMs—the digital version of cold-calling—can come across as pushy and is becoming a much-less-effective strategy for job seekers. Luckily, there is so much more that LinkedIn is capable of when it comes to facilitating job hunting. Here experts share their advice for engaging with companies, catching recruiters’ attention, and opening doors to new career opportunities, all without sending unsolicited messages.

Optimize Your Profile for Recruiter Visibility

We see many talented professionals who believe they need to constantly send direct messages to get noticed on LinkedIn, but we find the most effective approach is often more subtle. A fantastic strategy that yields incredible results without any direct outreach involves making your profile do the work for you.

It all starts with the “Open to Work” feature. The real magic happens when you activate it and select the option to be visible only to recruiters. This acts as a discreet signal, letting our team and other recruiters know you are receptive to new opportunities without broadcasting it to your entire network or current employer. The data backs this up. According to LinkedIn research, candidates who use this hidden setting receive 40% more messages from recruiters.

Hanna Koval, Global Talent Acquisition Specialist | Employment Specialist, Haldren

Build Relationships Through Company Engagement

One of the most effective ways to use LinkedIn without ever sending a DM? Flip the job search strategy on its head.

Most people wait for a job posting to appear, then throw their hat into the ring alongside hundreds of others. The problem? Nearly 40% of the time, that job is already filled, in the process of being filled, or it was never really “open” in the first place.

Instead of chasing job postings, start with a Target Company Strategy. Focus on organizations that truly align with you, their mission, vision, products, leadership, and growth potential. That’s where real opportunity lives.

Here’s a proven strategy:

• Follow the company page and engage with their posts, articles, and videos. React, share, and, most importantly, leave thoughtful comments that add value.
• Connect with employees in relevant departments, follow their content, and continue to show up in the conversation.
• Over time, you’ll be noticed, not as “just another applicant,” but as someone already invested in the brand.

This is how you tap into the hidden job market. Opportunities often arise before the job is ever posted, and this strategy puts you in the right place at the right time.

Don’t just wait for jobs. Show up where the opportunities are being created.

Thomas Powner, Executive Career Management Coach, Recruiter, Resume Writer, Career Keynote Speaker, Career Thinker Inc.

Apply Within 24 Hours of Job Posting

Here’s the uncomfortable truth about today’s job market: if you’re not applying to LinkedIn jobs within 24 hours of posting, you will often be invisible to recruiters—no matter how qualified you are. When a desirable position goes live, recruiters often receive 200+ applications within the first 24 hours. Several recruiters have confided to me that they stop reviewing applications once they have a qualified pool of applicants, and this often happens within 24 hours. Why sift through an additional 500 résumés when they already have 200 highly qualified candidates

To capitalize on this reality, create hyper-specific LinkedIn job alerts (like “Marketing Manager” AND “SaaS” AND “growth stage” instead of just job titles), enable mobile push notifications, and build a rapid application tool kit with customizable résumé versions and cover letter templates. This system will empower you to submit quality applications within a two-hour window of receiving alerts.

Adapting to the fundamental change in today’s hiring speed is crucial. Your experience will differentiate you in interviews, but you first need to get into that initial pool of candidates being considered. Perfect applications mean nothing if they’re never seen.

Amanda Fischer, CEO & Executive Career Coach, AMF Coaching & Consulting

Participate Actively in Industry Groups

A simple but often overlooked way to get more out of LinkedIn is by joining a few active groups in your industry and participating in the conversations. Groups are smaller, curated communities where the right people are already gathering. They are the best places to be to get noticed and hear about opportunities, without blasting cold messages to strangers.

The reason this works is because visibility builds over time. When you show up consistently, whether that’s commenting, sharing your perspective, or asking thoughtful questions, you stop being yet another job seeker. Instead of chasing or forcing connections, you become someone others recognize and want to connect with.

To make it practical, choose two or three groups that are clearly active (you’ll see fresh posts and real discussions), then spend 10–15 minutes a few times a week adding value. Stick with it for a month, and you’ll likely see more profile views, new connections, and likely new job opportunities rolling in, all without direct messaging.

Ana Colak-Fustin, Founder, HR Consultant and Recruiter, ByRecruiters

Leverage Company Search for Strategic Applications

By far, one of the strongest strategies a person can use is conducting a company search to find jobs, instead of a regular search through job filters. 

LinkedIn is a very robust platform that offers a great amount of information, and at times it may be difficult to know what to do with it. When you are searching for companies, first, you will get to see the businesses in your industry where you may have first-degree connections and fellow alumni. 

If you are applying to work at a company that has had success in the past with employees from your school, this could work in your favor. After all, “Alumni 4 Life!” Moreover, if you’re applying to work at a company where you have first-degree connections, these individuals may be able to offer you advice prior to any interview, and furthermore serve as internal advocates during your hiring process. 

Company searches also give job seekers insights into which job markets are very active in an industry and location. Finally, this type of search also allows the job seeker to pick the company they want to work for, instead of sorting through the usual “slot machine” of job search results, hoping that something was posted matching their qualifications.

Steven Lowell, Sr. Reverse Recruiter & Career Coach, Find My Profession

Create an Engaging Unemployment Diary

I’ve noticed many viral posts on LinkedIn shared by people who recently lost their jobs. Such posts often collect thousands of likes, comments, and reposts. The idea is to proactively write a heartfelt post about how you lost your job, what financial responsibilities you have, describe your qualifications, and sincerely ask your network to share your post with their connections. You’d be amazed at how responsive people are. Not only do they actively engage with the post, but they also tag recruiters, HR representatives, or entire companies that might be interested in a similar role.

But don’t stop there. Create an “Unemployed Diary” where you share your progress, wins, and setbacks. This way, you naturally create awareness of your situation on the most relevant platform for job seekers and build a new network of valuable connections.

Alina Moskalova, Partnerships and Email Outreach, LinkedHelper

Strategically Integrate Keywords Throughout Your Profile

Your LinkedIn profile must be keyword-optimized if you want to be found on the platform. Imagine you were a recruiter or headhunter looking to fill an open role. What keywords would you type in the search bar to find a candidate?

Now review your profile and ensure those terms are integrated throughout. This isn’t just about keyword stuffing. These words need to be strategically woven into your headline, summary, and experience section. You want prospective employers to find your profile, then be intrigued enough to contact you.

Dr. Kyle Elliott, Founder & Tech Career Coach, CaffeinatedKyle.com

Curate Content to Attract Decision-Makers

Though this strategy may take some time, one way job seekers can use LinkedIn effectively, without direct messaging, is by appealing to the hiring decision-maker or an “influencer” of the decision-maker (not to be confused with a social media influencer) through a curated content strategy. This would begin with the job seeker posting curated content regularly that is relevant to the hiring decision-maker/influencer of their prospective role.

So, what is curated content? In basic terms, curated content refers to external content, such as blogs, articles, and social media posts, that are reposted for a relevant audience. However, it’s not simply reposting this content for the sake of reposting. The job seeker has to provide a relevant perspective of their opinion or insights on the content they are posting. This strategy should begin before connecting with the decision-maker/influencer they’re targeting on LinkedIn. This would increase the level of engagement on the job seeker’s post, making it more likely to appear on the feed of the decision-maker/influencer once the LinkedIn connection is made.

Now, how does the job seeker find the right decision-maker/influencer to connect with? Well, without being in the company or having direct insight into the company’s structure, it will take some guessing and trial and error. However, by performing thorough research through their prospective company’s LinkedIn page, website, and social media pages, the job seeker stands a good chance of finding who they’re looking for or the influencer who can get them to the decision-maker. 

From there, the job seeker should send a LinkedIn connection and monitor engagement on their curated content posts. Suppose the decision-maker/influencer engages with the job seeker’s curated content (like, comment, share, or even reaching out first). In that case, the opportunity arises to begin a casual conversation. If contact is made and the connection is properly nurtured, this could lead to a great relationship and eventually a job.

Terrence Hight, Jr., CEO, Hight Health

Expand Your Network with LinkedIn Open Networkers

Job seekers looking to utilize LinkedIn effectively should consider updating their description to include “LION,” which stands for LinkedIn Open Networker. Then, they should search for LION and start connecting with other “LIONs.” This approach is especially beneficial for LinkedIn users who don’t have many connections because LIONs generally have established lots of connections and will help bring a lower-connected profile closer to other professionals on the overall LinkedIn network.

After establishing connections with numerous LIONs, a user can then start to send connection requests to their target audience with closer connections to that audience, which will result in a higher likelihood of connections being accepted.

Having an active profile is also very important, which means posting unique articles/content that is valuable within the ideal/targeted niche. After connections are accepted by a user’s ideal audience, rather than using direct messages, it can be equally effective to engage on profiles, such as endorsing, commenting, liking, and sharing other users’ posts.

Adam Evans, Creative Director, Thought Media

Establish Credibility Through Insightful Comments

LinkedIn newsletters have great distribution and can be a low-friction way of further engaging your network. If you’re not using them to position yourself as a thought leader in your domain, that’s a missed opportunity, especially if you’re looking for work. Comment on current events, share your perspective on technologies and opportunities, and generally let your voice be heard.

Jonathan Dunnett, CEO, jonathandunnett.com

Engineer Your Profile for Target Roles

Your LinkedIn profile is one of the most important digital assets for your professional brand. The most powerful strategy is to start actively managing it to become optimally findable. Recruiters and opportunities will find a strong personal brand. You need to engineer your brand’s narrative so that LinkedIn’s algorithm understands exactly who you are, what your skill sets are, and why you are the best option.

Here’s the strategy: Define your target role and engineer your entire profile to rank for it. Your headline becomes your brand’s elevator pitch (e.g., “Senior Product Manager | Building User-Centric FinTech Solutions”). Your “About” section tells your personal brand story. And your “Experience” provides the quantifiable achievements that prove your brand’s promise.

By doing this, you’ll be found by relevant people looking to hire: it’s the difference between being a candidate in a pile and being the expert solution they were searching for all along.

Jason Barnard, Serial Entrepreneur, Kalicube

Document and Share Your Professional Work

In a world where strategic thinking is expected from everyone, personal branding and the ability to promote oneself have become more crucial than ever. Yet, most people continue to neglect these aspects. Only about 1% of LinkedIn’s 260 million monthly users post content.

Being excellent at your job is no longer sufficient. People need to be seen doing great work. The proliferation of AI has made verifying the originality and ownership of work more challenging than ever. This is where social validation and networking become essential.

Individuals need to document and share their work online (via LinkedIn, building portfolios, leveraging thought leadership opportunities). It’s important to treat your professional persona like a product—what’s your niche, what customers do you serve, and what impact do you make? Based on these reflections, build community and visibility around your professional work, rather than just sending résumés to HR via direct message. Those who don’t adapt risk falling behind—not because they lack talent, but because they’re not well-known.

Roei Samuel, CEO and Founder, Connectd

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