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May 1, 2015

Want to tap into this year’s top trend and recruit passive candidates for your business? A survey has revealed that LinkedIn is one of the best sources for passive candidates.

While only 25 percent of global respondents are actively looking for a new job, a massive 45 percent are open to discussing opportunities with a recruiter. If you’re still relying on hiring active candidates to fill your roles, think again.

Here’s how you can use LinkedIn to source the top passive candidates.

Advanced keyword searches

Successful search results are all about using the right keywords.

In general, recruiters and employers will begin by searching the most obvious job titles for a specific role and broaden or narrow their searches depending on the results. LinkedIn’s advanced search function further means results can then be filtered by criteria such as qualifications, current employer, location and so on.

Not all passive candidates will keep their LinkedIn profile updated with new keywords and those who don’t have a keyword optimized profile will be harder to find in initial searches. I recommend heading over to a jobs board and making a note of the most commonly used job titles to find variations of the name of the role as this increases the likelihood of finding the quality passive candidates.

Recruiters who regularly use LinkedIn to source candidates can also look for “warm” leads from the suggested connections. Suggested second and third degree connections are shown in this section and it’s possible that some of these passive candidates may be relevant.

LinkedIn groups

LinkedIn groups aren’t just for graduates looking out for opportunities. These groups are home to industry experts across a wide range of different sectors who share advice and expertise on their profession. Follow discussions in groups which relate to the roles you’re trying to fill and look out for insightful contributors.

The “members” page can be used to search through the members of that group and can also be filtered by keyword. As a member of a LinkedIn group, you will be able to send private messages to other group members without needing to be connected.

If you know your industry well, there’s a lot to be gained from contributing to group discussions yourself. This will prove you’re genuine, and can be a good way to gain trust amongst those in the field. This approach can prove fruitful as potential candidates will be able to reach out to you.

Pulse contributors

Looking for industry experts? You’ll be sure to find them on Pulse, LinkedIn’s publishing platform. Previously only those invited by LinkedIn — known as the “Influencers” — were able to contribute articles to LinkedIn’s Pulse, but now the platform is open to all members.

The “discover” tab on LinkedIn’s Today page to search for users who write industry-specific articles — many of these contributors will be very talented passive candidates. By writing about their field they show they are informed, hard-working and passionate.

Pay particular attention to articles which spark debates in the comment section. Look at commentators who have something of value to add to the conversation, as well as the article writer themselves.

LinkedIn’s advanced search function, industry specific groups and career focused self-publishing platform means that the site could easily be your number one platform for sourcing quality passive candidates.