How to Actually Use LinkedIn to Check Out Your Competition

The other day I was browsing around the interwebs finding interesting topics to write about.  I kept finding articles about what a great idea it is to use LinkedIn for various things.  Using LinkedIn for finding a job is essential!  Or, use LinkedIn to check out your competition...things like that.  The problem is, no one ever tells you how to actually go about it.

Related: Why You Should be Using LinkedIn

Using LinkedIn to see what other people in your industry, and your potential competition for jobs, are up to is a great idea.  Tons of benefits, compare yourself, improve your profile, make yourself stand out...  It all sounds great.  Fabulous advice.  What are you waiting for?  Go do it.  How, you ask?  Well that's the problem, isn't it?  Everyone wants to give you great advice on what you should do but they don't have a clue (or aren't willing to share) on how to actually do it.

So, you want to see how you compare to your competition on LinkedIn?  Here are a few great ways to do exactly that, instructions included.


1.  On your LinkedIn page, go to the search bar at the upper right corner.  There's a drop down of search options.  Choose people.  Then, in the search field enter your job title or job description.  You'll find people in your industry who are using those same words/phrases in their profiles.  Start clicking on them and looking at their profiles.  You could spend all day comparing yourself to everyone else.

2.  In the same search box use the search option drop down again but this time select companies.  Use the same words/phrases as before and you'll see a list of companies that hire people in your industry.  You can look at their LinkedIn pages, learn more about them and find links to their job postings.  You just have to look around on their business page a bit.  They're all different, some will include links directly to openings and some will include links to their main website.  If you go to the main website there should be a "careers" or "jobs" button.

3.  Once again, in the same search box use the search option drop down and select groups.  Using the same words/phrases you can search for groups that are set up specifically for your industry.  Join some of the groups.  Not only will you start to see who your competition is, but you'll be able to engage them in real conversations.  And if you start contributing relevant content to the discussions, they're going to see you as their competition.  And then they're going to start checking you out.

Joining groups like this has another huge benefit that gives you a great advantage.  Recruiters and hiring managers will be members, too.  And they use these groups to help find potential job candidates. Like you.

Related: How to Grow Your LinkedIn Network

Now you're all set to go off and explore LinkedIn like a pro.  Go find who you're up against, who's hiring, learn about new companies in your field, and get noticed by the people doing the hiring.  No excuses, either.  I just told you how to do it, so go.  And if you have any questions or need more of an explanation, put them in the comments.  I'm happy to answer.  Who knows?  Maybe you'll be the inspiration for my next post.  You know, in a good way.