Topic: LinkedIn for Over 40’s At Melbourne Career Expo
Date: Saturday 26 July 2024 2:30pm – 3:30pm
Organisation: Career Development Association of Australia CDAA
Address: Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre, 1 Convention Centre Place, South Wharf, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia 3006 Door 10
Event details: https://www.careerexpo.com.au
Program: https://www.careerexpo.com.au/wp-content/EventGuides/2025/?page=6
Slides: Below and https://sueellson.com/wp-content/uploads/20250726-melbourne-career-expo-linkedin-for-over-40s-sue-ellson.pdf
YouTube Video: Below and https://youtu.be/UbPAOoIn-Ho
Shared Online: Presentations, Videos, Facebook, Google, LinkedIn Profile, LinkedIn Page, Twitter / X
LinkedIn for Over 40’s
By Sue Ellson
This session
Getting Interviews = Your application is aligned
Getting interviews but not getting a job = Not a fit, ignore reason, continue looking and/or revise strategy
- Background
- LinkedIn Strategies
- Additional Resources
- Questions and Answers
LinkedIn for Over 40’s
Why is this important?
- Ageism does exist
– Some suggest only include last 10 years history - Average age of retirement in Australia 56.9
– Women 54.7, Men 59.4
– Average age people intend to retire is 65.4 years - Peak Earning decreases over time
– Women 44, Men 54
https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/labour/employment-and-unemployment/retirement-and-retirement-intentions-australia/latest-release
https://www.wgea.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/22_05%20AGE%20INFO.pdf
- LinkedIn Profile Completion
- LinkedIn Regular Activity
- LinkedIn Engagement
- LinkedIn Networking
- LinkedIn Referrals
- Do Not Include
- Consider Consulting
- Consider WCH
- Consider LinkedIn Learning
- Maintain Digital Competency
1. LinkedIn Profile Completion
- All Sections completed in detail with Media
(allow 10 hours to complete) - Photo – Energy and Enthusiasm < three years old
- Headline – Label and Keywords – appear in LinkedIn, Online Search and Generative AI Results
- Include all email addresses forever (choose primary)
- Descriptions – include Achievements (past tense), Tasks (present tense) and description of organisation
- Connections > 500
- Views / 90 days > 100
- Searches / 7 days > 50
- Skills Votes top 2 > 20
- Recommendations Both Given & Received > 6
2. LinkedIn Regular Activity
- React to Posts in Newsfeed
- Add Comments to Posts in Newsfeed
- Connect with everyone you meet online or in person – phone, text, email, events etc. from now on
- Respond to Messages promptly
- Respond to Connection Requests promptly
- Respond to Notifications promptly
3. LinkedIn Engagement
- Connections – Endorse their Skills
- Connections – Give Recommendations
- Connections – Ask for Recommendations
- Stop Scrolling on Content (shows value)
- Read Content (shows value)
- Watch selected videos (shows value)
- Teach the Algorithm what you value
4. LinkedIn Networking
- Settings & Privacy, Data Privacy, Get a copy of your Data, Request Archive
- Receive Email
- Immediately Click Link
- Download Files
- Go through list of people in your Network and ‘re-connect’ and reach out to others and connect
5. LinkedIn Referrals
- Search on LinkedIn using ‘All’ Filters
- Search on Google Advanced Search (unlimited) https://www.google.com.au/advanced_search
- See Selected People Results
- Right click, Open in New Tab
- If aligned, invite to connect
- Follow up with information gathering questions and ask for a referral
6. Do Not Include
- Number of years of experience (just list what you can do)
- Commercially sensitive information (but you may be able to use percentages and not dollar amounts)
- Negative comments (focus on solutions)
Read
https://www.linkedin.com/legal/user-agreement
https://www.linkedin.com/legal/professional-community-policies
7. Consider Consulting
- Can start with a LinkedIn Profile only
- Can create a LinkedIn Company Page
- Can list ‘Providing Services’ in Open To section
- Can potentially charge full rates but work less hours and still better than a lower-level full time role
- Best to ease into this transition if you have been working full time for a long time
8. Consider WCH Working Close to Home
- Look on Local Maps for Local Enterprises
- Follow their LinkedIn Company Page
- Click the Notification Bell for ‘All Posts’
- Engage with their content and connect with local employees
- Visit their Website and see if they have a ‘Careers’ section
9. Consider LinkedIn Learning
- Micro Credentials
- Learn Professional Skills
- Learn Personal Skills
- Free Access with Premium (and auto-adds to Licenses and Certifications)
- Free Access with Local Library Card (need to manually add to your LinkedIn Profile)
- Demonstrates you are willing to learn if completed regularly and recently
10. Maintain Digital Competency
- Up to Date on LinkedIn
- Consider yourname.com website
- Make sure you are accessible in a variety of ways
- See what other content about you is online
- Everything in writing can be used in court
- Anything you enter into a device is no longer private (can Hibernate don’t need to Close account)
- Be respectful, always
- Screenshot any concerns and keep records
Professional Support
- CDAA Member
- Pay by the Hour
- Job Skills different to Job Search Skills
- Secure a more aligned and better paying role faster and reuse job search skills in the future
Additional Resources
Skills to get a job not the same as the skills to do a job
- Free careers quiz and job descriptions https://myfuture.edu.au/get-started
- Finding a job guide https://www.vic.gov.au/finding-job
- Career Development Association of Australia https://cdaa.org.au/CDAAWebsite/Web/About-Career-Development/Why-Seek-Career-Support.aspx
- Employee Assistance Programs, Outplacement Services, Selected Recruiters, Education Providers, Local Community or Council Programs
- Beware of advice from well-meaning friends, family and colleagues
- https://sueellson.com/webinars-and-recordings
- https://sueellson.com/melbourne-career-expo-workshops-and-presentations
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