As a recruiter, your XING profile is your virtual business card and often the first point of contact for your potential applicants. Don't miss out and make a professional impression right from the start with your XING presence.
The following checklist will help you create a professional XING profile for recruiters.
In doing so, we will give you step-by-step tips on:
- setting up your privacy settings,
- the creation of your XING profile
- and on how to make the most of it.
Setting up your privacy settings
Here's how to get to the "Settings" section.
- Log in to XING with your login details.
- Click on your small profile photo or shadow image in the top left navigation to access the "Settings" section.
- Go to the "Privacy" section.
Now decide for yourself who can access your profile information and which of your professional news and activities you want to make public. Also find out what data about you is stored on XING.
Creating your XING profile
Make sure your profile is public and discoverable by search engines. This gives potential talent the opportunity to find you easily. Highlight your authentic portfolio, if available. This way, profile visitors will land directly on your portfolio - and not on the personal profile details as before.
Customize the visibility of your contact list. As a recruiter, you have built up a valuable talent pool with whom you are connected via XING. It is therefore recommended that you make your contact list visible "to no one" so that competitors cannot search your contact list for potential talent.
Your activities
Check if you have unlocked your news section for all members. This is the only way that talents with whom you are not networked will have the opportunity to get in touch with you via a XING message.
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The major updates around your profile, you should edit the "Your activities" area beforehand and exclude that your contacts on the XING home page are informed about each adjustment at the same time.
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More information about your privacy settings and data protection on XING.
The business card
Upload an appealing cover image. Use an authentic, professional profile picture. Highlight the most important stations. Edit your business card entries and update them as your resume changes.
Store your contact information. This way, give potential talent the opportunity to contact you directly if they are interested in your company or a job opportunity. Edit your career preferences.
The profile details
Increase your findability in the XING network. Keep profile details comprehensive and up-to-date at all times. As a Premium member, you can find out more about the benefits of complete XING profile details for recruiters in your personal Premium Insights. Here you will also find exciting information about your existing profile entries and additional suggestions for your XING profile.
Provide the "Skills" section with relevant and versatile keywords. Choose your keywords as versatile as possible and put yourself in the perspective of your profile visitors. Think about what you offer to be findable within your industry. Enter this content in the "Skills" section. As a premium user, you even have the option to visually highlight your top three skills. Increase the findability of your XING profile with targeted keywords in the "Skills" section.
Keywords in the "Wants" field also determine your findability. Here, you have the opportunity to arouse the interest of your profile visitors through an interplay of concrete job titles and desired social skills. Store your current job advertisements or recurring positions that you offer here in order to address potential talents with an interesting job offer.
Complete your work experience
Give the talent an overview of your previous jobs and use the available description field for detailed information. If the fields on your previous contact points and associated job description are well filled out, this can help your talent see eye-to-eye.
List special qualifications and personal interests.
Your language talents, awards and interests, and volunteer activities also deserve a place in your profile. The more a visitor learns on your page, the more comprehensive and memorable their image of you will be. In this way, you also make it easier for the potential talent to make initial contact.
The portfolio
What is the XING Portfolio all about? The "Portfolio" is a customizable page of your XING profile. What sounds unspectacular at first can, with a little creativity, become the new flagship of your company and professional identity on XING. You can determine the structure and content of the portfolio yourself - and there are (almost) no limits to your creativity. All modules of the portfolio can be arranged individually for our Premium members and thus provide a lively addition to the personal profile details.
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As always, put yourself in the perspective of your XING Portfolio visitor. The first contact, for example by means of a XING message, has been made, and now it's time to continue convincing! What should the talent definitely get to see during a profile visit? What can help present your company in a positive light? Is it great, authentic pictures and a few nice lines?
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First, give your visitors a quick overview by including company logos and taglines for recognition.
Text modules are a great way to reveal more comprehensive information about the company or yourself. The portfolio is also a great way to showcase the company's careers page or frequently recurring job profiles, as well as special benefits your organization offers to employees.
Want the portfolio to look more lively? No problem! Pictures can also be easily inserted - so you can show potential talents all the authentic shots of everyday work in your company! You can upload images in JPG, PNG, and BMP formats up to 5 MB in size and include an image caption and description.
You have a video of the last summer party or team outing? Then use it to give your company a vibrant image and show visitors what to expect from you as a potential company. You can upload videos from YouTube or Vimeo that your profile visitors can view directly in the portfolio.
Of course, the portfolio should also help you recruit even better and target the right talent. Therefore, don't forget to fill the page with relevant content. For example, store current job advertisements and PDFs so that potential talents can immediately get an overview of the positions you offer.
To make it easier for potential talents to contact you, feel free to leave your contact details here as well.
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Your portfolio is well done, and you want everyone to see it? Then make a change in your XING settings so that all visitors land directly on your portfolio - and not in the personal profile details as before. To do this, you only need to edit your privacy settings and set that profile visitors from now on land directly on your portfolio.
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