What if LinkedIn added a ‘Download My CV’ button for open-to-work posts?
Once upon a time, a job seeker on LinkedIn was facing a big challenge. He/She was having a hard time standing out and getting noticed by recruiters. He/She was struggling to find ways to showcase his/her skills and qualifications effectively, and recruiters were having a hard time finding the right candidate for the job.
A job seeker tried to increase his/her visibility by posting that he/she was “Open to Work” on his/her profile. He/She was happy with the awesome avatar.
After a while of non-response, he/she found that the button with the post is called “View Job Preferences”! And it didn’t give a realistic impression of what was needed here!
One day, A UX Designer noticed this problem and had an idea. The first idea came into his mind was that LinkedIn change the text on the “Open Job Preferences” button to something more relevant, such as “Showcase My Skills.” This would allow the job seeker to easily highlight his skills and qualifications to recruiters, making it easier for recruiters to find the right candidate.
He believed that if the job seeker could showcase his/her skills and qualifications more effectively, recruiters would be able to find the right candidate for the job more easily.
Although he/she added all the needed skills in the Linkedin job preferences “Open to work” form, His/Her friends and recruiters started to comment on the post, asking him/her to send his/her CV to an email or recommend him/her to others. This made it difficult for him/her to showcase his/her qualifications throughout the post and respond to each comment.
Long days of observation, while checking the open-to-work posts even with the new solution — The designer then had another idea: (The CV button).
This button would allow the job seeker to easily share his/her CV with recruiters, making it easier for recruiters to find the right candidate.
The designer was excited to roll out a new solution to make it easier for job seekers to share their resumes with potential employers. To ensure the solution was effective, the designer conducted an A/B test with a job seeker who was looking for work.
The job seeker was able to quickly and easily fill out their skills preferences and add their resume to the new section on the profile form. With various options for uploading, selecting, and generating a resume, the job seeker was able to showcase their skills and experience in the best possible way.
The solution
This new feature was a win-win for both recruiters and job seekers. Recruiters could now quickly download and save resumes for future reference, while job seekers had an easier time sharing their resumes with their network and receiving recommendations.
This solution was a win-win for both recruiters and job seekers. However, the designer knew that every feature should be mapped into an ROI method and a new block in the business model to be a multi-winning situation.
Now, with each download, the job seeker would receive a notification. If he/she wanted to view who downloaded his CV, he/she would have to upgrade to a premium account.
By doing this, LinkedIn could potentially increase revenue from premium account subscriptions, and also drive engagement and retention among premium users, as they would have access to more valuable information.
The designer thought that this solution not only would help recruiters, but also help the job seeker to be aware of who is viewing his CV and make a decision to upgrade to a premium account if he/she wanted to see more.
After launching the solution, the UX designer realized that a client from a previous enterprise project had asked him to set up a way to measure success. In order to address this, he/she spent time considering various KPIs that could effectively measure the performance of the new feature.
1- Engagement: In a given month, there were 100 views for an “open to work” post. Out of those 100 viewed, 50 resulted in a direct download of the job seeker’s CV.
2- Revenue: During the same month, there were 10 premium account upgrades, and 5 of those upgrades were directly attributed to the “Download My CV” feature.
By using these metrics, LinkedIn can track the performance of the feature over time and make improvements as needed. Also, The job seeker could now track the number of downloads of his CV and the number of job interviews.
After LinkedIn implemented both changes, the company’s commercial team found an improvement in engagement with the feature and an increase in revenue. The job seeker could now easily showcase his skills and track who was viewing his CV. Recruiters were also happy as they were able to find the right candidate for the job more easily.
Facts:
It’s often said that if you’re not using UX data, it’s not truly UX design.
The solutions discussed here are rooted in various observations and hypotheses, gathered through user research, testing, and analysis.
With the implementation of these changes, not only is the user experience for both recruiters and job seekers being improved, but it’s also increasing engagement and revenue for LinkedIn. This is a true testament to the power of using data and user-centered design principles to create effective and impactful solutions.
Discloses
As part of my research, I included some snapshots that demonstrate the results of relevant studies. Please note that the avatars in these snapshots have been dimmed to protect privacy. Furthermore, I used my personal avatar as part of the solution presented. This disclosure is intended to maintain transparency and integrity in my reporting.
Thank you for taking the time to read this article! I hope it provided valuable insights on how to enhance the job seeker experience on LinkedIn. If you have any questions or comments, please don’t hesitate to share them. www.tarekelsawaf.com
