Are you a mum on a career break? If you’re thinking about getting back in then there is one social media network and one social media network only you should be on right now – LinkedIn.

92% of companies use social media for recruitment – in the past few years, there has been huge leap  in the use of social media for recruitment. But please, stop wasting your time scrolling through Facebook because it’s LinkedIn leading the way here with a whopping 93% of companies favouring this media.

So how can use LinkedIn to get back into the work space mamas? Well, the best place to start is by having a totally kick ass profile. Check out these quick wins from Digital Mums to an awesome Linked In profile:

Don’t be ashamed of your career break

First up, don’t be ashamed of your career break. If you took some time off from work to raise your children list this as a ‘career break’ with the relevant dates in your experience section. This is much more preferable than leaving an unexplained gap. Also talk about the skills that you gained from doing this!

Work your headline

Stand out from the crowd by writing more than just your job title and make sure your summary is succinct but distinctively tells businesses what you do and can offer.

It’s all in the picture (sorry lookism, you win!)

Make sure that you use a smart professional photo; recent evidence shows that profiles with a great photo lead to 14 times more profile views. And remember, profiles with a smiley head shot get 25% more views so SMILE!

Tell your job story

Make sure you include all your past experience and list your previous jobs, including the relevant dates and an overview of your job role and responsibilities. List any key results too, milestones hit, personal achievements and impact.

Shout your qualifications loud

Add all your past academic achievements but also list any other awards or interests which give an insight to you and your personality including volunteering or any languages you’re proficient in.

It’s skill-time!

Profiles which include relevant skills get 13 times more views. List all your skills which a potential employer might be interested in and include those from your personal life too.

Find your LinkedIn tribe

Join groups and follow key influencers to stay up to date on what is happening in your industry and find out about any new developments. Over 3 million users share content on LinkedIn weekly – you need to get in on this.

Connect, connect, connect!

By growing your connections this builds your personal brand and profile visibility. Regularly add or accept requests from connections that you think would be beneficial to have in your professional circle.

Are you a mum on a career break? Have you had any experience on using LinkedIn to get back to work? Do share in a comment below. You can also check out these tips on how to return to work after baby.

If you’re interested in learning more about how you can make LinkedIn work for you you can find out more over at Digital Mums and their Social Media Management Courses, which are currently open for admissions for our January and February start dates. You can also sign up to the free seven day email course here on how to create a killer LinkedIn profile.