LinkedIn And Having a Strong Nanny Profile
Social channels not only help you find nanny jobs, but they also help you get your nanny profile out there. And one platform stands out when it comes to looking professional. And that’s LinkedIn.
Here’s why LinkedIn should be part of your online nanny profile presence and how best to approach the platform.
The nanny search landscape is changing
How families and agencies find nannies has dramatically changed over the last couple of years, From job boards on Facebook to agencies that solely exist online.
An array of digital services has complemented the traditional agency. And parents have embraced these new ways not just to find their perfect nanny, but also to research a potential Nanny.
This makes it important to consider what you are putting out there and where you are putting it.
The what before the where
Before we get onto where to post, let’s take a second to think about what you post.
I bet we’ve all done it at some point (haven’t we?); I popped our name into Google and looked at what came up. And if you’re a nanny looking for a new job, I recommend doing this. It’s what many parents and nanny agencies will do: make sure you are happy with what’s out there!
- Search your name on Google, click on the first few relevant links, and check out what images surface. If you don’t like what you find, find the source and remove it. In many instances, this will fix any issues.
- If there’s something that you don’t like and you can’t fix it, speak to the platform that it’s on and work with them to take it down. Recently, all the social platforms have become much better at helping people address issues like this.
- Then, check the security on ALL your social channels. We all have private lives, and it’s not always best that Friday night meets Monday morning!
When that’s all sorted, check out any nanny profiles you have and ensure they are all in order, up to date and sharing all the correct information.
We will explore more fully what goes into online profiles on platforms like LinkedIn a little later on.
And now for the where
There are hundreds of different social media platforms, but if we take the top three most relevant ones and boil them down to what they do best:
Facebook: Community interaction through profiles, pages and groups
Instagram: Capturing moments in pics
Twitter: News and updates (Can be a little toxic!)
None of these are that good for putting your professional profile out there.
And that’s where LinkedIn comes in!
LinkedIn allows you to create a page that’s all about your professional skills, e.g. Your professional nanny profile
It’s easy to list your nannying skills, experiences, accreditations, and previous roles (where you are happy to). Not only that, but you can also encourage previous employers to leave short references to give your profile even more credibility.
Think of this as an online CV that readily tells prospective employers what you are about.
After all, nannies are professionals, so why not use the tools other professionals engage with?
It’s bigger than you think!
LinkedIn has over a billion registered members worldwide and over 40 million in the UK alone (source: LinkedIn About Us)
With these numbers, a family with business professionals will likely have a LinkedIn profile. So make it easy for families to find you.
What’s the reward with LinkedIn?
All of this does take effort, so there has to be a payoff!
Here are the primary rewards we identified:
Go where they are: If we agree that most professional households looking to employ a nanny have a LinkedIn account, it makes sense to be there, too!
Being on the platforms they are most comfortable with may help you stand out.
Sets the right tone: LinkedIn is for professionals, and being on it shows that you consider your role to be that of a professional – which it most certainly is.
Helps build confidence: An essential part of the search process is checking references and experience. And here, you can set out yours. Not only that, but it’s also your chance to check the family out. Remember, reference checking works both ways!
Easy to maintain and share: it takes a little time to set up your profile, but once it’s done, it’s done! Going back into it and updating it as your career and experience develop is straightforward.
You can easily share your nanny profile with a link. So after that first interview, when you are both eager to find out more about the role and each other, you can proactively invite your potential employer to have a look at your profile – this sends a powerful message that you are a serious contender and could be that extra thing that lands you the role.
The landscape is changing: If we look over to the US, the nanny industry is much more developed regarding LinkedIn. So, if this trend follows other tech trends, the UK will see a much more significant LinkedIn presence over the coming years. So why not get ahead? And if it doesn’t take off, you’ll still have a digital version of your CV hosted on a highly respected business platform – what’s to lose?
Networks that work together
Having made the case for LinkedIn, we hope you agree it can have strong uses for nannies and their professional nanny profiles. But it can’t work on its own!
LinkedIn will likely complement the other sites you use to search for roles and engage with community groups. So, if you like what you read, add it to the list of networks you engage with and take some time to finesse your nanny profile to make the best impression!
