By now, you’ve probably noticed the LinkedIn green dot on some of your connections’ LinkedIn profiles (see below). You might even have asked yourself, “What does the green dot on LinkedIn mean?”
In a nutshell, the LinkedIn green dot is the easiest way you have to signal recruiters that you’re active on LinkedIn right now.
That matters because they are much more likely to message you if they think you will see their outreach.
How to Manage Active Status on LinkedIn
Thus, if you’re a job seeker, it benefits you to turn on your Active status.
To do this:
- Click your mini-me photo on the top, horizontal rail of your profile.
- Choose “Settings & Privacy.”
- Click “Visibility” on the left vertical rail, then “Visibility of your LinkedIn activity.”
- Scroll down to “Manage Active Status” in the central column.
- Click “Change” and choose “All LinkedIn Members.”
Within a few minutes, that turns on your Active status and your green dot.
How Can I Tell if Someone is Active on LinkedIn?
As a bonus, turning on your Active status also lets you see other members’ Active statuses (per their “all members” or “connections” selections).
Thus, if you want to send someone a LinkedIn message, you will now have more information about whether or not they’re currently active on the site.
Keep a LinkedIn Window Open on Your Computer
If you aren’t currently active on LinkedIn (logged in with a LinkedIn window open), your green dot won’t display.
So, if you’re open to recruiters’ messages, always keep a LinkedIn window open on your computer.
The Green & White Dot — Your 2nd-Best Friend
Continuing from above, I know you can’t always keep a LinkedIn window open on your computer.
However, you can activate a push notification on your smartphone that pings you whenever you get a LinkedIn message.
When you do that, and you’re not active on LinkedIn, your profile will display a green and white dot instead of a green dot (see below). It lets recruiters know you will get a notification that you received a message.
Thus, it’s also a good idea to have the push notification enabled.
Enabling LinkedIn Push Notifications
To turn your push notification on for messages, grab your phone and:
- Install the LinkedIn app if you haven’t already.
- Go to your profile on your phone.
- Tap the Settings gear in the upper-right corner of your screen.
- Choose “Communications” in the top, horizontal rail.
- Click “Push.”
- Click “Conversations.”
- Turn on “Messages you have received.”
What’s Your LinkedIn Green Dot Preference?
Would you rather say, “Nobody’s home,” with no green dot:
Or let recruiters know their messages will reach you by displaying a solid green dot or a green and white dot? I know what I advise my clients to do.
Another Way to Help Recruiters Contact You
BTW, not all recruiters like to message potential candidates via the LinkedIn site. Because of that, it’s also a good idea to make it easy for them to find your email address on your profile.
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Featured by Career Sherpa
Updated December 2021
© 2019 – 2021, Donna Svei. All rights reserved.
Donna Svei, an executive resume writer and former C-level executive, retained search consultant, and CPA, authors all of AvidCareerist’s posts.
She has written for and been quoted by 100+ business and general media outlets, including Forbes, Mashable, Fast Company, Inc., Entrepreneur, CNBC, the New York Times, USA Today, Time, US News & World Report, CBS, the BBC, Lifehacker, Social Media Today, IT World, and Business News Daily.
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Comments 4
Another way to use the LinkedIn green dot? When you see recruiters active on LinkedIn, engage them by sending a message about their organization and a specific role that caught your attention. You can also review their LinkedIn profile to see if they prefer a direct email [like me :-) ] or phone call. Whether connecting to build your network or looking for your next role, use LinkedIn tools to their fullest!
Angela,
I love the way you flipped this and made the post even more valuable!
Yes, not only does LinkedIn’s green dot let recruiters see when job seekers are active on the site, job seekers can also spot recruiters who are open to being contacted via their green dots.
Thank you,
Donna
Job Seekers need to know about this. I will be adding a link to this blog to our “Clients Only” web pages! Job seekers need to do everything they can to help recruiters recognize they are in a job search and to contact them.
And, I still see profiles that don’t have an email address on them anywhere!
I just had a service provider last week that I couldn’t get ahold of, so they lost the business. They didn’t respond to a LinkedIn message and their email address was nowhere to be found. I wouldn’t want to be that job seeker or service provider that misses out because they don’t make it easy to contact them!
Donna,
I agree. LinkedIn launched the green dot in August 2017, yet not that many people use it. It’s a shame.
Donna