Picture this: you’ve got a rockstar LinkedIn profile. You’re getting the best job offers from the best recruiters who work for the best companies in the world. Best of all, you’ve got the premium subscription that every LinkedIn professional raves about.
But, is it really all it’s cracked up to be? Is LinkedIn Premium worth it?
To find out more about a piece of LinkedIn that seems to be reserved for the best of the best, keep reading. We’ll cover everything you need to know.
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What Is LinkedIn Premium?
LinkedIn Premium is a subscription-based service that attaches to your regular LinkedIn account. The premium version of LinkedIn offers several extra features to your LinkedIn account. These features vary from career advice to learning opportunities.
LinkedIn released a subscription service so that they could offer extra features that professionals of age ages had been asking for. These include educational, professional, and conversational features that can help expand your reach.
How Is LinkedIn Premium Different?
LinkedIn Premium offers features that someone with a base account wouldn’t be able to access.
To compare, let’s look at LinkedIn’s free features:
- Build your professional brand
- Search for and view others’ profiles on LinkedIn
- Message your connections on LinkedIn
- Find and connect with professionals across the platform
- Join and contribute to groups on the platform
- Request and give recommendations
- Save up to three searches and activate weekly notifications for those searches
Now, let’s look at the additional features that come with LinkedIn Premium:
- InMail: a messaging platform within LinkedIn that allows you to message any of LinkedIn’s members, minus a few high-profile members
- LinkedIn Learning: an educational platform that allows viewers to learn about a wide range of business subjects
- Increased search: you can look at a higher number of search results than someone without LinkedIn Premium
- Salary Checker: a platform that allows users to look at salary breakdowns by job title and location
- Job Insights: a business platform that allows users to see whether or not they’d be competitive for a specific job that they’re looking at
- CV Builder: a platform that allows you to create and export a CV
- Saved searches: you’ll be able to save more searches and have LinkedIn notify you about these searches
- Profile views: you’ll be able to see everyone who viewed your profile in the past 90 days
- Company Insights: this platform allows you to see insights from other business pages
Keep in mind that those with LinkedIn Premium still have access to the features that every base account with LinkedIn has.
LinkedIn Learning
One of the platforms on LinkedIn Premium that we feel deserves a deeper dive is the LinkedIn Learning platform. It remains one of the most popular platforms on LinkedIn Premium.
LinkedIn Learning is an online educational platform that allows its users to explore and watch courses on a variety of professional topics. Any person who is looking to learn more about business-related topics can use LinkedIn Learning to expand their knowledge.
With hundreds of videos on a range of topics, there’s bound to be something that you want to learn about. Some courses even offer certifications that you can show off after you’re done.LinkedIn Salary Checker
As we said, LinkedIn’s Salary Checker lets you look at the breakdown for salaries based on job title and location. Understanding salary breakdowns for positions that you’re considering is extremely advantageous for negotiations.
If you’re considering or looking for a new job, it’s worth doing some salary research. Understanding what others are paid for the job that you’re looking at can help you determine what kind of salary you should be asking for.
Others use the platform to figure out whether or not they are deserving of a raise in their current role.
The LinkedIn Salary Checker is a part of Premium Business, a tri-fold platform that comes with the LinkedIn Premium subscription. With LinkedIn’s Salary Checker, you’ll get Job Insights and a CV Builder, which we discussed above.
How Much Does LinkedIn Premium Cost?
There are four different platforms that LinkedIn offers for premium subscriptions:
- Career
- Business
- Sales
- Hiring
The Premium Career path is $29.99 per month, excluding sales tax. With this selection, you’ll get the following additions to your LinkedIn account:
- You can receive three InMail messages per month
- You can see who has looked at your LinkedIn profile in the past 90 days
- You can make it to the top of recruiters’ lists
- You can compare yourself to other job applicants
- You can look at salary insights using Premium Business
- You can look at educational resources using LinkedIn Learning
The Premium Business path is $47.99 per month, excluding sales tax and if paid annually. You get all of the Premium Career path bonuses. However, in addition, you get fifteen InMail messages, you can browse and look at profiles up to the third degree, and you can see business insights.
The Sales Navigator Professional path is $64.99 per month, excluding sales tax and if paid annually. Again, you’ll get everything associated with the Premium Career path as well as 20 InMail messages and access to lead-developing tools, lead lists, and lead recommendations.
The Recruiter Lite (Hiring) plan is $99.95 per month, excluding sales tax and if paid annually. As well as those features that come with the Premium Career path, you’ll receive thirty InMail messages, more advanced search, unlimited visibility of your extended network, and advanced applicant tracking.
Which LinkedIn Plan Is the Best?
If you’re an individual, you shouldn’t go higher than the Premium Career track. This has the educational and professional resources that any single person needs.
However, if you’re running a business that’s featured or running through LinkedIn, you should consider a higher plan. The LinkedIn Premium Business plan is a great place to start. As your business grows, you may want to upgrade to a higher plan.
Overall, LinkedIn plans can be a great addition to anyone’s LinkedIn experience. They are especially helpful for those of you who are on LinkedIn often. Plus, they are outstanding resources for those of you who are looking to make outstanding LinkedIn profiles.
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How Does LinkedIn Premium Help You Get a Job?
If you’re an individual looking for a job, LinkedIn Premium can help you get connected with a recruiter. However, LinkedIn Premium is better on the recruiter’s end.
LinkedIn Premium allows individuals to contact and communicate with recruiters using InMail, but recruiters have an easier time finding individuals using the features on their end of the conversation.
That being said, it’s important to recognize that LinkedIn Premium does push its users to the top of recruitment lists, hiring lists, and more. So, if you’re looking for a quick job change, LinkedIn Premium may be the best way to do so.
Is LinkedIn Premium Worth It in 2021?
One of the most common questions regarding LinkedIn Premium is whether or not the extra cost is worth it. The truth is that it completely depends.
As with any subscription service, you should make sure that you’re actually using the service that you’re paying for. You shouldn’t waste money on LinkedIn Premium if you aren’t going to take advantage of the services that you get from doing so.
Most popularly, LinkedIn Learning is the primary reason for people to purchase the LinkedIn Premium membership. So, if you’re considering the membership, you might want to think about whether or not the LinkedIn Learning platform is enough for you.
We should also note that every LinkedIn profile gets a free month of LinkedIn Premium. This is an opportunity that may be able to help you figure out if the premium membership is worth the cost for you.
Is LinkedIn Premium Worth It for Job Seekers?
If you’re looking for a job, LinkedIn Premium may be worth the price. With the various business resources, you may be able to get your profile on the top of recruiters’ lists.
However, you should think about whether or not the business resources (Learning, CV Maker, etc.) are worth your money.
Is LinkedIn Premium Worth It for Students?
The main resource that students use on LinkedIn Premium is LinkedIn Learning. In fact, some schools offer LinkedIn Learning for students for free.
However, YouTube videos may be enough for the knowledge that a student needs.
How Do I Cancel My LinkedIn Subscription?
If you’ve invested in LinkedIn Premium and you’ve decided that it’s time to end the subscription, you should cancel your membership before you waste any more money. Just follow these steps:
- Click the profile icon at the top of the LinkedIn Homepage
- Select “Premium subscription settings” from the dropdown menu
- On the right rail, locate “Manage Premium” and click it
- Select “Cancel subscription”
- Click “Continue” to confirm the cancellation of your subscription
How Else Can I Boost My Career?
So, is LinkedIn Premium worth it? Well, that depends on what you’re looking to get out of the platform.
If you’re looking to get a job, you’re probably better off with the standard version. But, if you’re looking to wow the entire platform of professionals, it’s worth the investment.
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