In theory, recruiters should not be prospecting based on the appearance of candidates, but on their pure skills. A recent survey conducted by Passeport-photo.online with more than 200 decision-makers and HR professionals suggests that the reality… is a bit more complicated than that.
The paradox is this: in the Passeport-photo.online survey, the vast majority of recruiters agree that one should not “judge a book by its cover” (82%) and that a candidate should be chosen “solely on the basis of his or her skills” (78%)… while, in the same breath, 71% of survey participants claim to have already rejected at least one application because of their profile picture. And, more worryingly, nearly 4 out of 10 recruiters admit to doing so on a regular basis!
In other words, the LinkedIn photo is a part of the recruiting process that, while it may not get us a job… it may lose us one. No recruiter would be stupid enough to hire a candidate based on his or her photo alone… however, the risk of being left out of the process is very real.
The authors of the survey asked participants if the photo could be useful in deciding between two candidates with comparable skill sets. And 41% of respondents answered – without flinching – that the photo could be a “deciding factor”. Among survey participants, business leaders were the most likely (90%) to say yes, followed by managers at 60% and HR professionals at 50%.
The weight of a “visual” first impression
If we go deeper into the survey results, we realize that LinkedIn recruiters attribute a particular meaning to this first “visual” contact with the candidate:
96% use the LinkedIn photo to build their confidence in the candidate;
95% consider this photo as a “business card”;
80% think it allows them to “get to know the person better”.
The authors of the survey explain the situation as follows:
Several biases can affect our judgment – there is false uniqueness bias, fundamental attribution error, or social comparison bias. But the one that plays the most is the halo effect. This cognitive bias attributes credit to a person in one aspect of their life based on a judgment made in another aspect.”
In other words, we will tend to give a person credit on their skills if we think they have a nice style of dress. In the same way that a well-dressed doctor – with coat and equipment – will reassure us of his or her expertise.
Mistakes to avoid
In conclusion, the Passeport-photo.online study reports 7 elements that recruiters themselves have identified as “red flags” to avoid on a LinkedIn photo. Here they are:
- 75%, lack of facial visibility;
- 67%, low resolution photo;
- 49%, vacation photo
- 38%, lack of authenticity;
- 28%, use a corporate photo instead of a personal one
- 23%, dress too casual;
- 15%, lack of smile.
What to remember? No smile, that’s fine… But no to the vacations. Recruiters are looking for seriousness. To your Linkedin profiles!
