If you’ve already joined the LinkedIn Groups that your targeted hiring managers belong to, then you’re probably aware of how being part of such industry groups helps you stay informed of topics your targeted hiring managers are concerned with.
Another way to find industry-related LinkedIn Groups worth joining is to do a group search. Simply click on Groups from the drop-down menu next to the search bar and type in your industry or field. When the results pop up, focus on active groups, which usually have more than 150 members. (Typically, the largest groups appear at the top of a search-results list; they’re the ones worth joining.)
Every industry has a professional organization and typically these professional organizations have LinkedIn Groups. Type in the abbreviation or whole name of some professional organizations in your target industry and join their groups.
The trick with using LinkedIn Groups for industry trends is to look for patterns and levels of interest. Patterns are similar topics between two or more groups. You may see wind-turbine real estate issues appear in several green energy groups. Chances are something is going on there. Also the group’s page lets you see the most popular topics. Make note of these topics because they’re most likely on people’s minds.
Fellow members of professional groups on LinkedIn are often eager to help. People often post requests for advice about starting in a certain field and receive more than 50 replies from good Samaritans. So don’t be afraid to leverage these groups to learn as much as you can.