How to Get LinkedIn Endorsements That Actually Matter

Why Most LinkedIn Endorsements Are Useless

You have 47 endorsements for "Microsoft Office." You have 23 endorsements for "Leadership" from people you haven't worked with in five years. You have 9 endorsements for "Teamwork" from connections who never saw you on a team.

None of that helps you get a job.

Recruiters know endorsements are easy to give. One click, no context, no accountability. That's why most endorsements sit in the background of your profile like decoration. They're not weighted heavily in how recruiters evaluate candidates, and they rarely tip a hiring decision.

But endorsements can still matter, if you approach them strategically. The problem isn't endorsements. The problem is that most job seekers collect them randomly instead of deliberately.

What Endorsements Actually Do on LinkedIn

Endorsements feed LinkedIn's search algorithm. When a recruiter searches for "SQL," profiles with more SQL endorsements tend to rank higher in the results, particularly for skills marked as your top three. That's the main mechanical value.

Endorsements also provide a signal at a glance. A recruiter scanning your Skills section sees that 42 people agree you have strength in Product Strategy. That doesn't confirm it, but it makes your self-reported skill look less self-reported.

What endorsements do not do: they do not replace evidence. No number of endorsements for "Sales" will close a hiring conversation if you can't point to quota attainment. The goal is to make endorsements work in harmony with your experience section and recommendations, not to substitute for them.

Step One: Fix Your Skills Section First

Endorsements only help if the skills they attach to are the right skills. Before you ask for a single endorsement, audit your Skills section.

Keep only 10 to 15 skills total. LinkedIn allows 50, but recruiters see only the top handful. A profile with 50 skills looks unfocused and dilutes the endorsements you do have across too many line items.

Pin the three skills that matter most for the roles you want. Your pinned skills appear at the top and receive the most endorsement traffic. If you want roles in product management, your top three should be things like Product Strategy, User Research, and Roadmap Planning, not Microsoft Excel.

Match the skills in job descriptions you're applying to. Pull three or four job postings for roles you want. Find the skills that appear in all of them. Those are the skills to feature.

Delete the generic filler. "Teamwork," "Leadership," "Communication," "Problem Solving" are vague and add nothing. Replace them with specific, searchable skills that recruiters actually search for.

If you need help pruning your skills list, our guide to optimizing the LinkedIn Skills section walks through exactly how to choose.

Step Two: Ask the Right People

Random endorsements from distant connections dilute your profile. Targeted endorsements from relevant people strengthen it. The difference comes down to who you ask.

Prioritize endorsers in this order:

1. Former managers. An endorsement from someone who managed you carries real weight. It's the closest thing to a mini reference.

2. Direct teammates. People who worked alongside you on projects can credibly endorse specific skills they watched you use.

3. Clients or customers. External endorsements signal that your skills translate beyond your own company.

4. Cross-functional partners. People from other departments who partnered with you add breadth.

Deprioritize: recruiters you've never worked with, LinkedIn acquaintances from conferences, friends and family, and people who endorsed you out of habit.

Step Three: Write the Ask Correctly

Do not send a mass message. Do not use LinkedIn's default "Would you endorse me?" auto-message. Both read as lazy, and both produce lower-quality endorsements, if any.

Here's a script that works:

"Hi [Name], I'm updating my LinkedIn profile for a job search and trying to make sure the skills I feature match the roles I'm targeting. Would you be willing to endorse me for [one or two specific skills]? Totally fine if not, no pressure. If you'd prefer to write a short recommendation instead, that would mean even more. Happy to return the favor for anything you'd like to highlight."

Why this works: you're asking for something specific (not vague), you're giving them an out (no pressure), you're offering reciprocity (a favor), and you're signaling you're actively job searching (social proof that this matters).

Step Four: Give Endorsements Deliberately

When you endorse someone, LinkedIn often prompts them to endorse you back. This isn't manipulation, it's how the platform is designed to work. Use it.

Spend 15 minutes per week endorsing people in your network for skills you've actually seen them demonstrate. Not mass-endorsing everyone for everything. Specific, earned endorsements.

This does two things: it keeps you top of mind for your connections, and it invites reciprocal endorsements without you ever having to ask.

Step Five: Leverage Endorsements Into Something Stronger

Endorsements are the easy version of a recommendation. If someone endorses you, especially a former manager or senior teammate, that's a signal they'd likely write a recommendation too.

A recommendation is worth 100 endorsements. It's a full paragraph of specific, attributed praise that shows up prominently on your profile. Recruiters read them. Endorsements, they skim.

If you want to learn how to get strong recommendations quickly, read our guide on getting LinkedIn recommendations fast.

Mistakes That Hurt Your Profile

Having too many skills listed. 47 skills looks like you don't know what you're good at. Cut it to 15.

Endorsements for irrelevant skills ranking at the top. LinkedIn shows your most-endorsed skills first. If "Microsoft Word" is at the top of your Skills section as a senior product manager, that's a signal mismatch. Pin the skills that matter.

Mass-endorsing your entire network. It feels like engagement, but it trains people to endorse you back carelessly, which produces noise instead of signal.

Paying for endorsements. There are services that promise this. They use fake accounts. LinkedIn detects and strips them, often after flagging your profile. Don't.

Reciprocal trades with strangers. "I'll endorse you if you endorse me" trades are common. They produce endorsements that mean nothing because neither person has worked together.

A 30-Minute Endorsement Refresh Checklist

Block 30 minutes this week and do these six things in order:

1. Trim your Skills section to 15 or fewer skills, matched to your target roles.

2. Pin the three skills most important for the jobs you want.

3. Delete any skills with a low endorsement count or irrelevant to your target direction.

4. Identify 10 former colleagues or managers worth messaging.

5. Send personalized endorsement requests, asking for specific skills.

6. Endorse five people in your network for skills you've actually seen them use.

Done consistently, you'll rebuild your Skills section with endorsements that actually support your job search, instead of decorating the page.

The Bigger Picture

Endorsements are a tactic, not a strategy. They help a little. They never win a job for you on their own.

Your profile wins jobs when your headline, about section, experience bullets, and skills all point in the same direction, the direction of the role you want. Endorsements are one reinforcing signal in that system.

If your Skills section feels chaotic and you're not sure which skills to feature, or whether your whole profile is aligned to the roles you're targeting, a professional audit gives you clear answers. Get a free Avery LinkedIn audit to see how recruiters actually see your profile, and exactly what to fix first.