If you want to increase your chances of getting a job interview, make sure your LinkedIn profile is comprehensive and up to date.

According to a new study, job candidates with a comprehensive LinkedIn profile have a 71% higher chance of getting a job interview than those without one.

Even though you have a separate resume, don’t underestimate the importance of your LinkedIn profile. Hiring managers are still going to look you up there as part of the hiring process. And if they don’t like what they see, they will probably just move on.

Resume writing service company, ResumeGo, asked the question, “How does having a LinkedIn profile and including it on a job seeker’s resume actually affect callback rates when it comes to applying to job openings online?” To find the answer, ResumeGo conducted a field experiment from October 9, 2018, to March 8, 2019, in which they submitted 24,570 fictitious resumes to job openings found on various job search websites.

A third of the resumes did not contain a link to a LinkedIn profile, another third included a link to a “bare-bones” LinkedIn profile, and the remaining third included a link to a “comprehensive” LinkedIn profile.

ResumeGo explains that they made the distinction between a “bare-bones” and “comprehensive” LinkedIn profile in order to determine how important it is to employers that applicants spend time building connections on LinkedIn and providing extensive detail of their work history, “as opposed to simply throwing together a LinkedIn profile that provides basic information but lacks the same level of time and effort put into it.”

They found that only comprehensive profiles improved candidates’ interview chances.

Job applicants with a comprehensive LinkedIn profile received a callback rate of 13.5%. This is 71% higher than the 7.9% callback rate of candidates with no profile. And, in fact, those who included a link to a bare-bones profile had an even slightly lower callback rate of 7.2%.

The study categorized job openings as either entry-level, mid-level, or managerial-level. And another finding is that, as job level increased, the importance of including a LinkedIn profile decreased slightly.

“This suggests that employers may care more about LinkedIn when evaluating job seekers in lower-level job positions compared to higher-level job positions.”

I wouldn’t take the chance, and recommend having a comprehensive LinkedIn profile regardless.

Creating a comprehensive profile means making use of as many of the available LinkedIn sections as possible. Make sure your work and education history are up to date, but also list your volunteer experience and any awards you’ve won. Interact with your online network, and take the opportunity to post articles or updates when and where suitable.

Look at your profile and imagine that you are an employer. Ask yourself if you would hire you, and if not, what it would take to change that.