So, you’ve been scrolling Indeed for hours. Nothing new. LinkedIn feels like déjà vu. Yet, your friend casually mentions they’ve landed a job that never appeared online. Welcome to the hidden job market, roles that never hit the job boards.
Broad estimates suggest anywhere between 50–70% of vacancies are filled without ever being advertised. That’s a lot of opportunities slipping under the radar, which is also really good news for jobseekers who possess the right ideas and approach to finding them.
With the right approach you can tap into hidden job opportunities (and face less competition for them as well), below we’ll cover the basics you need to know…
What’s In:
Why Companies Don’t Advertise All Roles
Five Practical Ways to Access Hidden Jobs
Use This Free ATS Job Search Tool
How to Maximise Your Chances
Final Thoughts
Why Companies Don’t Advertise All Roles
It’s not some great conspiracy. There are practical reasons jobs never reach the usual places:
REFERRALS SAVE TIME
Hiring managers often prefer a trusted recommendation over sifting through 200 CVs.
INTERNAL PROMOTIONS
A role is earmarked for someone already in the company.
BUDGET CONSTRAINTS
Posting ads on job boards costs money. Not every business wants to spend it.
NICHE HIRES
For very specific or senior roles, companies go directly to recruiters or headhunters.
➡️ Job search tip: Don’t assume “no advert” means “no vacancy”. It just means you need a different approach.
Five Practical Ways To Access Hidden Jobs
Accessing the hidden job market involves being a little more proactive than just scrolling job boards. Don’t think of it as extra work, think of it as a different approach.
1. // TAP INTO YOUR NETWORK
Most unadvertised jobs are filled via people already in the loop. That could be friends, ex-colleagues, or even someone you met at a conference five years ago.
Not sure how to reach out? Keep it simple:
“Hi [Name], I’m exploring new opportunities in [industry]. If you hear of anything coming up, I’d love to be considered. Happy to return the favour too.”
Another great tip is to ask for an introduction…
When searching for key employers to target on LinkedIn any who are 2nd degree connections will have a “Mutual Connections” section. A great way to make a soft introduction is to ask someone you already know to introduce you to that prospect, a personal introduction carries far more weight than a cold outreach, it will almost guarantee you some kind of response.
➡️ Job search tip: Don’t just ask for jobs. Ask for advice, it’s less awkward, and often more fruitful.
2. // USE LINKEDIN PROPERLY
Scrolling your feed simply isn’t enough. Here are some tips to make it work for you:
Follow companies you want to work for and then follow the key decision makers within these companues. Hiring managers often post before HR and recruiters do.
Engage with industry groups, many roles are shared in closed communities first.
Update your profile headline to something search-friendly, e.g. “London based Marketing Manager seeking new opportunities in fintech”.
When scrolling your feed change the default to “date” instead of “relevancy”, this way you’ll avoid all the popular posts and will see the most recent posts and opportunities.
➡️ Job search tip: Consistently comment intelligently on posts... Recruiters will start to notice.
3. // CONTACT RECRUITERS DIRECTLY
Recruiters live in the hidden job market. Often, they’re briefed on roles before they’re public, or that will never be public.
Make their job easy: Email them your CV with a clear subject line (“Finance Analyst – immediately available”). State your availability, location, and salary expectations upfront.
Email them regularly, once p/w, each time updating your email slightly, but keep it professional, not desperate. Target specialist recruiters, those that only deal in vacancies like the ones you want.
➡️ Job search tip: Build relationships, not transactions. A recruiter who trusts you will call first when a new role lands.
4. // REACH OUT TO COMPANIES
As we know, not every opening is advertised but this is especially true in smaller firms where budgets and methods are tight. Identify 20 businesses you’d love to work for and approach them directly.
Try something like:
“Hi [Hiring Manager], I admire the work you’re doing in [area]. I’d love to explore whether there might be opportunities for someone with skills in [your skill set]. Happy to share my CV.”
Even if there’s nothing today, you’ve planted a seed.
Sending a CV directly to hiring manager opens the door to a more creative CV. Impact is key here.
➡️ Job search tip: Timing matters. Many hires happen when someone resigns unexpectedly. Be on file when they do.
5. // USE SPECIALIST TOOLS
Most job ads you see are just the tip of the iceberg. Behind the scenes, companies post directly to their Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS), platforms like Workday, Greenhouse, Lever, Jobvite, Workable, and SmartRecruiters.
These roles don’t always make it to Indeed or LinkedIn. But if you can search the ATS directly, you’ll often spot vacancies before the crowd.
Which leads us on nicely to…
Use This Free ATS Job Search Tool
We’ve built a simple tool that lets you search live ATS job boards, no middleman, no waiting for adverts to trickle through to the big sites.
You can search across multiple systems at once (Workday, Greenhouse, Lever, Jobvite, Workable, SmartRecruiters). It’s fast, free, and puts you ahead of the pack.
Try it here → Hidden Job Search Tool
➡️ Job search tip: Bookmark the tool and check weekly. Hidden jobs will appear here first.
You need to be using this daily to find hidden jobs.
How to Maximise Your Chances
Finding unadvertised jobs is half the battle. The other half? Making sure your application is unmissable.
That means a CV that gets past ATS filters and impresses human eyes. Messy formatting or generic content won’t cut it.
At the Career Improvement Club, we’ve built CV templates designed with recruiters in mind, clean layouts, ATS-friendly formatting, and professional copy that sells your strengths.
Browse our CV Templates.
➡️ Job search tip: Customise your CV for each role. Yes, it’s more effort, but it massively boosts your hit rate.
Final Thoughts
The hidden job market isn’t some secret society. It’s just opportunities that don’t follow the obvious path. Once you know where to look, and how to approach it, you’ll realise those “invisible” roles are very much visable and within reach.
You should still search job boards, but build the hidden job search approach into your daily job search strategy.
Start today:
Reach out to three contacts.
Update your LinkedIn headline.
Try our ATS search tool.
Find 10 companies you’d love to work for.
Small steps, big results.
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