what
@joe189man said is 100%.
I used to get a lot of LinkedIn "recruiters" messaging me since March 2020. Most of these were chuckle chumps, to be honest. They give the good apples a bad name.
I updated my profile, added specific keywords for my line of work. This reduced the number of hits. Added that I'm not open to relocation. I don't have my mobile number in LinkedIn; only my Google Voice number, which is set to Do Not Disturb. Use it only for MFA login - TOTP.
Some of these recruiting idiots attempt a sending an invitation to connect, which includes a job info. Automatic reject.
If it has relocation, reject. Didn't read my profile, obviously, first line says this little piggy ain't moving.
Then jobs which include contracting/part-time/contract-to-hire are weeded out, only FT are worth a glance.
If they haven't provided compensation info, ask for the job description and pay range. The good ones will give you without hesitation. If they balk, reject.
Then, if it is something I wish to pursue, we have a phone call. FU money means it's more of me interviewing them to figure out what I want to do, and also to have an interview with the technical manager or technical staff to get an in-depth view of the position. Again, good companies will do this. If not, yellow/red flag; proceed with caution.
If tech interview goes well, and the company really wants you, they'll pay. Got a 30% base pay increase on my new position, but also a promotion from my previous, plus a 10% bonus if I hit a certain number of billing hours (easily achievable). Negotiated a higher PTO number. I'll say that the in-house recruiter and the company went all out to pursue me, just an amazing recruiting experience that I've never had in my 19 years of working.
I had almost 100 "interactions" on LinkedIn last year. I could have collected that data and made a Sankey diagram, looking back. But that's work with no RoI, yuck!
@NoVa I've had less than 5 recruiters contact me in 2023, and probably ZERO since the tech layoffs, hiring freeze, etc.