How to Make Your LinkedIn Profile Stand Out

These days, a polished, professional LinkedIn profile is just as important as a strong, up-to-date resume. Your LinkedIn profile can attract recruiters and help you land your next dream job. There are many ways to make your LinkedIn stand out and really showcase your skills and achievements. Take a look at this list of tips and tricks you can use to take your profile to the next level today!

[Edit]Steps

[Edit]Upload a clear, professional photo of yourself.

1. Your picture is the first impression you give recruiters or employers. Choose a picture that is only of you and shows just your head and shoulders in front of a solid background. Make sure the photo is recent and is clearly you. In other words, don’t choose a low-quality, blurry photo or a shot taken from a distance.^[1]
   
   • An ideal headshot for LinkedIn is a photo in which your face takes up about 60% of the space.
   • Preferably, choose a picture of you in an outfit that you’d likely wear to work.
   • Professional doesn’t mean boring — it’s okay to smile in your LinkedIn photo!
   • If you use a profile picture that is inappropriate or silly, recruiters will probably remove you from their candidate list immediately.^[2] Save the funny stuff for your friends and family on Facebook!

[Edit]Add a background photo that shows something about you.

1. A background photo allows you to showcase a bit of your personality. Select a background photo that shows something that’s important to you or demonstrates what kind of professional you are. Pick something that grabs people’s attention and gives a little more context about you.^[3]
   
   • For example, if you’re an avid runner, you could include a background photo of you running in a marathon.
   • Or, if you’re an enthusiastic programmer, you could upload a background picture of some code.

[Edit]Customize your profile URL.

1. This makes your profile easier to find on search engines. Ideally, set your profile’s URL to your first and last names. If there’s already another profile with the same name, include a middle initial or another variation of your name.^[4]
   
   • The default URL provided by LinkedIn is a combination of your name and random letters and numbers, which isn’t search engine friendly.
   • Avoid using spaces, numbers, and special symbols in your new URL.
   • Besides helping your profile show up on search engines, a custom URL show’s recruiters and potential employers that you’re LinkedIn savvy and detail oriented.
   • For example, if your name is George Richard Jacobson, make your URL linkedin.com/in/GeorgeJacobson. If that’s taken already, make it linkedin.com/in/GeorgeRJacobson.

[Edit]Share your location.

1. This makes you more likely to be found by people in your area. Include the city where you’re based on your profile to help recruiters or employers in your geographic region find you when they’re looking to hire. If you don’t list your location on your profile, you’re less likely to be discovered and considered for a new local job opportunity.^[5]
   
   • If you’re a remote worker and not tied down to just 1 city, keep your profile updated with the country or city you’re in at the moment.

[Edit]Write a headline that describes what you do.

1. Your headline influences how you show up in searches on LinkedIn. Make your headline a standard job title related to what you do, what you’re qualified for, or what type of work you’re looking for. Think about the way recruiters might search for someone like you on LinkedIn and use keywords you think they might type into a search. Highlight special skills or certifications you have as well.^[6]
   
   • If you’re currently employed, LinkedIn sets your headline to your current job title by default. Unless your job title is exactly how you want to describe yourself, change your headline to something else.
   • For example, if you’re a freelance content writer and actively looking for new clients, make your headline something like: “Marketing-Minded Content Writer with SEO Experience.”

[Edit]Include a descriptive summary.

1. Your summary tells potential employers what you can bring to the table. Describe what you do well and what your areas of expertise are. Include keywords that are highly specific to the industry you work in.^[7]
   
   • LinkedIn gives you a 2,000-character limit for your summary, but it’s better to keep it a bit shorter than that. A summary in the 1,000- to 1,250-character range is ideal.
   • Make sure not to just list your past experience — that’s what your job titles below are for!
   • Try to really show the reader what you do and why it’s important. For example, include something like: “My job ensures that critical databases remain secure and are always online.”
   • Another descriptive sentence to include in your summary could be something like: “I’m a data-driven and insightful recruiter who matches talented people with great careers.”
   • A well-written and engaging summary entices people to read through your profile further and accept your connection request or request to connect with you.^[8]

[Edit]Make your past and present job titles specific.

1. Formal job titles aren’t always the best choice. Make sure each job title you list on your profile describes what you actually do or did, instead of always using the internal title given by the company. Take advantage of the 100-character limit to really describe your role.^[9]
   
   • For example, if your formal title is just “Team Lead,” that doesn’t really tell people what you do or help you show up in relevant search results.
   • Opt for a more descriptive title like “Programming Team Lead - iOS App Development.”
   • Add bullets below job titles to highlight your strengths and accomplishments and show you were successful at your job. For example, say something like: “Negotiated a $1.5M sale to increase profit margins by 25%”.^[10]
   • Don’t forget to fill in your education info completely as well. Add the name of any educational institution you attended, the name of the degree you earned, and the date you graduated.

[Edit]List your most relevant skills and certifications.

1. The skills section gives people an idea of what you can do at a quick glance. Open up the “Add Skills” section on your profile and type in keywords related to technical skills you have. Click on relevant skills to add them to your profile.^[11]
   
   • LinkedIn lets you add up to 50 skills, but that can be a lot for people viewing your profile to read through. Aim to add somewhere around 15 to 20 skills that are highly relevant to what you do or what type of work you’re looking for.
   • Every now and then, take a look at your skills and remove any that you don’t feel are as relevant anymore. Replace them with any new skills you have gained recently.
   • You can also take a multiple-choice skills quiz on LinkedIn and earn a skills badge for your profile if you score in the top 30%.

[Edit]Ask for endorsements and recommendations.

1. These are ways to show your success working with others in the past. Reach out to bosses, coworkers, or clients and ask them politely to write you recommendations or endorse skills you list on your profile. Aim to get at least 5 recommendations on your profile and multiple endorsements for the skills you most want to highlight.^[12]
   
   • Make sure to return the favor by endorsing or writing recommendations for your connections as well.
   • Sometimes, too many endorsements on just a few skills can make your profile look skewed. You can choose which endorsements to show and which to hide using the “edit” feature of the skill section.

[Edit]Get 500 or more connections.

1. A large network makes you more likely to be found by potential employers. Search LinkedIn for past colleagues, people you studied with, friends, and family and send them requests to connect. Join groups relevant to your industry or alumni groups for where you studied and request to connect with people you don’t know to network more.^[13]
   
   • If you send a request to connect to someone you don’t personally know, make sure to write a personalized message explaining why you want to connect with them.
   • For example, say something like: “Good afternoon, I saw an article you posted in the WSU alumni group and I really enjoyed your commentary on it. I would love to connect to see more of what you share!”
   • After you pass 500 connections, LinkedIn shows your number of connections as “500+” instead of as an exact number, so it looks like you have a really extensive network.

[Edit]Add multimedia to your profile.

1. This lets you show off your personality and creativity. Upload an introductory video, images of past work, or slide decks from professional presentations. Take advantage of multimedia to help show your achievements and abilities in a different way.^[14]
   
   • For example, if you gave a presentation at work about the top marketing trends for 2021, that would be a great slide deck to upload to showcase your marketing expertise!
   • If you’re a designer, you could upload screenshots of infographics, brochures, or websites you designed.

[Edit]Share content daily to stay active.

1. Staying active on LinkedIn helps you show up more in users’ feeds. Update your status, share an article, or write a post at least once a day. Like and comment on content your connections share as well to engage with others.^[15]
   
   • If you’re actively job hunting, aim to make 2 updates a day to help your profile show up even more.
   • Groups are a great place to engage with people you’re not connected with.
   • Examples of content to share are industry insights, business news, and information about products and services closely related to your industry.
   • Ask questions to get people to engage with your posts. For example, say something like: “What do you think about these 10 new trends in web design?”

[Edit]Video

[Edit]Related wikiHows

• Write a LinkedIn Recommendation

[Edit]References

__LIST__

1. ↑ https://www.forbes.com/sites/averyblank/2017/12/05/6-ways-to-make-your-linkedin-profile-standout-and-unforgettable/?sh=7110e3c37437
2. ↑ [v161390_b01]. 29 April 2020.
3. ↑ https://business.linkedin.com/en-uk/marketing-solutions/blog/posts/content-marketing/2017/17-steps-to-a-better-LinkedIn-profile-in-2017
4. ↑ https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/10-ways-make-your-linkedin-profile-stand-out-2021-nick-kossovan/?trk=read_related_article-card_title
5. ↑ https://www.inc.com/peter-economy/want-to-make-your-linkedin-profile-really-stand-out-new-linkedin-research-shows-you-how.html
6. ↑ https://www.forbes.com/sites/robinryan/2021/01/19/17-linkedin-profile-writing-tips-to-make-you-standout/?sh=3df0fa8b26c8
7. ↑ https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/10-ways-make-your-linkedin-profile-stand-out-2021-nick-kossovan/?trk=read_related_article-card_title
8. ↑ [v161390_b01]. 29 April 2020.
9. ↑ https://www.forbes.com/sites/robinryan/2021/01/19/17-linkedin-profile-writing-tips-to-make-you-standout/?sh=3df0fa8b26c8
10. ↑ [v161390_b01]. 29 April 2020.
11. ↑ https://business.linkedin.com/en-uk/marketing-solutions/blog/posts/content-marketing/2017/17-steps-to-a-better-LinkedIn-profile-in-2017
12. ↑ https://www.forbes.com/sites/robinryan/2021/01/19/17-linkedin-profile-writing-tips-to-make-you-standout/?sh=3df0fa8b26c8
13. ↑ https://www.careers.govt.nz/articles/how-to-stand-out-on-linkedin/
14. ↑ https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/5-reasons-you-should-add-media-your-linkedin-profile-steve-loates/
15. ↑ https://www.business2community.com/linkedin/active-linkedin-science-strategy-behind-content-sharing-02020933