This article is a contribution by NTUC Career Coach H. S. Herjeet. Any extracts should be attributed to the author. 5 January 2023.
If you are not getting noticed, it’s time you do something about your profile. This article focuses on how you can maximise Headshot, Headline, and About sections.
Headshot
It would help if you got a good headshot. According to LinkedIn Statistics, simply having a profile photo results in up to 21 times more profile views, nine times increase in connection requests and 36 times more likely to get messages.
A good headshot photo helps you build credibility with others. The photo must show your face from the shoulders, preferably with a light background. And, of course, dress professionally. Do also add a background image to distinguish yourself. A background image, for example, could be of you conducting a workshop, presenting at a board meeting, or of you repairing equipment – use something that resonates with your profession.
Headline
Next will be adding a powerful LinkedIn headline, which appears right below your name. Think of your headline as your tagline. A good headline helps someone understand your unique talents, the opportunities you offer, and your impact.
By default, LinkedIn gives you a headline title based on your profession. Even though this is fine, it is not good enough. You need to add pizazz to your headline. For example, you can copy and paste job descriptions into word-cloud to generate keywords that you can include in your headline. Remember, the headline has 220 characters, so make good use of it. Here are some powerful and awesome headlines:
- “Business Analyst ♥ Power BI ♥ Python ♥ I help companies with complex computation, data blending, and dashboarding for creating beautiful data visualisations.”
- “Cyber Security ♦ Digital Forensics ♦ CISSP ♦ I protect your organisation effectively from cyberattacks and data breaches.”
- “VP, Market Risk Management ❋ Risk Management Expert ❋ I help banks and financial institutions mitigate risks through robust stress tests.”
Tip: You need to position yourself in the eyes of profile visitors.
Be creative and use symbols to make your headline stand out:
- Smileys: ☺ ☻
- Love: ♥ ♂ ♀ $
- Stars: ⋆ ✣ ✤ ✥ ❋ ✦ ✩ ✪ ✫ ✰ ★ ✱ ✹ ❈
- Hand: ☜ ☞☝ ☚ ☛
About
We will now zoom into the “About” section, previously known as “Summary”. A generic profile that reads like a resume won’t stand out. Ask yourself the following questions when writing your “About” section:
What are my stakeholders/customers looking for? What can I offer them? When someone reads my profile, what will be “eye-catching”?
Tip – In your “About” section, you could address some of these:
- Say WHO you are, or you can start by asking questions to answer what your customers are looking for. For example, “Interested in supply chain solutions? Keen on process improvement? If the answer is yes, continue reading…”
- State YOUR expertise: “I am a go-getter. I enjoy troubleshooting supply chain problems. My expertise lies in managing end-to-end supply chain projects, researching and designing new ideas, writing technical and business reports, and leading teams.”
- HOW you can help others: “I help businesses generate savings by reducing warehousing and operations costs through re-engineering, thus maximising their bottom line…”
- How OTHERS can contact you: “For collaboration and career opportunities or networking over coffee, I can be reached through this profile or by phone.”
Do also note there are character limits on LinkedIn. You can download 2022 Character Limits