LinkedIn is a great way to get noticed by others when they’re in the right frame of mind. So, without pictures of sandy beaches or cat videos, how can you make your LinkedIn profile stand out from the rest?
How to improve your LinkedIn profile and attract clients
LinkedIn profile photo and banner
Your LinkedIn profile starts with the photo and banner. Make sure your photo is professional and not of you at your cousin’s wedding. It’s also a good idea to wear your brand colours in your photo.
Don’t leave your LinkedIn banner bare. Using an image from your website or an image in your brand colours can make you easier to recognise across different platforms. It also adds a touch of professionalism.
The size of the banner image can be a bit fiddly. Canva has the ideal LinkedIn banner dimensions at 1584 x 396 px which, unfortunately, sometimes looks good, and sometimes doesn’t. Also, if you have words on your banner, make sure your profile photo doesn’t cover them up. If in doubt, maybe try a patterned image, such as bricks, pens or stamps.
Edit your URL
Did you know the line of numbers after your name can be removed? On your profile page in the top right-hand corner is a link to ‘edit public profile and URL. You can change your URL to your name or add your business name.
LinkedIn Headline
The LinkedIn headline is pretty important when it comes to people finding you. It’s the words directly under your name. Don’t waste valuable real estate with vague words such as ‘CEO’, ‘director’ or ‘guru’. The words in the headline are searchable. So, for example, if you want people to find you for your graphic design skills, write ‘graphic designer’.
Next, write your USP and finish with something a bit interesting. Something that may attract others with that same interest or start a conversation.
The LinkedIn character limit is 220. So think carefully about how you can use all 220 characters to your benefit.
LinkedIn cover story and name pronunciation
While LinkedIn stories are a thing of the past, the cover story has remained. The cover story is a short, 30 second video that lives in the circle of your profile photo.
Your connections can see your cover story. The video can only be added on the LinkedIn mobile app, not desktop.
You can tell I have a cover story, because of the orange ring around my photo. Record a video of no longer than 30 seconds, pimp it up in Canva and upload it through the LinkedIn mobile app.
The name pronunciation feature has been around a little bit longer than the cover story. You can tell I have recorded my name because of the little megaphone icon next to my name. I’m always correcting people on how to pronounce my surname, so I thought this feature was great.
But, you can really record anything for the allowed 10 seconds. This is another great place to tell people in your own words your USP, even if your surname is Smith.
About or Summary section
The first 270-320 characters of the ‘about’ section are the most important. That’s the amount someone sees before having to click ‘see more’. So the first sentence really needs to pack a punch.
After that, you have a massive 2000 characters to really sell yourself. What makes you tick. Show your passion. Some even hide a secret word to test if connections actually read their about section.
2 thoughts on “How to make your LinkedIn profile go from meh to yeah”
Melissa, this article is literally what I needed haha. I was neglecting Linked In profile for a long time until I noticed that my potential clients are checking it when I respond to their e-mails. It’s actually crazy so I’ve got to do something with it. Nice tips! 😉
Thanks Tom!