The headline is one of the most important aspects to get right on LinkedIn but often the most ignored section. Although leaving it as your current position is tempting, if you optimise your LinkedIn headline it can be a great way to differentiate yourself on LinkedIn and one way that can help you get business.
Your headline, alongside your name and profile picture, is what people will first see when they view or search your name, before even clicking on your profile.
This means that your headline should clearly indicate if you are worth viewing or contacting. A headline that is not enticing might mean people won’t think to view your full profile.
Therefore, by thinking about who is going to view your profile you can make it customer-centric – this means that you will want to make it obvious what value you would give to the individual viewing your profile.
You also need to think about keywords and search optimisation. Improving your SEO (search engine optimisation) through your headline can be crucial in people finding you online. Although it might seem basic, it will be something as simple as mentioning “Logistics” if you are in the supply chain industry, or “Advisor” if your business offers a specific type of advisory service.
When you create your headline, it can be tempting to try and fit in as much as possible. Rather keep it short, focused and to the point. In a few words, you really need to get across what you do, which can be difficult. So think about being original and creative, whilst still being clear and informative. This can be challenging to do in 10-15 words but, with a bit of thought, it’s amazing what you will be able to come up with.
Whilst writing your headline, remember proper grammar and punctuation. In essence: this is a title. The first letters of each word should be capitalised. If you write it out as a sentence it is okay to write it in sentence case.
So, how do you write it then?
From our perspective, a personal brand statement is the best way to really get across what you do. This is a statement of “Your focus area” followed by what you do and for who. Without being too specific, examples of this could be:
“Financial Advisor | Providing Financial Solutions for Individuals”
“Township Planning Strategist | I am a proud worker for Non-Profits | Intern at XYZ.”
I’m showing the area that I am in, whilst providing what I do in this area. We feel this is a good way to position yourself.
On top of this, there are a few other options that could work. If you are in a space that does not really require you to connect with others (often bigger corporates), keeping it as your current position is perfectly adequate. If you are in the process of looking for a job, you can emphasise that you are searching for work. Even a detailed list of work-based things could be used. At the end of the day, not every headline type will suit everyone, so you can experiment and change it up to see what suits you.
Hopefully, this has helped you at least think about your headline, and what you could do to change it up from its current state.
