Setting Up Your Profile

  1. 1

    Upload a professional headshot

    Profiles with photos get 21 times more views than those without. You do not need a professional photographer — a clear, well-lit photo where you are smiling and dressed appropriately for your industry is sufficient. Face should be clearly visible, background clean and uncluttered. No selfies, group photos, or casual holiday snaps.

  2. 2

    Write a headline that goes beyond your job title

    Your headline appears everywhere on LinkedIn — in search results, connection requests and notifications. The default is your job title, but you have 220 characters. Use them: “Senior Software Engineer | Full-Stack Development | React, Node, AWS | Building products people actually use” tells recruiters far more than “Software Engineer at Acme Corp.”

  3. 3

    Write a compelling About section

    LinkedIn calls it “About” — treat it as your professional story in 3–5 short paragraphs. Cover: what you do and who you help, your key areas of expertise, significant achievements (with numbers where possible), what drives you professionally, and a call to action (open to opportunities, looking for collaborations, etc). Write in first person — “I” rather than “he/she.” Avoid corporate buzzwords.

  4. 4

    Complete your work experience with achievements

    For each role: include dates, company name and your title. More importantly, describe what you achieved in the role with specifics. “Led a team of 8 engineers to deliver a platform that reduced customer onboarding time by 60%” is dramatically more compelling than “Managed engineering team.” Quantify wherever possible: percentages, dollar amounts, team sizes, timeframes.

  5. 5

    Add skills, education and get recommendations

    Add 5–10 relevant skills to your profile — these affect search results significantly. Complete education. Ask 2–3 former colleagues or managers for written recommendations — these are highly credible to recruiters and stand out on profiles. Send personalised requests reminding them of a specific project you worked on together.

Customise your LinkedIn URLLinkedIn assigns a default URL with random numbers (linkedin.com/in/jane-smith-2847291). Change it: Edit public profile & URL (top right of your profile) → Edit your custom URL. Set it to your name or name + profession. Looks more professional in email signatures and on resumes: linkedin.com/in/janesmith or linkedin.com/in/janesmith-ux

Frequently Asked Questions

LinkedIn is different from Facebook — connecting with people you have not met personally is accepted and common. A larger network increases your visibility in search results. Always personalise connection requests to strangers: explain who you are, why you want to connect and what value you can offer. Generic connection requests from people you do not know are frequently ignored. Connecting with people in your industry, people whose work you follow, or recruiters in your field are all legitimate LinkedIn networking practices.
No — the free LinkedIn tier is sufficient for most job seekers. Premium features (InMail credits, who viewed your profile, LinkedIn Learning access, salary insights) are useful but not essential. The biggest determinant of LinkedIn success is a well-optimised profile and active engagement — not Premium status. Try the 30-day free trial before paying to assess if the features benefit you specifically.