If you're looking for a job, you want to make sure your LinkedIn
headline is optimized. This ensures recruiters and hiring managers can easily find your profile when they
search for candidates on LinkedIn.
What you should know as a jobseeker
95% of recruiters and hiring managers use LinkedIn to search for candidates. If your headline is not optimized,
it's possible that you're missing out on job opportunities.
Let's look at an example of what a great LinkedIn headline looks like.
Instead of a simple headline like 'Freelance Developer' or 'Self Employed', we can see how the candidate is
more specific about what programming languages he has experience in and includes relevant keywords.
If he is looking for a new job, this candidate will generate much more interest from recruiters through
LinkedIn as he would show up in search results when recruiters search for keywords like 'Software Engineer', 'Java Developer', and related keywords.
What keywords should you use?
One of the biggest tips I can give you is to use keywords of the job you want. If you are currently
a Customer Support agent and want to become a Sales Rep, make sure you include keywords related to Sales and Business Development too!
For example, your headline could be 'Sales and Business Development Representative | 5+ Years Experience in Customer Support'.
Note how we include our current job in Customer Support, but the focus is on the job we want. This helps you
generate more opportunities for those jobs you're striving for!
Examples of great LinkedIn headlines for jobseekers
Here are a few examples of professional LinkedIn headlines for jobseekers.
Notice how they all follow the structure we described in the infographic above. Specifically, they contain
specific keywords they expect recruiters to be searching for.
The details used in the above LinkedIn profiles are entirely fictional (e.g. names, locations, job titles).
Get a Free LinkedIn Profile Review
If you want to make sure you have a well rounded LinkedIn profile, try out our free LinkedIn Review tool.
We'll use AI to instantly identify any weak areas on your profile and give you actionable steps to improve your profile's success rate.
We dive deeper into the components of what makes up a great LinkedIn headline, what keywords are, and more in our
deep dive report. Here are the sections you might be interested in (click to open):
"This tool was ridiculously helpful. In just one week after making the changes the AI suggested, I received three times the number of profile views and
had five recruiters pitching me jobs on LinkedIn. I can't thank you enough!"
