Keeping your LinkedIn Profile up-to-date and accurate should be something we all build as a regular routine. One of the most important parts of the page is the free-form "About" section.
My About Section - Before
The About section on my LinkedIn Profile has not been updated in a very long time. It was pretty sad. Definitely time for an upgrade.
Some thoughts on how & why to update "About":
The "Algorithm"
LinkedIn's algorithm uses text in your title, description and about as important factors in how you show up in search results so a well written about section is critical to helping optimize your appearance in search results.
Word Count & Appearance
The About section is one of the few free-form places you can write whatever you want on LinkedIn. You get 2600 characters or about 500 words. So, you can't be super wordy but you can be far more creative than what I was in my before post. It is important to keep in mind that only the first three lines show on your profile. If someone is going to ready your whole profile, they have to click "More" to read the rest. Definitely worth spending some time on how you'll hook a reader to get them to click More.
Formatting
The text of the About section is plain text only. You cannot add HTML or code but if you have something like an emoji keyboard you can make use of emojis to brighten up your About section.
Resources to Consult
I reviewed several resources as I was re-writing my LinkedIn About section. I realized that at the moment, I am only ready to do a "first take" but I have some additional plans to add customer testimonials and free resources I publish as I continue to grow my business. Here are some of the better resources I consulted and found useful as I did this first re-write.
Five different styles of summaries with some how to questions and example: https://www.themuse.com/advice/5-templates-thatll-make-writing-the-perfect-linkedin-summary-a-breeze
One additional example with loads of templates and information on how to update your profile and why it's important - https://cultivatedculture.com/linkedin-summary/
Nine Writing Prompts to help you write your LinkedIn Summary - https://nealschaffer.com/how-to-write-a-linkedin-summary/
My About Section - After
While this is never something you can call done, I've arrived at a new iteration of the About section.
It certainly offers improved readability, includes my website address "above the fold" in those important three lines, and offers additional detail about the types of work I've done and would like to do.
I'm going to add to my regular list of things to do to review this for a refresh every three months just to see what else I can add. I hope by my next refresh I can add some testimonials or free links to resources.
What steps do you need to take to update your LinkedIn Profile? When are you planning to do that?
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