Recruiters check hundreds of Linkedin profiles and summaries every day to find the best candidate to perfectly match position requirements.
When scrolling through the fortieth profile, it can be difficult to concentrate and grasp all the information. Therefore, a well-designed Linkedin profile with a catchy summary is the key to success.
Why is a LinkedIn summary so important?
The first thing HR’s pay attention to is a Linkedin summary of a candidate. So your main mission is to interest your Linkedin page visitor and make sure the one scrolls down the page and reads all the information you have posted in a Linkedin profile, and not just in a Linkedin summary.
The Linkedin summary section should answer 2 questions:
- Who are you (your personality and experience)?
- Why should I get to know you better?
In other words, your Linkedin summary should serve the purpose of the elevator pitch – interest, intrigue, and tell more about you.
Another important thing is that this Linkedin section should not be too long or difficult to read. If the recruiter spends no more than 30 seconds looking at your LinkedIn profile, you have only one chance to make the right first impression.
How to make the recruiter check your profile in full?
There are some basic tips that will help you interest a recruiter with your great Linkedin summary.
- Your Linkedin summary should attract the attention of the reader from the very first sentence.
- Your professional value should be obvious in a summary. If a recruiter looks through dozens of similar Linkedin profiles when running a search, then there is a risk that you are not noticed.
- Follow a clear and easy-to-read summary format. No one will read an uninteresting Linkedin text in full.
- If the career goal you pursue is different from what you did before, state it separately and provide reasoning.
- Do not forget to name your current/ target role, for example, Social Media Brand Strategist, Senior Marketing Executive, Multifaceted Art Director, Global Operations Professional.
If you are from the hospitality industry, we have a detailed post related to tips for LinkedIn job search. However, the post is useful for all other industries as well.
What to focus on when working on a LinkedIn summary?
The way you approach Linkedin summary writing has a significant impact on your professional and job prospects. The more effort you invest in it – the better. Here is what you should focus on to produce a brilliant intro to your professional Linkedin profile.
Pay attention to the format
You should state briefly and to the point in your Linkedin summary. Do not attempt to describe each and every accomplishment in two paragraphs.
They will not be read in full. Studies show that recruiters spend between 6 and 30 seconds to check a Linkedin page and decide whether to contact you.
Seeing huge blocks of text, a person will most likely skip them and not read your Linkedin profile completely. Also, do not talk about yourself in the third person.
This is not an official biography on your company’s website. Use a different perspective approach for your Linkedin summary.
Analyze your target “employer/ reader”
Think about what your hiring manager should know first when checking a summary: it can be your sales success, expertise on a specific topic, or your ability to manage a team in a matrix structure.
If you are a recent graduate, you can stress out your education and grades in core subjects in the Linkedin summary section.
Sate your goals
Indicate what you want to do in the future, the goals you pursue. Thus, your potential employer will know if your objective map matches at some point and if you can help each other develop and reach joint goals.
Analyze market needs/ requirements
Analyze the requirements of companies – what they want to see in the ideal candidate, what skills the character should have, and what tasks you need to execute. It is these characteristics that should appear in your summary.
For example, if you are a project manager, you can show that ensuring assignments get completed on time / on-budget.
Linkedin summary writing – a step-by-step guide
Taking into account Linkedin summary specs, it turns out to be a global task requiring deep analysis of your skillset map, grouping the data, and outlining everything in an interesting and easy-to-grasp way.
To handle the task better, it is recommended to approach Linkedin summary creation step-by-step. Here is how to plan your efforts better.
Step 1: Know your audience
Create your Linkedin profile specifically for decision-makers or people whom you would like to impress and influence. Know who they are and do not start creating the Linkedin summary until you get answers to the following questions:
- What do you want them to know about you?
- What do you want them to do?
- What do you want them to feel?
Step 2: Prepare the outline
At this point, we recommend organizing your content in the following five parts in a Linkedin summary:
- Wins – Create a proposal from a business value perspective (for example, “increasing company income by building long-lasting relationships with small business clients).
- Values and passions – List your principles of work and what motivates or inspires you (for example, “creativity, task diversity and building a win-win relationship”).
- Super-opportunities – Describe what you do better than anyone else – skills that will allow you to be a hero for your colleagues (for example, “I participated in three triathlons on three different continents”).
- Personality – Make sure to include in your Linkedin summary exciting, unusual things that help distinguish you from your colleagues (for example, I use humor to defuse tense situations and keep the team focused on results).
- Proofs – Include quotes from your scientific works and cover all the awards/ honors you have (for example, “finish with UCLA honors; was named one of the top ten social media executives).
Step 3: Transform your outline into a draft
Before starting to type a Linkedin summary text, decide on a format – choose between the first and third persons. Either of them is acceptable; this is a personal choice. The first person is more preference; it is more intimate. However, there are many those who choose third-person writing.
Now that you have chosen the face that is right for you, start your Linkedin profile with a goal. There was a time when the purpose of your summary was to tell people what you are doing in the industry, but today, this approach is not original anymore.
To get a recruiter interested, start your summary with a question statement, provide resulting factors, or a list of your “unique selling points.” You can also talk about something you are most proud of. Include a speciality section for your Linkedin summary.
Thus, you will have the opportunity to add all-important keywords that you want to use for your profile optimization and online promotion.
Step 4: Take care of the visual
Now that you have the perfect summary, it’s time to improve your writing – add relevant images/ video/ portfolio. Once you add the summary to your LinkedIn page, complement it with various multimedia assets.
LinkedIn allows you to integrate videos and images into a summary – use this opportunity. This also is a good practice for any type of writing.
