About LinkedIn Headlines for the Job Seeker →

 Your LinkedIn Headline

Whatever you choose to put under your name at the top of your LinkedIn profile is the “Headline.” The way to approach the decision of what to put there depends on your employment status and goals. Some people use it to express their overall passion in life or perhaps in work. While employed, it is usually the title of your current job. You can use it to list titles for jobs you would like to have, bringing a stronger focus to those areas for those viewing the headline.

  1. A headline while your job search: The headline can be your skills and experience or what value you bring to the job but what I have seen work best over a few years is using this section to list the job titles you would like be considered for. This can open doors and present relevant keywords that might not have any other place to be seen. Since this approach offers several options for your job search, an excellent way to do this is by using the | (pipe) key. Example: Director of Marketing | VP of Sales | New Business Development Specialist |

  2. For independent, self-employed, freelance, or on contract, this is an excellent area to list the focus areas. In addition to the titles under the name, services can also be listed in that area through the “Providing Services” tool, which will lead to a “Request for Proposal” link.

Examples:

JD Smith Animation | Illustration | Video Animation | Visual Design | Graphic Design

Brent M. Jones Author | Writer | Speaker | Career Development Coach | Consultant | Experienced Business Executive

3. LinkedIn, by default, creates your headline based on your current job title and company. This can be overwritten, but if you’re a passive job seeker, changing this title could alert your company that you’re looking? The good news is that the algorithms find matches even when the candidate shows being employed.

4. Other options usually attempt to attract attention. A professional name or title and desired job target or the number of years of experience in the specific field can be used. (algorithms, as well as anyone who reads the background, will, of course, see the number of years of experience) Statements of passion could be considered for this area. Resumes and LinkedIn profiles seem to emphasize different places, and often it is hard to get the same viewpoint from your coach or mentor if you ask, but my experience over several years suggests #1 above is best.