Optimize Your LinkedIn Profile

Prerequisites

• LinkedIn account (personal profile, not company page)
• Clear positioning: who you help and what outcome you deliver

Steps

1. Write a headline that sells. Replace your job title with a value proposition. Bad: "CEO at Acme Corp." Good: "Helping DevOps teams ship 3x faster | CEO at Acme." The headline appears everywhere -- in search, comments, connection requests. It is your 120-character ad.

2. Write the About section. Structure it as: Line 1-2: The problem you solve (hook). Lines 3-5: Your credibility (why you specifically). Lines 6-8: What you are building and who it is for. Line 9: CTA (what to do next -- DM, link, etc.). Keep it under 200 words. Write in first person.

3. Set your profile photo and banner. Use a high-quality headshot with a plain or branded background. For the banner, create a simple graphic showing your company name, tagline, and one key visual. The banner is free advertising that most people leave as the default blue gradient.

4. Add the Featured section. Pin 2-3 items: your best-performing LinkedIn post, a link to your product or landing page, and a lead magnet (guide, tool, calculator). These appear prominently below your headline and are clickable.

5. Configure your Experience section. For your current role, write 2-3 bullets about outcomes, not responsibilities. "Grew from 0 to 500 customers in 12 months" beats "Responsible for sales and marketing." Add your company's LinkedIn page so it shows the logo.

6. Turn on Creator Mode. Enable Creator Mode in your LinkedIn profile settings. Add 5 topic hashtags relevant to your expertise. Creator Mode changes your "Connect" button to "Follow", shows your content first on your profile, and gives you access to LinkedIn newsletters and audio features.