Writing A Good LinkedIn Summary: Tips & Examples
Do you feel frustrated with LinkedIn profile summary writing? Well, that's understandable, because there's no standard recipe for writing a winning LinkedIn summary. Your writing style and general structure of the summary section will depend on your goals, industry norms, and your personal creativity. At the same time, omitting the summary at all is not the best idea as fully complete profiles get more views and feedback.
In today's article, our LinkedIn experts will give you some pointers to help you reflect on your experience and goals and develop a LinkedIn summary that works best for your career situation, whether it's networking, new employment, or new clients. We'll also share examples of great LinkedIn summaries for your inspiration.
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Why does a good LinkedIn profile summary matter?
Summary is one of the first things a visitor sees on your page. A well-written section serves as a marketing pitch and lets you introduce yourself to a wide audience online. Here are some little-known benefits of using LinkedIn summary:
• To rank higher in search results. A 100% completed profile makes you 40x more likely to receive opportunities through LinkedIn. And if you add relevant keywords, you'll be found by recruiters in your industry more often.
• To show your personality and culture fit. The way you describe yourself on LinkedIn gives an idea about your professional culture, values, and communication style. Therefore, recruiters will see if you're a potentially good fit.
• To inspire a call to action. If you simply describe yourself as a digital marketing manager, your career priorities may seem vague to many. Yet, if you explicitly write that you're a freelancer looking for new clients, people will be more likely to contact you.
Tips & Strategies to write a LinkedIn summary
Career experts often refer to this section as to 'real estate' of your profile. Here, you have 2,000 characters and only one chance to make a stellar first impression. Below, consultants of ResumePerk.com will explain how to use these characters to your advantage.
Firstly, note that a LinkedIn summary isn't the same as summary of qualifications on a resume. Resume summary typically contains top achievements and credentials of a candidate. On LinkedIn, you're not limited to a few lines. Here, you have plenty of space to tell the story behind these advancements to give readers a sense of the context of your work and how it affects people around you. You may also write a short story about your career progression or tell how your grew your business.
While creative stories about your skills and accomplishments are acceptable, mind that LinkedIn users won't keep reading for too long. Limit your summary to three to five short paragraphs or bulleted sections to save your readers' time.
People looking for a side gig or new employment may use the structure as follows:
- An introductory sentence covering your work experience and value proposition. It should contain relevant keywords to help your profile rank higher.
- A list of several points that highlight your accomplishments and tell about the projects you have completed (with figures and quantifyable impact).
- One or two phrases about your side projects, hobbies, and activities that drive and inspire you. Note that you can be less formal than on a resume!
- A closing sentence about what opportunities you are interested in and how you can be contacted (be sure to include your email address so that people could get in touch!).
Tips to write a perfect LinkedIn summary example
• Write in first person. Since this is a social media, write in first person with confidence and use more casual language than on your resume.
• Think of what sets you apart. If in doubt what to focus on in your summary, remember your biggest achievements and positive feedback from supervisors and peers. These might be your superpowers that you should speak about.
• Mind the standards in your industry. Summary of a Big 4 accountant will use a style and tone of voice different from that of a self-employed graphic designer. Look at some profiles in your industry to get inspired.
• Proofread the summary section. Read the profile text several times to make sure it's free from typos and errors. If the visitors spot mistakes in the first lines, they might question your communication skills!
LinkedIn summary examples
Example #1 - Project Manager
I am a PMP Certified Project Manager with 7+ years of experience, specializing in real estate and construction. What drives me most is translating project plans and visions into real buildings while delivering tangible results within time and budget constraints.
My accomplishments include:
• Managed and delivered a $32M project for residential construction in Chicago while reducing project costs by $35,000.
• Hired and trained 3 team members based on predicted project needs.
Areas of expertise: construction project management, technical requirement gathering, budgeting, stakeholder management, change management, Agile.
Example #2 - Sales Manager
I am a result-driven Sales Manager specializing in retail sales. Over the last 5 years in this industry, I have built an extensive network of contacts with suppliers and customers across the US. Currently, I work as a Senior Sales Manager at <Company name>. Over the FY2020 I increased territory sales to $5,5M, exceeding the quota by 18%. I build long-term relationships with stakeholder and customers and successfully lead a team of 5 sales reps. As my contract expires soon, I am looking for new challenging opportunities across the US. Don't hesitate to contact me at <email>.
Our experts don't recommend that you copy a LinkedIn summary example from the internet word for word. It's advisable to draft a unique summary that will show how you are different from other professionals in your field and what your superpowers are.
What jobs are in-demand on LinkedIn?
Although LinkedIn is a helpful tool for people across all industries, some professionals will benefit from it more than others. Check our list of most in-demand jobs.
E-commerce employees. As many stores have had to set up shipping departments last year, retailers and logistic companies have hired thousands of e-commerce staff to help deliver goods to shoppers. Demand for personal shoppers, delivery drivers and similar jobs is still rising with more than 400,000 job openings on LinkedIn.
Loan and mortgage experts. The combination of historically low interest rates and the roll-out of payroll protection loans has kept loan officers busy. Hiring for these jobs in 2020 increased by almost 59% compared to 2019, with loan coordinators and mortgage consultants being the top positions.
Paramedical staff. The coronavirus pandemic has created a sudden and sustained need for doctors and nurses, but it has also created a demand for people who support health professionals. Recruitment of receptionists, healthcare assistants and similar roles has increased by over 34% since 2019.
Business development and sales professionals. Businesses were forced to quickly adapt to an unstable world and economy. While some jobs were lost, others were added and this improved the bottom line and helped businesses cope with the pandemic. Top in-demand positions included sales assistant and strategic advisor.
Workplace diversity experts. Protests over the police shooting of George Floyd and Breonne Taylor have forced organizations to hire diversity experts to help them bring new voices to their organizations. Recruitment for positions like diversity coordinator and diversity officer has increased by over 90% since 2019.
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