LinkedIn profile conversion elements

A LinkedIn profile is a landing page.¹ Treat it as the handoff between someone's interest in your content and the action they can take after meeting you there. A landing page is made to convert a visitor into a customer or email subscriber.² A profile page has two goals.³ One is converting the visitor into a follower so they continue seeing your content.⁴ The other is moving a ready prospect to the next buying stage.⁵ Give each goal its own route. Let the headline and About section earn the follow, and let Featured and profile links serve the ready visitor.

Build the first screen

Start with what a visitor sees before deciding whether to keep reading. Make recognition easy, state a clear promise, and keep decoration brief.

Use a clear, high-resolution profile picture.⁶ Keep it close up, preferably above the shoulders,⁷ with a single solid-color background.⁸ The picture will appear tiny, especially on mobile.⁹ Make the face easy to recognize on the timeline.¹⁰

The header image has relatively little importance in practice.¹¹ Use a branded graphic if you want one¹² or a real-life photo.¹³ Then move on to the headline and destination links.

The headline is the one-sentence line under your name.¹⁴ It also appears in the timeline when people see your content,¹⁵ so write it for someone deciding whether to click. Use the structure role plus company plus value proposition.¹⁶ A clear headline tells people your role and what they will get from following you.¹⁷

Write the About section

Use the About section to answer the visitor's basic questions without making them work through a biography. Keep it concise and compelling.¹⁸

Explain what you are building in one or two sentences.¹⁹ Include one or two sentences of social proof.²⁰ Describe the content followers can expect in one or two sentences.²¹ Check whether the page answers these questions:

• "What do you do?"²²
• "Why should I trust you?"²³
• "What do I get out of following you?"²⁴

Put the answers in language a visitor can scan. The About section should help someone decide whether to follow, continue reading, or use the next route.

Give the visitor one route

1

Use the homepage

2

Best case study

3

Use a book-a-demo page

4

Use a lead magnet

1. Use the homepage
2. Best case study
3. Use a book-a-demo page
4. Use a lead magnet

Use the Featured section to turn interest into a specific next action. Choose the destination from the visitor's likely readiness and remove competing choices.

LinkedIn lets you place a selected group of links prominently on the profile.²⁵ Keep the selection to one or two links.²⁶ LinkedIn allows five or more featured links,²⁷ but too many options can overwhelm people and create decision paralysis.²⁸ The Featured section can also display posts, external scheduling links, or multimedia content intended to drive leads.²⁹

Use the custom profile link for a direct route to a website, a meeting-scheduling page, or a detailed personal profile.³⁰ Give the link one clear purpose so the visitor knows what will happen after the click.

Choose the Featured destination in this order:

• Use the homepage when you have no other lead magnet.³¹
• Use your best case study when you want a visitor to see proof.³² It appeals to prospects who are considering the product and are close to buying.³³
• Use a book-a-demo page for a visitor ready to start a sales conversation.³⁴
• Use a lead magnet when you want to move the visitor to an owned, long-form platform such as email, where you can continue communicating.³⁵

The link label should match the promise made by the headline and About section. A visitor who clicks from a post should reach the same subject they decided to investigate.

Connect content to the profile

The profile is part of a route that begins before the profile view. Give the visitor a reason to click from content, then make the profile confirm that they reached the right person.

An optimized headline and content can lead someone from authentic content to a relevant profile, then to a direct message or the company website.³⁶ A profile can prompt a prospect to visit the website and become an inbound lead.³⁷

Run the check from the visitor's point of view. Open a recent post, read the headline without opening the profile, open the profile, scan the About section, and inspect the Featured destination. At each point, ask whether the next action is obvious. If the route changes subject or presents several competing destinations, edit the page before sending more people to it. Remove any pause or choice that blocks the next action, then use the destination you gave the visitor as the starting point for the next conversation.

What not to do

These mistakes make the page harder to recognize, understand, or act on. Remove them after the main route is in place.

• Do not use a selfie as the profile picture,³⁸ a full-body picture,³⁹ or a messy background.⁴⁰
• Do not overcomplicate the headline or make it too fancy.⁴¹
• Do not overthink the profile picture⁴² or the About section.⁴³
• People will not read an overly long About section.⁴⁴
• Do not fill the Featured section with five or more links. That choice is described as confusing.⁴⁵