LinkedIn Profile Optimisation: The Complete 2026 Guide

Your photo is the first thing anyone sees. A professional headshot increases profile views by up to 14x compared to no photo. You don't need a studio — a clean background, good natural light, and a forward-facing shot is enough. Dress as you would for a job interview in your industry.

The banner image is prime real estate that 90% of people leave blank. Use it to reinforce your professional brand: your job title and speciality, a tagline, or the name of your company/business. A simple graphic made in Canva takes 10 minutes and immediately sets you apart.

Your headline appears under your name in every search result, every comment you leave, and every connection request you send. Most people just put their job title. That's a wasted opportunity.

LinkedIn gives you 220 characters. Use them. Include your job title, your specialism, and ideally a value statement or key result:

The About section is your cover letter — but for everyone, not just one employer. It should answer three questions: What do you do? Who do you do it for? What results do you deliver?

Write in the first person. Be specific. Lead with your strongest achievement or your clearest statement of value. Avoid vague openers like "I am a passionate professional with extensive experience..." — everyone says that.

End with a call to action: what you're looking for, what you're open to, or how someone can reach you.

Your LinkedIn experience section should not be a copy-paste of your CV bullet points. LinkedIn is a public, SEO-indexed platform — your descriptions need to be readable and keyword-rich.

For each role, write 3–5 sentences or bullets that describe what you did and what you achieved. Use numbers wherever you can. Think about what a recruiter searching for your skills would type into LinkedIn search — and make sure those terms appear naturally in your descriptions.

Unlike a resume, you don't need to tailor this for a specific role. Write it for the broadest relevant audience in your field.

LinkedIn's algorithm uses your skills to surface your profile in recruiter searches. Add up to 50 skills — and prioritise the ones most relevant to the roles you want.

The top 3 skills are displayed prominently on your profile. Make sure these are your most valuable and searchable ones, not generic soft skills. "Leadership" is less useful than "Product Strategy" or "Financial Modelling."

Ask former colleagues and managers to endorse your key skills. Profiles with endorsements appear higher in recruiter search results.

Written recommendations from former managers and colleagues are the closest thing LinkedIn has to a reference letter — and they're visible to anyone who views your profile.

Aim for at least 3 recommendations, ideally from people who managed you or worked closely with you. Don't be shy about asking — most people are happy to write one if you make it easy for them. Give them a specific achievement or project to mention so the recommendation is concrete rather than generic.