LinkedIn Profile Edits Every Leader Should Make
Is Your LinkedIn Profile Working Hard Enough?
Many senior leaders still treat LinkedIn like an online resume, but, if it ever was, that’s certainly NOT what it is anymore. Today, LinkedIn is your credibility check, reputation builder, and often your first business impression. Whether you like it or not… people are looking you up.
People are Looking YOU Up!
People often form their first impression before that first conversation. Before they meet you, they Google you. Before they call you, they find you on LinkedIn.
- Potential customers.
- Future employees.
- Partners.
- Competitors.
- Recruiters.
…anyone deciding whether or not they want to work with your company… at all. Your LinkedIn profile is helping them decide whether you are credible, relevant, and worth a conversation.
The good news is that most of you already understand that LinkedIn matters. You’ve built your profile, you react, you comment, and you engage. You support your teams, and you support your association.
That’s great. But even good profiles can work harder. We spend a lot of time and money investing in our company brand, but your personal brand is often the door people walk through to get there. Today I want to show you two simple edits that can strengthen your LinkedIn profile.
Your LinkedIn Profile is Your Professional Landing Page
As I already stated, your LinkedIn profile is not your resume: it is your professional landing page. It’s where people go when they want to understand you, your company, and what your company can do for them. AND, when they want to know more, the two sections that matter most are your Headline and your About section. These two areas do most of the heavy lifting in how people understand your professional value.
Let’s start with your headline.
Two Sections Matter the Most
Before someone even clicks your profile, your Headline shows up right beside your image, and I still see that most people waste this space, allowing LinkedIn to automatically fill it with the title of their most recent job. Many merely add the company name to the default fill-in so it reads something like:
Sales Manager at XYZ Company.
That tells me your title, but says nothing of your value or what is important about you. A strong headline should answer three questions:
What do you do?
Who do you help?
What problems do you solve?
And it should include keywords so the right people can find you. You get 220 characters, and I would say, USE THEM! Instead of just your title… Show your impact – on customers, on your team, on the industry!
From a stronger headline, everyone will understand what you do, who you help, and why you matter.
That’s the difference between a profile that exists… and one that works.
If your name and headline get someone to click, it will be your About section that keeps them. This area of your profile is a brief introduction where you explain what you do, what you've accomplished, and what problems you solve. It’s like your basic elevator pitch, only it’s about YOU! In this area, you want to outline how you got where you are, where you are headed, what sets you apart, and how you bring value to an organization. And more than stating, “I improved performance”, you need to say, “I led an initiative that reduced downtime by 18%”, or something concrete that demonstrates your understanding of your value. Not activity… IMPACT!
Strong Profiles Show Results
Your About section should do three things:
- Tell your story.
- Show measurable results.
- Explain your value.
When someone reads your about section, they should understand what you offer to any organization you work with - employer, partner, or customer - and should offer that information in under 30 seconds. THIS is where you can let your personality shine through. Weave your career history into a compelling narrative with the aim of connecting on a personal level while highlighting your most impressive accomplishments. Because people buy from people they trust.
Leaders are Held to a Higher Standard
And for those of you in senior leadership, the expectations are higher.
Your profile doesn’t just represent you; it represents your company. As the face of your organization, an underdeveloped LinkedIn profile can quietly cost credibility, opportunities, and influence where a strong one reinforces all three – for you, and for everyone striving to succeed under your leadership.
Building Credibility or Losing Opportunity
Your LinkedIn profile is one of the few marketing assets you completely control – make sure it is working as hard as you do. Whatever your objective – to win lucrative new contracts, clients, or customers, or present yourself in a powerful and professional manner, your LinkedIn profile is either reinforcing your credibility or quietly weakening it.
If you'd like examples of strong LinkedIn headlines, I've included a resource here.
Two small edits can make a real difference. Don’t get lost in a sea of indistinguishable profiles, begin crafting today!
The Final Word
It is always great to share these Marketing Minutes during AHTD meetings and in our monthly newsletters, and I look forward to continuing these discussions between now and our next in-person meeting!
In the meantime, consider signing up your in-house marketer for our upcoming AHTD Marketing Roundtable, and please remember to tag us on LinkedIn so we can share with our networks exactly how AHTD members are #DoingHighTechBetter!
Monday, April 27, 2026
by: Mara Dickson
Section: Press Releases
