Today I am sharing practical tips about how to write the most important section on your LinkedIn profile, which is the “About Section”.

1- Talk to your audience

In this section, you should talk about yourself, but remember that you are talking to your target audience. You are telling the story of your professional journey. This means you can tell them the story of your education, career journey, and how you accumulated the experience you have today.

Show them how your expertise is different and unique. Make it a human-engaging story. Tell them about your mission, vision, and passion.

It is essential to write to the first person. I would never say, “Fady Ramzy is a consultant for personal branding,” but I would say, “I am more than happy to help you with your personal branding.” Do you see the difference?

2- You got only four lines & 5 seconds to impress

Linkedin displays only the first four lines of the text and then a link “…see more”. This means that those lines (which we call the “Hook”) are the most important. If they are not catchy enough, people will not read anything further.

In order to have the best hook, start with a statement or a question for your target audience. This will grab their attention. This hook should be relevant and relatable to your audience. Check mine, for example. I talk to entrepreneurs and executives, so in the first line, I tell them how LinkedIn helped me to become an entrepreneur myself, and “they” can do the same!

3- Remember that LinkedIn has a search engine

This means that you should make the best use of that. Prepare on an Excel/google sheet a list of top keywords that your audience would use when they are searching for similar profiles like yours. Use those keywords inside the story of your journey in this section.

Here also, you should focus on the “social proof”. This means mentioning certificates or honors that you have received, clients’s names, and media interviews.

So, remember that you writing here with two eyes: One is for your audience and for the search engine.

4- Your skills and services

You can now highlight your top skills, so make use of that. Also, towards the end of your story, you should mention clearly your (or your company’s) services in a structured, clear way. Remember also to use the most relevant keywords here.

Remember that the goal is to position yourself as the trust-worthy advisor and expert in your field. Your audience should see a different value that you are offering, which makes you stand out of the crowd!

5- Finally, the Call-to-Action

When people read the whole section, what do they want them to do next? What is the easiest way they can contact you? You can mention several ways to get in touch with you.

If you do not include a CTA, you might lose a precious opportunity. People scan through profiles, so your “About section & CTA” is what would provoke them towards you.

Today’s Action Step

Go through the five points above and do the following:

1. Build a list of keywords that describe you and, at the same time, your target audience would use to search for profiles like yours.
2. Build a draft of your story and journey.
3. Add your experience, skills, and social proof.
4. Add those keywords to the draft.
5. Revise and optimize.
6. Craft a good hook.

Congratulations!

Finally, here are two immediate ways I can help you today

1. If you want to learn more, here is a quick online course to put you on the right track quickly.
2. Do you want to start making money on Linkedin? Here is my “LinkedIn Influence and Income” online consultancy program. Book your slot here to tailor this program for you!