Recruiters do not browse LinkedIn. They search it, filter the results, and open profiles in a hurry. That changes what a good profile looks like. It is not a brand statement or a diary; it is a document built to be found by the right searches and to answer three questions in the first screenful: what you are, what level you are at, and whether you are worth a message. This guide goes through the profile section by section, with before-and-after examples, in the order a recruiter sees them.

How recruiters use LinkedIn

Most in-house recruiters and agencies use LinkedIn Recruiter, which searches on job title, skills, location, current and past employers, and keywords across the whole profile. Results come back as a list showing photo, headline, current title and location. The recruiter scans that list and opens a handful. On the profile itself, they read the headline, the first two lines of the About section (the rest is collapsed), the current role, and then skim down.

So the profile has two jobs. First, contain the words the search is looking for, in the fields the search reads. Second, make the three facts obvious in the headline and the first two lines of About, so the recruiter who opens it sends a message rather than closing the tab.

Photo and banner

A photo is expected here, unlike on a UK CV. Head and shoulders, plain background, looking at the camera, dressed as you would for an interview in your sector. Profiles with a photo get several times the views of profiles without one, because a missing photo reads as an inactive account. The banner matters less; a plain colour or a clean image related to your field is fine. Avoid motivational quotes.

Headline: the line that gets you found

The headline is the most searched field after job title and the only text that shows in search results and in every comment you leave. By default it is your current job title at your current employer. That wastes it.

Use the 220 characters for: the market title for what you do (not the internal one), the sector or specialism, and one concrete marker of level or scale. Separate the parts with a vertical bar or a full stop.

Before: Senior Manager at Acme Logistics

After: Head of Operations | Parcel and final-mile logistics | 3 sites, 240 people, 97.5% on-time delivery

If you are looking to move, the headline should carry the title you are moving to, as long as your experience supports it. Recruiters searching for a head of operations will not find “senior manager”.

About: the first two lines do all the work

What recruiters actually see

On desktop, about 300 characters show before “see more”. On mobile, less. Most people never click. Those two lines have to do what the personal statement does on a CV: say what you are, at what level, and what you have done to prove it. Everything else in About is for the minority who click through.

The structure that works

1. Opening two lines. Role, level, sector, one number. Same formula as the CV personal statement, first person this time, with “I”.
2. Three to five short paragraphs or bullets. The things you are known for, each with an outcome. This is where the keywords live: the tools, methods, sectors and problems a recruiter might search on.
3. One line on what you are looking for, if you are open to a move, and how to contact you.

Before: I am a passionate and results-driven operations professional with a proven track record of driving excellence and delivering value across complex, fast-paced environments. I thrive on challenge and believe in empowering teams to achieve their full potential…

After: I run operations for parcel and final-mile carriers: three sites, 240 people, and a 97.5% on-time rate that was 91% when I took over. Fifteen years in logistics, the last five at head-of level.

What I am usually brought in to do: fix rostering and agency spend (cut £1.1m a year at my current employer), stand up new sites (two opened in 2024, both on plan at month three), and take depots through peak without the wheels coming off.

Open to operations director roles in businesses where the operation is the product. Message me here or at the address in my contact details.

Keep it under 1,500 characters. Nobody reads an essay, and the search engine weights the whole field anyway.

Experience: each role is a mini CV entry

Job title field: use the market title, matched to the headline. Employer: pick the company page so the logo shows; it is a credibility signal. Description: one line of context, then three or four outcome bullets with numbers. Two thousand characters is the limit; you need a quarter of that.

Recruiter searches include past job titles and past employers, so fill in every role for the last fifteen years even if the older ones get a single line. If you were promoted within a company, add each title as a separate position under the same employer; LinkedIn groups them, and the progression becomes visible.

Before: Responsible for overall site operations including people management, H&S, budgets and customer service.

After: Ran the Midlands hub: 140 people, 60,000 parcels a day, £9m budget. Took on-time delivery from 91% to 97.5% in 18 months. Cut agency labour by £1.1m a year by rebuilding rosters around actual volume curves. Opened a second site in 2024, on plan from month three.

Skills: the field the search engine reads most

Skills are a search index, not a vanity list. You can add up to 50. Use them for the specific, searchable terms a recruiter in your field would type: tools, systems, methodologies, regulatory areas, sectors. “Leadership” and “Communication” are not searched for; “SAP EWM”, “CIPD Level 7”, “IFRS 16”, “Final-mile logistics” are. Pin the three that matter most. Endorsements are a weak signal; the presence of the skill is what counts.

The settings that decide whether you are found

• Location. Set to the city you want to work in, not the village you live in. Recruiter searches use a radius from a city.
• Open to Work. The recruiters-only setting is invisible to your employer’s recruiters (LinkedIn blocks it for your current company) and is one of the strongest signals in Recruiter search. Use it if you are looking. The green banner on your photo is optional and depends on your situation.
• Custom URL. linkedin.com/in/firstname-lastname. Set it, and put it on your CV.
• Industry. Pick the one recruiters would filter on for the roles you want, not the one your employer sits in.
• Contact info. An email address. Recruiters with Recruiter seats can message anyone; agencies on cheaper seats often cannot, and an email address is how they reach you.

Everything else, briefly

• Featured. One or two things: an article, a talk, a project page. Not twelve.
• Education. Fill it in; it is a search filter. Degree and institution, no grades after your twenties.
• Licences and certifications. Searched on. Add every professional qualification with its issuing body.
• Recommendations. Two or three from managers or clients carry weight. Ask for them when a project ends well, not when you are job hunting.
• Activity. Occasional, specific comments on posts in your field do more than frequent generic ones. Nobody needs to post daily.

A 30-minute LinkedIn profile fix

1. Rewrite the headline: market title, specialism, one number.
2. Rewrite the first two lines of About using the three-sentence formula.
3. Replace the description of your current role with one context line and four numbered bullets.
4. Delete every skill a recruiter would never search for; add ten they would.
5. Check location, industry, custom URL and contact email.
6. Turn on Open to Work (recruiters only) if you are looking.

Frequently asked questions

Should my LinkedIn profile match my CV?

The facts must match: titles, employers, dates. Recruiters check. The writing should not be identical; LinkedIn is first person and slightly more conversational, and the headline and About are built for search in a way a CV is not.

Does Open to Work put employers off?

The recruiters-only setting does not; it is one of the first filters they apply. The public green banner is a judgement call. At senior levels most people leave it off and rely on the recruiter setting.

How often should I post?

You do not have to post at all to be found. A complete, well-written profile with the right skills is what recruiters search on. Posting helps if you have something specific to say; it does not help if you do not.