In a social media platform where there are about 530 million users, LinkedIn profiles with professional headshots get about 14 times more profile views and are 36 times more likely to receive a message on LinkedIn. For this reason, choosing the right profile picture to use on your LinkedIn profile matters.
LinkedIn was developed for professional networking between colleagues, hiring managers, potential clients, investors and students. Having that said, it is important that you use the right profile picture that goes with your professional achievements and goals.
To stand out on LinkedIn, follow these eight useful tips on choosing the right picture:
- Say good-bye to mirror selfies. While selfies are accepted on other social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram or Snapchat, it is important that you remember that LinkedIn is a professional networking site. Therefore, selfies are not appropriate as profile pictures.
- Avoid using filters. Remember that employers are trying to create a picture on their mind about yourself, and if you add filters to your picture, that might make it harder for them to have a better sense of who you are.
- Professional doesn’t mean serious. The goal of your profile picture on LinkedIn is to make you look approachable. Therefore, try to choose a picture that looks professional, but at the same time genuine. Sometimes people tend to misunderstand the word professional with super serious, intense or sometimes angry.
- Use a good camera. Your picture needs to be neat so employers can match your skills and experience with your face.
- Your LinkedIn profile picture is non-clickable; therefore, employers can’t zoom in to see your face. For this reason, it is important that you choose a headshot and not a full-body motion picture. Remember that LinkedIn is not about showing your personality and your passions, but about showing your professional potential.
- We all love our pets, but LinkedIn is not the social media network to exhibit your cat as your profile picture.
- Don’t crop yourself from group pictures and use that as your LinkedIn profile picture. This is not professional, and it might put employers under the impression that you are not as committed as you should be at showing the best version of yourself to find a job.
- Don’t take silhouette pictures because hiring managers want to see your actual face.
Now that you’ve read these eight tips, we are confident that you’re ready to choose your best headshot to use as LinkedIn profile picture. If you don’t have a headshot, go ahead and take one! It will only take about a minute, and trust us, you’ll thanks us later.
**************
Michelle Bizet is a senior in public relations at the University of Florida. She loves working in the communications field and she is very passionate about the labor nonprofit organizations do. When she is not managing social media or studying for school, she can be found running The Swamp or cooking delicious and nutritious meals.