4 types of LinkedIn Summaries (2 of which don't work)

LinkedIn has become a mysterious place the past few years. At one point it used to be the digital link from HR managers to candidates (and their digital resume). With the launch of LinkedIn Native Video, messenger, hashtags, publishing and more... LinkedIn has become the "B2B Facebook" channel.

So what does that mean to you?

What used to work, doesn't work. Plain and simple. The old tricks of completing and promoting a profile are dead! If you take a quick cruise through half a dozen or so LinkedIn profiles you'll come across only 4 styles of summaries:

1. No Summary
2. The SEO Summary
3. The Informative Bio
4. The Lead Generator

This won't come at any surprise but if you don't have a summary...quit while you're ahead. Your summary is where people go after seeing a great post or getting hooked on your tagline. We live in a social selling world where people turn to the internet for validation. They're looking at your profile to make sure you're trusted, that they like you and that you can help them.

Does your LinkedIn profile do that?

The SEO Summary was an old trick people used about 3+ years ago to increase the number of times they were found when people were searching specific keywords. It doesn't work anymore... although you may be thinking "People are still searching keywords". The LinkedIn algorithm has changed so it requires MORE to be found!

Take a moment and look at String Nguyen's profile.

This is an example of a very well written informative bio combined with lead generation. String tells you a story starting with her prediction for 2018. If you haven't already taken a look... it's worth the time!

I'll include some additional articles you can read:

1. 7 LinkedIn Profile Summaries That We Love (And How to Boost Your Own) by LinkedIn
2. 7 Creative LinkedIn Summary Examples to Help You Craft Your Own by HubSpot
3. How To Write A Stellar LinkedIn Summary by Forbes
4. The Muse states there are 5 styles of LinkedIn summaries in this blog

I'm happy to review and offer my advice on your summary if you comment on this article. Let me know which style you prefer! Plus share your favorite articles on LinkedIn summaries (bonus points if you wrote your own article!)