HomeHow to write a LinkedIn summary, with examples
The About section is where most profiles fall flat, left empty or filled with a pasted CV statement. It is the one place you get to tell your story in your own voice. Here is how to write one that works.
The LinkedIn summary, the About section, is where most profiles fall flat. People either leave it empty or paste in their CV personal statement and move on. That is a wasted opportunity, because a strong LinkedIn summary is the one place you get to tell your story in your own voice, build a connection, and make a recruiter want to talk to you. It is worth getting right.
Here is how to write a LinkedIn summary that works, with the structure and examples to follow.
What a LinkedIn summary is for
Unlike your CV, which is formal and third-person by convention, your LinkedIn summary is written in the first person and can carry personality. Its job is to answer three questions quickly: who you are, what you are great at, and what you are looking for or offer. It is also prime keyword space, so it serves recruiter search as well as the human reader.
How to write a LinkedIn summary, step by step
Open with a hook
A strong first line that captures what you do and who you do it for. The reader sees only the first two lines before clicking more, so make them count.
Tell your story
A short, genuine account of your focus, your strengths and what drives you. First person, human, not a list of duties.
Show evidence
Weave in a couple of concrete achievements or results so it is grounded, not just claims.
Add keywords naturally
Include the terms recruiters search for, worked into the prose rather than stuffed.
Close with direction
End with what you are open to or how to reach you, so an interested reader knows the next step.
A LinkedIn summary example
"I help SaaS scale-ups turn marketing spend into qualified pipeline. Over eight years in B2B marketing I have built demand generation engines from scratch, grown pipeline by 40% in two years, and led content strategies that shortened sales cycles. I care about marketing that can prove its value, not vanity metrics. Always happy to talk demand gen, content, or growth, reach me here or at [email]."
It opens with value, tells a story, includes a result, carries keywords (B2B marketing, demand generation, content strategy), and ends with an invitation. That is the whole formula. It pairs with a strong LinkedIn headline and feeds your LinkedIn SEO.
LinkedIn summary mistakes to avoid
Do not leave it blank, do not write in the third person (it reads stiff on LinkedIn), do not simply paste your CV profile, and do not fill it with buzzwords that say nothing. Above all, do not make it all about what you want with no sense of the value you bring. The summary that works is generous, specific and human.
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