LinkedIn is the world’s largest professional network with over 722 million members worldwide. As a professional networking site, LinkedIn allows you to create a profile to showcase your background, skills, accomplishments, and interests. One of the key metrics LinkedIn provides is your profile strength, which measures how complete your profile is.
What is LinkedIn profile strength?
LinkedIn profile strength is an indicator of how complete your profile is on a scale of 0% to 100%. It aims to help LinkedIn members understand how robust and optimized their profile is for professional networking and opportunities. According to LinkedIn, profiles that are at least 40% complete are twice as likely to receive opportunities through LinkedIn. The higher your profile strength, the better chances you have of getting found and connecting with the right people.
How is profile strength calculated?
LinkedIn uses an algorithm to evaluate the completeness of key profile sections and assign a profile strength score from 0 to 100. The algorithm analyzes the following profile sections:
- Profile Photo
- Headline
- Summary
- Current Position
- 2 Past Positions
- Skills
- Education
- Location
- Industry
- Contact Info
The more complete information you have across these sections, the higher your profile strength score will be. Some factors that boost profile strength include:
- Having a professional photo
- Customized headline and summary sections
- Detailed work experience with descriptions
- At least 3 key skills listed
- Education history with degree and dates
- Location information with city/country
- Industry filled out
- Contact info such as email address
Incomplete or sparse information in these sections will lower your profile strength.
Why is LinkedIn profile strength important?
Having a strong LinkedIn profile has many benefits when it comes to your professional networking and career opportunities. Here are some key reasons to aim for a high profile strength on LinkedIn:
Get found more easily
A more complete profile gives people more ways to find you through searches on LinkedIn. Recruiters, hiring managers, and business contacts rely heavily on LinkedIn searches to find talent and connections. The more robust your profile, the higher the chance they can find you for job opportunities, partnerships, and other relationships.
Showcase your professional brand
Your LinkedIn profile serves as your professional online presence and personal brand. A well-optimized profile allows you to control how others view your professional capabilities, experience, and interests. It’s an opportunity to make a strong first impression.
Increase engagement
A complete profile helps promote engagement with your network on LinkedIn. People are more inclined to connect and interact with profiles that give them a good sense of someone’s background and expertise. Profiles with minimal information often get overlooked.
Access more features
LinkedIn limits some profile features based on your profile strength. For example, you may not be able to customize your LinkedIn URL or see all profile analytics available until you reach a certain threshold. Improving profile strength unlocks more functionality.
Boost opportunities
Most importantly, a strong profile translates to more real world opportunities. According to LinkedIn, members with complete profiles are 40% more likely to receive opportunities through recruiters, networking contacts, and other means. Profile strength is a metric that matters for your career growth.
How to view your LinkedIn profile strength
Checking your LinkedIn profile strength is easy. Here are the steps:
- Go to your LinkedIn profile page.
- Look for the circular graph under your profile photo and name. This is your profile strength shown as a percentage.
- Hover over the graph to see your specific percentage and how it compares to others in your network.
- Click on the “See how to improve” link below the graph to get tips to boost your profile strength.
Sample LinkedIn profile strength view
Here is an example of how profile strength appears on a LinkedIn profile:
As you can see, this profile has a strength of All-Star, which means a very high percentage score. Hovering over the graph shows the specific percentage of 97% and how that compares favorably to others in this person’s network. The “See how to improve” link provides recommendations for reaching 100%.
How to improve your LinkedIn profile strength
Here are some tips to optimize your profile and boost your LinkedIn profile strength score:
Add a professional photo
Have a quality headshot or professional photo of yourself. Profile pictures significantly impact your profile views and connections. Pick a friendly, approachable photo where you look your best.
Customize your headline
Your headline appears right below your name. Craft a customized headline that summarizes your professional focus, specialties, credentials, and goals. Include relevant keywords. Avoid just your job title.
Write an informative summary
Use the summary section to provide an overview of your background, skills, and career highlights. Share details on your experience, accomplishments, strengths, and expertise here. Tailor it to your industry and goals.
Showcase work experience
Detail at least your last 2-3 positions with descriptions of your role, responsibilities, and achievements. Focus on tangible results. Listing dates helps show the trajectory of your career.
Highlight key skills
Include at least 5 key skills that describe your strengths and capabilities relevant to your industry. These keywords also optimize LinkedIn search visibility. Prioritize hard skills.
Share your education
List your degrees, certifications, and schools attended. Include names, dates, areas of study, and other details. Education is a key credential for opportunities.
Provide location information
Specify your city and country so your network understands where you are based. Location also helps target opportunities near you.
Select your industry
Pick your current industry or focus area from the options LinkedIn provides. This categorizes you professionally for relevant content and contacts.
Add contact details
Include links to your professional website or blog, your email address, and any other contact information you want displayed. This enables connections.
Join groups and follow companies
Being an active member of industry-related LinkedIn groups and following target companies also contributes to your profile strength score.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does profile strength really matter?
Yes, LinkedIn profile strength is shown to directly impact your career opportunities and networking potential on the platform. Members with complete profiles have up to 40% more chances of being contacted for new roles, partnerships, and other relationships. It’s a key metric to pay attention to.
How long does it take to improve profile strength?
It depends on your starting point, but expect it to take at least a few hours to optimize your profile from just the basic information to over 90% strength. Building out all the recommended sections with custom details takes time. Improving in increments is recommended.
What is considered a good profile strength?
LinkedIn considers All-Star profile strength (90-100%) to be ideal. However, even 70-80% strength means you have a relatively robust presence. Focus first on surpassing 40% for a well-rounded foundation before pushing to 100%.
Does profile strength affect LinkedIn algorithm?
Yes, LinkedIn’s algorithm factors profile strength into visibility in search results and feed recommendations. More complete profiles get higher priority. A stronger profile means your content and activity has further reach.
Can I pay to increase my profile strength?
No, LinkedIn does not allow you to pay to artificially inflate your profile strength score. There are no shortcuts here – you must add real information and details to your profile to organically improve its completeness and optimization. Consistent effort over time is key.
Conclusion
Your LinkedIn profile strength is well worth paying attention to and gradually improving over time. A more complete and optimized profile boosts your professional branding, visibility, reach, and most importantly, real world opportunities. Focus on showcasing your background, skills, experience, and expertise across all the sections that matter most. With a more comprehensive profile, you will get found more often by the right people.