What is a profile tagline?

A profile tagline is a short, memorable phrase that summarizes who you are or what you offer. Taglines are commonly used in social media bios, email signatures, resumes, LinkedIn profiles and other professional profiles to provide additional context about a person. An effective profile tagline serves as a personal slogan that communicates your values, personality and expertise.

What are the characteristics of a good profile tagline?

There are a few key characteristics that make for an effective profile tagline:

• Concise – A tagline should be short and succinct, usually just a few words or a short sentence. You want it to be catchy and memorable.
• Descriptive – It should communicate key information about who you are, what you do and what makes you unique. It should give people a sense of your personal brand.
• Authentic – Your tagline should sound like you and reflect your actual personality and values. Don’t try to be someone you’re not.
• Clear – Avoid overly clever or confusing phrases. Your tagline should clearly communicate your key attributes.
• Consistent – Your tagline should align with your broader personal brand and reinforce the image you want to project across platforms.

What are some examples of good profile taglines?

Here are some examples of memorable profile taglines:

• “Data storyteller”
• “Passionate about sustainable travel”
• “Helping leaders amplify their influence”
• “Bringing creative ideas to life”
• “Software engineer focused on UX design”

As you can see, these short phrases communicate key professional attributes and areas of expertise. They give a snapshot of what the person is about.

How long should a profile tagline be?

Ideally, a profile tagline should be around 3-15 words. You want it to be long enough to communicate something meaningful about yourself, but short enough to be skimmable and memorable. Avoid taglines that are overly long or read like full sentences.

Here is a table with examples of appropriate tagline lengths:

As you can see, concise, descriptive phrases between 3-9 words tend to make ideal taglines. Anything longer starts to lose impact.

How is a profile tagline different than a resume objective?

A resume objective and profile tagline serve related but distinct purposes:

• A resume objective is a short statement on your resume that states your career goals and highlights relevant skills. It is tailored to a specific job or company.
• A tagline is designed to summarize your personal brand more broadly. It is used prominently across your professional profiles, website and other materials.
• An objective is a few sentences and provides more detail. A tagline is just a quick memorable phrase.
• A resume objective is all business, while a tagline has slightly more personality.
• Objectives change for each job you apply to. A tagline remains consistent as part of your brand.

So in summary, a resume objective is formal and job-specific, while a tagline is more informal and meant to capture your essence. They serve complementary purposes.

Where are the best places to feature your profile tagline?

Here are some key places where you can effectively feature a profile tagline:

• In your social media bios – Platforms like Twitter, Instagram and Facebook give you just a sentence or two to make an impression. A tagline works great here.
• In your email signature – Include your tagline under your name in email signatures. It gives a snapshot of who you are with every email you send.
• On your resume – Although different than a resume objective, you can include a quick tagline at the very top of your resume for added impact.
• On your LinkedIn profile – Feature your tagline prominently in your LinkedIn headline or summary section.
• On your website or blog – Include your tagline on your website’s About page or homepage to quickly communicate who you are.
• In professional Slack/Teams profiles – Taglines work well in abbreviated professional chat profiles.
• In video intros/outros – If you create videos, a tagline can help personalize your channel.

The key is choosing high-visibility spots where people quickly gain their first impression of you. Make your tagline prominent in these spaces.

How often should you update or change your profile tagline?

As your career develops and your personal brand evolves, it’s reasonable to occasionally update your tagline. But consistency is also valuable. There are a few factors to consider:

• Significant career change – If you switch industries or take on a dramatically different role, your existing tagline may no longer apply.
• Major life change – If you go through something personally transformative, you may want your tagline to reflect that.
• Revamped strategy – If you deliberately reposition your brand, a tagline change may be in order.
• Improved clarity – If you think of a tagline that communicates your essence better, it could be worth an update.

That said, you don’t want to change your tagline so often that it loses meaning. Unless one of the factors above applies, aim for consistency. Tweak the wording if needed, but stick to the same general concept.

A good rule of thumb is assessing if your tagline still feels right on an annual basis. More frequent big changes can diminish its impact.

How do you come up with ideas for a profile tagline?

Here are some tips for brainstorming an effective personal profile tagline:

• Review your existing bios/profiles to see if any phrases jump out
• Make a list of a few words that describe your skills, values, and personality
• Note any compliments you receive regularly from others
• Think about metaphors that might capture what you bring to the table
• Look at taglines of people you admire in your field
• Try out different word combinations until you find something memorable
• Say potential taglines out loud to test how they sound
• Ask friends/colleagues for feedback on your draft taglines

Brainstorming is usually the best way to arrive at an effective tagline. Be open to playing around with different possibilities until you find the right fit.

Should you include humor or personality in a profile tagline?

Appropriately used humor and personality can definitely work well in a tagline – but in moderation. A few guidelines:

• Make sure humor aligns with your brand – Don’t force something unnatural.
• Avoid anything too unprofessional/inappropriate for work contexts.
• Consider your industry culture – Finance more conservative, media/arts more playful.
• Personality is great; self-deprecating humor less advisable.
• Test it out – Does the humor land with colleagues familiar with your work?
• Shorten if needed – Humor lengthens; condense as much as possible.

For example, “Enthusiastic web developer serving up code for breakfast” shows personality. But something like “Another day in paradise! (And by paradise I mean my cluttered office)” should probably be avoided.

The bottom line: a touch of humor can work nicely, but err on the side of professionalism until you know your audience. Get a trusted second opinion.

What are some common mistakes people make with profile taglines?

Some mistakes to avoid when creating a profile tagline:

• Too vague – “Passionate marketer” doesn’t say much.
• Too corporate/jargony – “Customer-centric innovator” feels inauthentic.
• Too humble – “Aspiring social media manager” downplays expertise.
• Too arrogant – “World’s greatest salesperson” sounds pompous.
• Too boring – “Digital marketing specialist” puts people to sleep.
• Too self-promotional – “Hire me for your next marketing campaign” sounds salesy.
• Too silly – “Avocado enthusiast” is probably too informal.
• Too lengthy – Don’t make it multiple long sentences.

The goal is finding the sweet spot between descriptive, authentic, and succinct. Memorize your draft to ensure it’s catchy and concise. Revise until you feel you’ve captured your essence.

How can you A/B test different versions of a profile tagline?

A/B testing different tagline options is a great way to determine what resonates most with your audience. Here are some ways to compare versions:

• Set up two similar social media profiles using different taglines – monitor engagement on each.
• Send emails with a different tagline in your signature to two small segments of your list – see if either garners more responses.
• Poll close colleagues or existing customers – which tagline feels more “you”?
• Create two online profiles with alternate taglines – track which gets more profile views.
• Run paid social ads split testing the taglines – see if one headline outperforms on clicks/conversions.

Evaluate the data to see which tagline variant wins on metrics like open rate, click-through rate, responses, or conversions. The winning version has the most potential once rolled out more widely.

How can you ensure diversity and inclusion in your tagline?

Here are some tips for creating a tagline that embraces diversity and inclusion:

• Avoid terms and phrases that reinforce dominant cultural stereotypes
• Consider including pronouns if desired, such as “she/her” or “they/them”
• Use gender-neutral language instead of terms like “businessman”
• Highlight interests/skills unrelated to ethnicity, if comfortable doing so
• Emphasize values like equity, accessibility and inclusion
• Feature underrepresented communities you support
• Make expertise related to diversity and inclusion central

The goal is crafting a tagline that feels authentic and approachable to all people, highlighting what makes you uniquely you. Keep it inclusive, but don’t feel pressure to overtly advertise demographics.

Conclusion

Your profile tagline is a valuable opportunity to convey your personal essence and expertise. An effective tagline is concise, memorable and consistent across platforms. Avoid overthinking – have fun brainstorming phrases until you find one that feels like the best fit. Remember to occasionally reassess as your career evolves. Use your tagline prominently to make the desired first impression wherever your name appears online.