How Important Is Your Headshot?

According to various sources having a head shot on LinkedIn can increase the chances of your profile being looked at in more detail by between 7 and 14 times. LinkedIn says around 11 times. Like it or not others are making decisions regarding your profile photo, or lack of one.

This may not be as far fetched as you might think. If you are a recruiter, hiring manager or someone looking to buy a product or service and your are searching, or come across an update or comment, you often look for the headshot first.

So what is your reaction if you do not see a face? 

It might be that the person is trying to hide something, or they are not serious about business or you just move on.

So first things first, you need a headshot. 

The first key step is…..to ensure that you have good headshots. Usually I would recommend investing a little to get professional ones taken. It is not just the quality of the actual photo but also the expertise of the photographer that might save you from making any personal branding mistakes.

To understand how working with a headshot photographer the WinBusinessIn.com podcast from Mark Williams had a very useful interview and resources from John Cassidy the Headshot Guy you can access it by clicking here Season 1, Episode 5: LinkedIn Profile Photo’s With ‘The Headshot Guy’

Remember the two key parts of your profile that are seen first and most are the profile photo and your headline. If one or both are not enticing then they may never go any further.

If you want to get some anonymous feedback on your headshot in three main areas, Competent, Likeable and Influential you can use Photofeeler.com – a site that gathers insights from others using the system. You can even get votes on different photos for different uses, such as dating sites! They also have some useful blog posts then on even taking your own headshot like a professional.

Now if you want to be a little more creative you can use a tool like Canva.com and add the circle like I have. The reason for this is that many of the views of your headshot are now thumbnail, especially on the mobile app, and it converts it to a circle.

I got the tip originally from Mark Williams a fellow Brit and then another Brit did a LinkedIn post on how to do it , you can get all the details here from a LinkedIn post by Darel Griffin 

Let me know what you do and if you do end up changing your headshot.

If you feel you might need more help with your LinkedIn action strategy you can check out our various LinkedIn profile packages.  This is what others have had to say;

“It provided me with a rather different view of which areas are important in my profile!” – Senior Leader

“Thank you! I made several notes and will make some good adjustments to my profile. I especially appreciated your advice on groups and skills” – Business Owner

“The review was very helpful, there was a lot of easy stuff I didn’t realize I could add to my profile to improve visibility. The attached summary was also very helpful, especially  the message template area. Thanks again for the great review!” – Student