Your LinkedIn profile isn’t a digital resume. It’s not a placeholder. And it’s definitely not something you can set up once and forget about – but if you’re like many of the people I talk to, that’s exactly what you’ve done. When I’m speaking, I’ll often ask, “Raise your hand if you’re on LinkedIn.” Most, if not all, of the hands go up. Then I’ll say, “Keep your hand up if you have actively used LinkedIn in the last two days.” I get a lot of sheepish looks and the hands go down.
More than half of the people reading this haven’t touched their LinkedIn profile in more than a year – unless it was to add a new job. Your profile is making a business case for you every single day – whether you know it or not.
Your Buyers are Looking You Up.
Here’s what’s happening right now: A prospect is considering whether to take a meeting with your company. Before they respond to that email or return that call, they’re looking up your leadership team on LinkedIn. They’re not just checking job titles. They’re evaluating whether you and your team are engaged in the modern business landscape. They’re assessing credibility, expertise, and whether you understand the challenges they face.
A bare-bones profile with outdated information, maybe no profile picture, and no activity doesn’t just reflect poorly on you. It raises questions about your entire organization. If your leadership team can’t be bothered to maintain professional profiles, what does that say about how engaged you are with customers, with innovation, with your market?
Research shows that most B2B buyers are more likely to purchase when an executive’s profile demonstrates impact and achievement. Your profile is influencing buying decisions before you ever get the chance to present.
The Generational Factor Makes This More Pronounced.
This matters even more when you consider generational dynamics. Younger decision-makers – Millennials and Gen Z buyers who now make up a significant portion of B2B purchasing – expect to find robust professional profiles. They’ve grown up researching everything online before making decisions. When they can’t find substantive information about your leadership team, or when they find profiles that haven’t been updated in years, they move on to competitors who demonstrate they’re current and engaged.
Profile vs. Presence: Both Matter
A great LinkedIn profile is table stakes. But it’s only the beginning. Your profile tells people who you are. Your content and engagement show them how you think. The most effective business leaders on LinkedIn do both:
- They maintain profiles that clearly articulate their expertise and impact
- They consistently create content that demonstrates thought leadership
- They engage authentically with their professional community
You can have the perfect profile, but if you never post, never comment, and never engage, you’re missing the opportunity to demonstrate your expertise in real-time.
Building a Profile That Works
Here’s what separates profiles that generate business opportunities from those that sit idle:
Tell a story, not a resume. Your About section shouldn’t list job responsibilities. It should articulate the problems you solve, the value you create, and why you do what you do. Write it in first person. Make it conversational. Show personality while maintaining professionalism.
Lead with impact, not titles. Instead of “VP of Sales,” try “Helping B2B companies navigate generational dynamics to build high-performing sales teams.” Your headline should make someone want to learn more, not just identify your organizational position.
Use your experience section strategically. Don’t just list what you did – explain the outcomes you achieved. Quantify results where possible. Show progression and growth. Demonstrate that you’ve solved problems similar to what your prospects face.
Keep it current. An outdated profile signals you’re not engaged. Update your experience when roles change. Refresh your About section periodically to reflect current focus areas. Add new skills and certifications as you acquire them.
A Professional photo matters. This seems obvious, but the number of executives with outdated, unprofessional, or missing photos is staggering. Your photo should be recent, professional quality, and appropriate for your industry.
Quality Content Matters.
Once your profile is solid, the real work begins: consistent content creation and authentic engagement. LinkedIn isn’t a static advertising platform – it’s a networking site that is content-based. This doesn’t mean posting daily motivational quotes, sportsball pictures, or sharing generic business articles. It means:
Sharing your perspective on industry trends. What are you seeing in your market? What’s changing? What should your prospects be thinking about?
Demonstrating expertise through original insights. You’re smart and you know things. Show it. Write posts that show how you think about business challenges. Challenge conventional wisdom when appropriate. Offer frameworks and actionable advice.
Engaging authentically with your network. Comment meaningfully on others’ posts. Ask questions. Share experiences. Build relationships through genuine professional discourse, not superficial “great post!” responses (yawn).
Being consistent. Posting once every three months doesn’t build visibility. Regular engagement – even just 2-3 times per week – keeps you in your network’s awareness and signals to LinkedIn’s algorithm that you’re an active, valuable contributor.
Lead by Example
If you’re a CEO or senior leader, your LinkedIn presence sets the tone for your entire organization. When leadership engages authentically on LinkedIn, it empowers employees to do the same. This creates an advocacy engine that attracts clients, talent, and opportunities. – but it has to be authentic. Employees can spot manufactured corporate messaging instantly, and it backfires. Share real insights, real challenges, real wins. Be human while being professional. “I’ll just let the marketing department handle that” is a road to failure.
The Bottom Line
Your LinkedIn profile and presence are working for you or against you right now. There’s no neutral position. Every prospect who researches you, every candidate who considers joining your team, every potential partner who evaluates working with you – they’re forming opinions based on what they find (or don’t find) on LinkedIn.
The question isn’t whether you need a strong LinkedIn presence. The question is whether yours is opening doors or quietly closing them. Take an honest look at your profile today. Would a prospect who found it be more or less likely to take a meeting? Would a top candidate be impressed or concerned? For that matter – would you be more or less likely to buy from yourself, based on your profile?
If the answer doesn’t make you confident, it’s time to invest in building a presence that reflects the professional you actually are – not the outdated snapshot from five years ago. Your profile is making a business case every day. Make sure it’s the case you want to make.
