EP #053: The LinkedIn Profile Formula for Executive Presence

Your LinkedIn profile is your digital first impression. It’s the first thing people see when they click on your name, and in a split second, they’re making decisions about your credibility, expertise, and whether you’re worth engaging with.

Most executives treat their LinkedIn profile like an online résumé. But if you want to build executive presence and attract inbound opportunities, your profile needs to work like a personal landing page—one that positions you as a trusted authority in your industry.

Here’s the formula to optimize your profile for executive presence:

1. Your Headline: Clarity Over Cleverness

Your headline follows you everywhere on LinkedIn—it appears in search results, in your comments, and anytime you send a connection request. Yet most executives default to their job title, missing the opportunity to showcase their expertise.

💡 Formula: I help [target audience] achieve [specific outcome].

✅ Example:
🔹 CEO at Executive Presence | Helping Leaders Build Influence on LinkedIn
🔹 Partner at Spencer Stuart | Leadership Advisor to CEOs & Boards
🔹 CMO | Growth & Brand Strategy for B2B SaaS

🚫 Avoid:
🔹 Managing Director at XYZ Corp (Too vague—doesn’t highlight expertise)
🔹 Thought Leader, Innovator, Speaker (Lacks specificity)

Pro Tip: If you’re struggling to fit everything into your headline, use vertical bars (|) or bullet points (•) to separate key points while keeping it readable.

2. Your Banner: The Most Underused Real Estate

Your LinkedIn banner (header image) is prime real estate, yet most people either leave it blank (gray default) or use an irrelevant image.

What works best?
✅ A tagline that clearly states what you do
✅ A background image that reinforces credibility (company logo, speaking engagements, awards)
✅ A clean, professional design

Quick Fix: If you don’t have a custom banner, use Canva (a free design tool) to create one in minutes.

3. The Featured Section: Your Digital Portfolio

The Featured section is LinkedIn’s best-kept secret. This is where you showcase your best content and credibility—yet most executives don’t use it at all.

What to feature:
✅ Top-performing LinkedIn posts (to highlight thought leadership)
✅ Media mentions or interviews (to build authority)
✅ A call-to-action link (your website, a newsletter, or a booking page)

💡 Pro Tip: If you’ve been featured in major publications or podcasts, add them here to create instant credibility.

4. Your “About” Section: Sell, Don’t Tell

The biggest mistake executives make with their About section? Either leaving it blank or copying their corporate bio.

How to fix it:
✅ Start with a compelling hook—something that tells people why they should care.
✅ Use short, skimmable paragraphs and bullet points for easy reading.
✅ End with a call to action (e.g., “If you’re looking to grow your LinkedIn presence, let’s connect.”)

Example Structure:
1️⃣ What you do
2️⃣ Who you help
3️⃣ Why it matters
4️⃣ How they can contact you

5. Your Experience Section: Go Beyond Job Titles

Instead of treating your Experience section like a résumé, think of it as an opportunity to highlight impact.

🔹 Instead of: Managing Director at XYZ Corp
✔️ Say: Led a $50M revenue growth initiative, helping enterprise clients scale through digital transformation.

🔹 Instead of: Partner at ABC Firm
✔️ Say: Advised Fortune 500 executives on leadership strategy, succession planning, and board governance.

Key takeaway: Numbers matter. If you can quantify impact, do it.

Final Thought: Small Tweaks, Big Impact

Optimizing your LinkedIn profile doesn’t require a full overhaul—small tweaks can make a huge difference. Start with your headline, banner, and featured section, then refine the rest over time.

Your LinkedIn profile should be an extension of your executive brand, not just a digital business card. Make it work for you. 🚀

PS: Know a CEO who should be sharing their knowledge on LinkedIn? Send them this newsletter!

PPS: Are you a CEO who needs support sharing your insights on LinkedIn? That’s what we do for a living… let me know if we can help.

PPPS: Want to go deeper? Check out my CEO’s Guide to LinkedIn. This 83-page PDF contains everything I know about LinkedIn… and it’s 100% free.

— Justin

Justin M. Nassiri | Founder & CEO
M: 650.353.1138 | E: [email protected]
250 Fillmore St Suite 150, Denver, CO 80206
www.ExecutivePresence.io

Executive Presence specializes in helping top-tier executives boost their visibility, activate their network, and position themselves as thought leaders via our premium, fully-managed LinkedIn service.

Our unique process involves ex-McKinsey, BCG, and Bain consultants conducting monthly hour-long interviews with our clients, and turning them into impactful daily LinkedIn posts to establish their unique voice and authority. On average, our clients see a 500% bump in engagement in their first 30 days with us. Data is continuously analyzed to improve engagement and identify impactful messaging that you can use for conferences, podcasts, and internal communications.