Have you ever looked up in the sky – mostly in summer here in New England – and seen a small plane flying overhead trailing a banner advertising something?
Fun to see, right?
But could you even read it?
For safety, I’m sure the planes had to be at a certain
altitude, fly a certain speed, and conform to other
things most of us know nothing about.
Of course, the basic reason for that banner is advertising, right?
So … does it work? Hmmm. Maybe. But once it’s gone, do we ever think about it again?
Holding that thought, let’s take this idea of a banner over to our LI profile.
It’s at the top of every profile, automatically filled in with either a grayish or greenish nothing-much background provided by LI as a mere space filler … OR it’s something the profile’s
owner dreamed up to catch our attention.
And since the banner is the first thing most of us see when we’re scrolling past dozens /
hundreds of profiles, it really needs to JUMP OUT and catch our eyes, long enough for us
to decide to stay and read more.
Here are two examples to consider: The gray LI basic space-filler (with the person’s face blocked out here for privacy). Ho hum. Nothing to see here.
Better move on.
Now, here’s one created by David Alto several years ago.
Which one draws your attention?
And although David has changed his banner several times since then, this one still stays in my mind thanks to its originality and sense of fun and purpose.
Here are two more banners that I enjoy seeing (even if Jeff Young’s Superman is partially hidden) because they’re descriptive and the picture of each is welcoming:
And yes: We really can use humor in our banner, if it fits into our basic business message or the impression we want to give others.
Now, how to do it: Use Canva or any other platform that can quickly either give you some examples or at least a space to work with.And for more platforms to help you create yours, just Google “LinkedIn Banners.”
Things to remember:
The banner space is FREE advertising space – why waste it?
The circle on the left is for a picture of you, hopefully smiling. Its position is fixed; it
cannot be moved.
Be sure to push your background text towards the right side so it won’t get caught behind the picture. It’s well worth the time you can spend looking closely at others’ profiles, especially their banners.
You never know where and when you’ll see something you could use yourself!
Next month, we’ll explore the next section – our Headline.
