That’s why having an optimized banner is so important. A well-designed banner helps you make a strong first impression, attract attention, and keep visitors engaged with your profile.

TL;DR: Your LinkedIn banner is your profile’s first impression. Use it to showcase your style, build trust, and convey your message clearly. Stick to optimal dimensions (1584 x 396 px), align it with your branding, and explore ideas like professional themes, minimalist designs, or visual storytelling to engage your audience effectively.

Why Your LinkedIn Banner Matters

Your LinkedIn banner is the image that sits above your profile picture.

Think of it as a reflection of your style—it can showcase your authority by featuring recommendations from companies you’ve worked with or clients you’ve served.

Essentially, it’s an image that shows off your identity, but it also helps you gain trust with potential clients.

In other words, it’s the first impression people will have of your style after viewing your profile photo.

H3 : First Impressions Count

Trust me, first impressions really matter.

There’s nothing worse than someone landing on your LinkedIn profile only to see the default gray placeholder image

It makes it look like you haven’t bothered to optimize it, or worse, you just left it as LinkedIn set it up.

Even if you just have a solid color instead of a real photo, it’s still not making a good impression.

Your LinkedIn banner is like free advertising space—it’s a perfect place to highlight what you do.

Use this space to include a clear call to action, showing exactly what value you offer through your content. This is the moment to make sure your profile stands out.

Establishing Your Personal or Company Brand

It’s also worth mentioning that LinkedIn tends to give more visibility to personal profiles than company pages.

So, if your goal is to promote your product, service, or company, focusing on personal branding through your LinkedIn profile is a great strategy.

Think of your profile as a bridge between your personal brand and your company’s offerings. It’s a great opportunity to represent your business with a strong, unified identity.

If you coordinate your banner with other employees, you can create a consistent company brand that stands out, with a clear call to action for what you want people to know or do.

Best Practices for Designing a LinkedIn Banner

Now that we know how important it is to have a LinkedIn banner, and that it shouldn’t just be any random image with a bit of text, let's take a deeper look at some best practices you should follow before designing your banner.

Ideal LinkedIn Banner Dimensions

First things first, whether you’re designing the image yourself or hiring someone to do it for you (or using a tool like Canva, as most creators do), you need to keep the size and format in mind.

The ideal dimensions for your LinkedIn banner are 1584 x 396 px. This ensures the image fits properly and looks sharp.

As for formats, it's best to use either JPG or PNG. Once you’ve got these basics sorted, the goal is to add relevant information.

Keep your message clear and concise—something impactful for your target audience.

The banner is like a one-second ad, so you’ve got to make those few words count.

The image and color you choose should be eye-catching and closely aligned with your service or message.

The key here is to use minimal text but make sure it’s well-chosen and stands out.

Key Design Elements

Let’s dive into the design aspect.

There are countless styles and color schemes to choose from, depending on how you want to shape your visual identity.

If your brand identity is already established, stick to the same colors, formats, and design elements you’ve been using.

If not, a great starting point is to look at what other well-known content creators like Lara Costa, Jasmin Alic, and others are doing with their banners.

This can give you some initial inspiration.

Next, keep in mind that the text on your banner should be super minimal and easy to read in just a couple of seconds.

It should be scannable at a glance.

Focus on highlighting key information: your logo, a catchy phrase that tells people what you do and the value you offer, and a clear call-to-action.

Finally, make sure all the visual elements you use are high-quality.

Avoid using images you’ve grabbed from someone else.

Instead, create your own or use free, customizable elements from platforms like Canva, where you can find many shapes and designs to personalize and match your style.

Ideas for Your LinkedIn Banner

Let’s make sure you never run out of ideas.

Here are some of the most common LinkedIn banner examples, broken down to help you identify what elements you can apply to your own banner.

For Professionals

If you’re aiming for a professional style aligned with your company, consider the following:

Highlight key achievements or certifications.
Incorporate your industry’s themes (e.g., tech, finance, healthcare).
Include a professional tagline that sums up your expertise.
Use clean, corporate colors for a polished look.

For Entrepreneurs and Business Owners

If your focus is on personal branding, whether for yourself as an entrepreneur or for your business, make sure your banner includes the following:

Showcase your business logo prominently.
Add a slogan or call-to-action that emphasizes your unique value proposition.
Use brand colors to establish recognition.
Incorporate an image of your product, service, or a relevant graphic.

For Job Seekers

As a job seeker, your banner is an opportunity to stand out from other candidates.

Use it to clearly communicate your career goals and create a strong first impression for recruiters.

Include a clear statement of your career goals (e.g., “Looking for opportunities in marketing”).
Use keywords or industry-related icons to catch recruiters' attention.
Keep it simple but professional to align with your personal brand.
Highlight your LinkedIn profile URL if space allows.

Minimalist Banners

If simplicity is your style, a minimalist banner can say a lot with very little.

Focus on clean, bold visuals that make your profile look modern and uncluttered.

Focus on simplicity with one or two bold colors.
Avoid clutter—use minimal text or just your name and title.
Utilize geometric shapes or clean lines for a modern aesthetic.
Ensure the design conveys clarity and professionalism.

Visual Storytelling

A banner should tell a story to capture attention and leave a lasting impression.

Some elements that can help you tell a story through your image include:

Use an image or graphic that tells a story about your career or mission.
Include elements like timelines, key milestones, or visuals that represent your journey.
Blend creative illustrations or photos that resonate with your audience.
Balance text and visuals to avoid overwhelming the viewer

Perfecting Your LinkedIn Banner

So, what can we take from all of this? The key takeaway is that your LinkedIn banner should reflect your style and goals.

You can take inspiration from someone else's design, but to truly stand out, you should refine it over time so that, in just two seconds, people recognize those colors as uniquely yours.

Also, keep in mind that this needs to align with your personal brand.

Once you've decided on your style and it becomes part of your visual identity, it’s best not to change it too often. Consistency is key.

If you see that a lot of people are responding to your banner or that it's not getting the attention you hoped for, you can always tweak and modify it.

But don’t make drastic changes all the time, as this can hurt the recognition and trust people have in your brand's colors.

Finally, if you change your service, product, or the value proposition you offer, feel free to update your banner accordingly.

Adjusting your key message can help you connect even better with your audience.

The ultimate goal is for your LinkedIn banner to be the first impression of your business—one that builds trust and reflects your personal style.

It doesn’t have to be boring, but it should absolutely be a representation of who you are.

Once people see it, they’ll connect with you through that image.