Whether to include a personal website or LinkedIn profile on your resume is a common question that job seekers face. The quick answer is that you should include both if you have them. A personal website and LinkedIn profile allow you to showcase and highlight skills, experience, projects, and other credentials to potential employers. Including links to your website and LinkedIn on your resume makes it easy for recruiters and hiring managers to learn more about you beyond what is contained in your resume.
Benefits of including a personal website on your resume
Here are some of the key benefits of putting your personal website URL on your resume:
- It shows you have technology skills – Building a website requires knowledge of web design, coding, content creation, and more. Having a link to your site demonstrates tech savvy.
- Lets you showcase work – A portfolio website presents examples of your projects, writings, graphics, videos, and other work. This provides evidence of your abilities.
- Displays web development skills – For developers and programmers, a personal site allows you to highlight web applications you’ve built and web coding skills.
- Demonstrates creativity – An online portfolio can exhibit your creative talents through design, writing, photography, art, and other creative works.
- Shows initiative – Creating a website requires drive, motivation, and initiative. This illustrates your resourcefulness to employers.
- Establishes your brand – A website allows you to control your narrative and present your own personal brand versus just a resume.
- Provides more details – You can elaborate on projects, experience, and skills on a website in a way you can’t on a brief resume.
Overall, a personal website enables you to provide visual evidence of your skills and accomplishments. It offers an expanded, multimedia platform to enhance your resume.
Benefits of putting LinkedIn profile link on resume
Here are some of the top advantages of including your LinkedIn URL on a resume:
- Shows you’re tech-savvy – LinkedIn is the top professional social media platform. Showing you have a profile exhibits technical abilities.
- Displays recommendations – LinkedIn recommendations from past managers, colleagues, clients, and others validate your skills and work.
- Highlights connections – Your number of LinkedIn connections displays your professional network and outreach.
- Endorses skills & expertise – Others can endorse your skills and expertise on LinkedIn, certifying your abilities.
- Showcases accomplishments – Honors & awards, courses, publications, volunteer work, and other achievements can be highlighted.
- Exhibits thought leadership – You can publish articles and content on LinkedIn to demonstrate domain expertise.
- Allows assessment of communication – Your profile content, posts, and activity offer clues into your communication abilities.
- Provides fuller picture – A LinkedIn profile adds more color beyond the black-and-white resume. It offers a snapshot of you as a professional.
In summary, a LinkedIn presence promotes your knowledge, connections, credentials, and personal brand. It’s a living resume that hiring managers can reference.
Should I put both my website & LinkedIn on my resume?
Yes, ideally you should include both your personal website URL and LinkedIn profile link on your resume if you have both established online presences. Here’s why it’s recommended to include both:
- One stop shop – It provides one place for all your online profiles rather than making recruiters dig.
- Shows technology prowess – Demonstrates web development and social media skills by having both.
- Offers fuller picture – Together they provide a comprehensive view beyond just a static resume.
- Gives options – Some people prefer assessing websites, others LinkedIn, so gives choice.
- Displays professionalism – Conveys you have a multi-pronged professional web presence.
- Maximizes real estate – Using both strategically takes advantage of valuable resume space.
- Boosts credentials – The combination of website and LinkedIn strengthens your credentials.
- Easy access – Enables one-click access for recruiters to quickly view profiles.
Having both your website and LinkedIn on your resume provides recruiters and hiring managers the complete package to evaluate your background, skills, experience, credentials, and personal brand. Together they leave a strong, positive impression.
What if I only have a website or LinkedIn profile?
If you have only one established online presence, whether a personal website or LinkedIn profile, you should still include it on your resume. Here is guidance for each scenario:
You have website but no LinkedIn:
Definitely put your website URL on your resume. It will enable you to visually showcase your skills, talents, work samples, and accomplishments. Be prepared to speak about why you don’t have a LinkedIn presence if asked.
You have LinkedIn but no website:
Include your LinkedIn URL on your resume without hesitation. It establishes your professional brand and connections. Be ready to address why you don’t have a website and how you present work samples if required for the job.
You have neither website or LinkedIn:
Focus on developing either an online portfolio site or LinkedIn profile to provide more credentials. In the meantime, be prepared to explain how you present work samples and connections without an established online presence.
While it’s ideal to have both, one robust online presence is better than none. Use the website or LinkedIn profile you have to your advantage.
What should I include on my website or LinkedIn profile?
When creating a personal website or LinkedIn profile, include content that highlights your professional qualifications and personal brand.
Here are some items to consider featuring:
For website:
- Portfolio of work samples
- Bio or About Me page
- Resume
- Skills section
- Project case studies
- Testimonials or reviews
- Blog content demonstrating expertise
For LinkedIn:
- Summary section highlighting experience
- Employment history
- Education
- Skills & endorsements
- Recommendations
- Accomplishments
- Posts showcasing thought leadership
The most important elements are your skills, experience, credentials, work samples, and expertise that qualify you for the types of jobs you seek.
Where should I place my website URL and LinkedIn link on my resume?
The most common placement for your website and LinkedIn URL is in the contact section of your resume. This puts it front and center along with your other contact details.
Here are sample contact sections with website and LinkedIn links:
Example A:
Contact
Jane Doe
Address Line 1
Address Line 2
Phone: 555-555-1234
Email: [email protected]
Website: https://www.janedoe.com
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/janedoe
Example B:
Contact
Jane Doe
Address Line 1
Address Line 2
Phone: 555-555-1234
Email: [email protected]
Website: janedoe.com
LinkedIn: janedoe
Other options:
- Below your name in the header
- Next to your email in the contact section
- At the very bottom of the resume
Putting your website URL and LinkedIn link in the contact info area ensures recruiters see it and can easily click to access your profiles.
How should I format my website and LinkedIn links on my resume?
To format your website URL and LinkedIn profile link on your resume:
- List your full website URL beginning with http:// or https://
- Shorten your LinkedIn URL to just linkedin.com/in/yourname
- Hyperlink both so they are clickable
- Optionally, bold or italicize both links for emphasis
- Use blue text color if your resume permits color
- Place each link on its own line for maximum visibility
Formatting your links properly ensures recruiters can access your profiles easily and enhances their prominence on your resume.
Should I customize my LinkedIn URL?
Definitely customize, or personalize, your default LinkedIn URL if you have the option available.
A customized LinkedIn URL offers these advantages:
- More professional – Looks cleaner than the default long URL
- More memorable – Easier to remember your name versus a string of numbers
- Easier to share – Simpler URL makes sharing your profile less complicated
- Enhanced personal brand – Custom URL reiterates your name
The customized URL should use your actual name. For example:
Default URL: https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-smith-72a78520
Custom URL: linkedin.com/in/jamessmith
Customizing your LinkedIn profile link provides a more polished, professional URL to include on your resume and promote your personal brand.
Should I link my website and LinkedIn icons on my resume?
It’s recommended to hyperlink your website and LinkedIn icons or logos in addition to listing the text URL. This gives recruiters two clickable options to easily access your profiles.
For example:
Jane Doe
Website: https://www.janedoe.com
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/janedoe
Linking your icons to your website and LinkedIn:
- Makes logos clickable
- Provides a direct visual cue
- Creates an easy one-click access point
- Improves user experience for recruiters
Hyperlinked icons are an optional supplement but make accessing your profiles even simpler for hiring managers.
Tips for an impactful website and LinkedIn presence
To maximize the impact of your website and LinkedIn profile, keep these tips in mind:
For personal website:
- Showcase your best, most relevant work samples
- Keep content updated
- Use engaging, professional design
- Make sure site is mobile responsive
- Include keywords recruiters search for
- Provide in-depth information beyond resume
- Optimize pages for SEO
For LinkedIn profile:
- Craft an compelling summary statement
- Leverage the about section to expand on experience
- Prioritize skills recruiters value most
- Publish and share content to build followers
- Join relevant industry groups
- Engage with other members through liking and commenting
- Request recommendations
Creating an awesome website and LinkedIn presence requires time and effort but can significantly influence recruiters. Optimize both to work hand-in-hand promoting your personal brand.
Should I include both on entry level resumes?
Including your website URL and LinkedIn on an entry level resume can provide a leg up on other candidates. As an entry level candidate, you likely lack extensive experience. Leveraging online profiles allows you to supplement your resume and demonstrate skills in multimedia formats.
Here’s how website and LinkedIn can boost an entry level resume:
Website:
- Showcases academic, volunteer, club and other non-work projects
- Provides samples of coursework like papers, presentations, analysis
- Highlights digital skills through web development
- Displays software and programming abilities with online apps
- Hosts videos, podcasts, artwork, photos evidencing talents
LinkedIn:
- Profiles internships, freelance gigs, academic experience
- Allows recommendations from professors, advisors, coaches
- Displays connections to those from university and affiliations
- Demonstrates communication via posts and content creation
- Showcases awards, honors, activities from education
Entry level candidates should leverage online profiles to provide tangible proof of abilities. Include website and LinkedIn links prominently on your resume.
Conclusion
In today’s digital age, most candidates have an online presence. Including your personal website and LinkedIn profile link on your resume provides additional avenues to engage, assess, and impress hiring managers.
Websites and LinkedIn offer multimedia dimensions resumes lack. They enable you to convey skills, accomplishments, work samples, connections, thought leadership, recommendations, and overall brand.
Craft your website and LinkedIn presence to best complement each other and highlight your qualifications. Prominently feature links to both profiles on your resume to maximize their exposure and impact. Make it simple for recruiters to learn more about the full, dynamic you.