We want to help you make the best impression possible on potential clients, so we’ve put together some helpful tips and guidelines for completing your profile.
Filling out your profile will help others get a feel for your professional experience and personality. This is your chance to stand out from the pack and show why your experience, skills, and personality can get the job done. When you finish and publish your profile, you may even get featured on our Indy Profiles page!
Pro tip: Take the time to fill out your profile with care. Blatant spelling mistakes, a blurry profile photo, or missing information can come across as careless or unprofessional.
Steps required to publish a profile
Profile Photo
Include a professional headshot on your profile to help create familiarity with potential clients and collaborators, plus give off a friendly, welcoming vibe.
Try to include a high-quality headshot on your profile. If you don’t have a headshot, ask a friend with a nice camera (or a smartphone with portrait mode) to take some shots of you in a well-lit location with a neutral background.
Do:
Use a recent photo. Keeping your profile photo up-to-date shows that you are invested in your brand image.
Try to look open & personable. You don’t have to smile, but don’t look too serious or unfriendly.
Use a photo of yourself in action. A look behind the scenes can showcase your experience and stand out in a sea of headshots.
Use a clear, high-resolution image.
Don’t:
Use low-resolution photos that appear blurry and pixelated.
Use a photo with a party or another unprofessional environment in the background.
Include other people in the photo — unless they are critical team members that complete your business offerings.
Use a selfie for your profile photo, or use filters. These can come off as unprofessional.
Use an image that doesn't represent you, like initials or a random image. You want your clients to know who you are or what your work is.
Pro tip: Cool coffee shops or cafes with large windows are good options to take casual headshots with nice natural lighting.
Headline
This headline will be displayed at the top of your profile. Use it to introduce yourself in a few words. One way to think of it is almost like you’re writing an advertisement for yourself.
Since it’s just a headline, you don’t have to go into too much detail here but you do want to intrigue visitors to keep reading. Try to find a balance between giving away your whole story and offering an overview that will keep them wanting more.
Pro tip: Write your headline in a way that sounds true to your voice and your personality. The more genuine you are, the more connected people will feel to your business.
Location
Adding your location helps potential clients know if you’re local to them for onsite work or better suited for remote work.
Roles
Next, list your areas of expertise. You can list your industry-related skills here and get specific with your specialties. For instance, a Copywriter can specialize in technical, wellness, SEO, nature, etc. You want to be sure you are as descriptive as possible here.
About You
Think of this section as your professional summary or bio. It gives you a place to tell the story of your business, and reach out to your target audience in a personal, unique way. What will make you stand out and appeal to potential clients and collaborators?
Give a rundown of who you are and show clients a bit of your personality. If you’d like to, talk about your passions and your process. That way prospective clients will be able to visualize how you’d fit within their existing team.
Do:
Describe yourself, your professional level of experience, and your key skills.
Take the time to fill out this section, because it is the first thing people will see when they view your Indy profile, and you want to start on the right foot!
Don’t:
Make this section too long. It should be a high-level introduction that will make people want to learn more about you by looking through your entire profile and resume.
Pro tip: If you already have a summary written at the top of your resume or on your LinkedIn profile, consider using it for this section.
Q&A
Show clients who you are, why you love what you do, and more with this interview-style section. We've provided a list of questions to help you get started. You can also write your own if there’s something else you want to share. There's no limit to how many questions and answers you can add but we do require a minimum of 2.
You can also add images to your Q&As to really make them pop! As with any image, make sure the photo is high quality, not blurry, and relevant to your answer. Most importantly, don’t reuse images like your profile photo or logo in this section — the image is optional so if you don’t have anything to add, just leave it blank.
Pro tip: Don’t just stop at 2! Our unique Q&A format allows you to tell your story and really lets potential clients get to know you on a more personal level.
Extra steps to make your profile better
Business logo
Put your brand front and center by including your business logo. You've worked hard to create your brand so let it shine!
Company website
You spent time creating the perfect website so we want you to be able to share it. Add your website so potential clients can get a better understanding of your brand and your work.
Brand colors
Customizing your profile goes a long way toward making it stand out. Choose a color that reflects your unique brand. The colors you select will be used on buttons and accents on your profile.
Social links
You're proud of your work and you want the world to see it. Chances are that you’ve uploaded your work on social media and have gotten really good feedback on it. So why not share that with potential clients by adding social links.
Portfolio links
Here’s a chance to quickly show off some of your goods. Include images and links to your work — whether it’s a link to an article you wrote, a webpage you designed, an app you developed, or a portfolio site. These are a great way to validate your experience or show others your skills in action.
It all starts with an image and really hits home with your title. It’s the first point that helps draw visitors in to learn more. Be sure to give a short explanation of the project. Try to strike a balance between describing what the project is and making it intriguing enough for someone to want to click for more details.
Do:
Give enough detail so that a reader will know what the portfolio is about.
Allow your personality to shine through.
Tell a story.
Test all your links before you post them to make sure they send people to the correct website.
Use high-quality imagery. We recommend images that are at least 2560x1440 pixels.
Don’t:
Use overly technical or confusing language.
Make your title too long. Short and sweet wins here.
Be vague or non-specific.
Include links to unprofessional or offensive content.
Use low-resolution images, pixelated images, or photos that are cut off.
Pro tip: The Internet can be a crazy place. Check your profile every few weeks to ensure that all of your links are still working correctly.