Create a Kick Ass LinkedIn Background Photo in 5 Minutes or Less

Creating a Custom LinkedIn Background Photo

In this article, I'm going to give you step-by-step instructions on how to create a kick-ass LinkedIn background photo for free and in less than 5-minutes.

If you're reading this article, I'm sure you already have a LinkedIn profile. But, before we jump into creating your LinkedIn background photo, let's quickly talk about why LinkedIn is important to you.

The Challenge: It’s Hard to Stand Out on LinkedIn

Unlike other social media platforms, LinkedIn is polished. 

The platform is full of intelligent, educated, and highly successful people. 

• 4.5 of 10 users are in upper management

• 7 of 10 users make above $50,000

• 5 of 10 users have at least a college degree or more

LinkedIn users are writing, posting, and engaging in deep business and technical conversations. 

For the average user, it's hard to stand out. 

But you're not average. You see the opportunity. 

When everyone is wearing the "traditional" blue shirt, grey pants, and brown shoes…

You're going to slide in there with some color, some pizazz...

...followed by your keen ability to cut through the crap and give your audience the exact content they're looking for. 

The Opportunities on LinkedIn

LinkedIn is growing. 

There are over 600 million users across 200 countries.

The fastest-growing demographic is 46 million students and recent college graduates.

You can use the platform to build your brand, develop new skills, market your business, and generate leads.

That means LinkedIn provides a massive opportunity for you to take control of your destiny by standing out in front of a professional audience.

Using a LinkedIn Banner to Stand Out 

Your profile picture and LinkedIn background photo are the first things people see when they visit your profile. 

That means having a custom background for LinkedIn gives you the perfect opportunity to market your business, stand out from the crowd, and build your personal brand.  

Your LinkedIn profile picture should be more professional. A good headshot.

But your banner, your LinkedIn background photo, can show off your personality, point people to a specific message, or act as a way of marketing you or your company.

And because size matters, the banner size for LinkedIn is 1584 wide by 396 high (pixels) or a 4:1 aspect ratio. 

By the way, if you might hear or read LinkedIn banner, LinkedIn background image, or LinkedIn cover or LinkedIn background photo...They all mean the same thing. 

How to Create a LinkedIn Background Photo in Less Than 5-Minutes

Let's jump into how to make professional backgrounds for LinkedIn for free. 

Step 1: Click here to head over to www.canva.com and log in

Once you log in, you'll reach the home page of Canva, which can be a little confusing if you haven't used it before. 

But, don't worry, when you follow the steps below, you'll create a spectacular LinkedIn background photo. 

Step 2: Search for "LinkedIn Banner" 

Go to the search function in the top center of the screen. Type in the search, "LinkedIn banner." 

Click the button to go to the next screen. 

Step 3: Narrow Down to Free LinkedIn Banners 

Now we've pulled up all the LinkedIn banner templates that Canva offers. You can see on the right-hand side that Canva has 140 templates.

But this includes free and paid banner templates. I have Canva Pro, but right now, I'm logged into a free account to show you the real experience you'll find when using a free account.

To get the free banner templates, go to the drop-down on the left-hand side. Click the free checkbox.

You can see that there are 97 free templates for you to choose to make your LinkedIn background photo.

Scroll through them a little.

Step 4: Select a LinkedIn Banner Template 

Scroll through the free LinkedIn banner templates. Find the template that's best for you and represents your personal brand. I selected one for this example. Once you click, it will take a little time to pull up the template.

Step 5: Get Oriented with the Customizable Options of the Template

Move around the LinkedIn Banner template to see what you can customize. For the example banner below look at the highlighted areas.

For the text, there's a quote that we can change. It looks like some sort of award this person won. We're going to change that too.

Then, you have the stock photo and what Canva calls elements. 

Elements are the different building blocks, like squares, triangles, circles, and other things that Cana allows you to customize on this particular template.

Step 6: Customize the Text 

The first thing you can do is replace the quote with your own quote or life mantra. So, the way you do that is to click into the text. 

Then, type your new text into the box. Next, replace the award text with my name and job title. 

Again, you just click into the text and type what you want. 

Step 7: Customize the Colors

Now you're going to change the color of the blocks to match your brand colors. 

First, go over to the block. Hover over it, and you'll see a highlight. Left-click into the block. 

You'll see on the top left of the screen is kind of this colored square. Click on that and then select a color to change the block. Then, repeat those steps for each block you want to change. 

Step 8: Personalize the Picture 

For this step, you're going to change the Canva provided stock photo with your customized LinkedIn background photo. So go to the left-hand side of the screen and click uploads. Then, upload media. 

Under the upload section, you can select the location you want to upload your picture from. 

Canva has options for uploading from your computer (device), Facebook, Google Drive, Instagram, or Dropbox. Select the location, find your picture, and click upload. 

Once the picture is uploaded, left click and hold, slide the picture over until it replaces the LinkedIn template picture. Let go of your left click, and you are done.

Wow! Look at your bright, professional, and customized background for LinkedIn!

Step 9: Download Your LinkedIn Background Photo

We're almost done! Now you're ready to download your new LinkedIn background photo. 

Look on the top right-hand side. See that download button, click it. 

Select the png option. Last, hit that download button at the bottom again. Save the file to the location of your choice.

Step 10: Upload Your New Background Photo to LinkedIn

Sign in to LinkedIn. Go to your profile. Look at your background photo and find a circle with a pencil-looking icon. Click that icon. 

Scroll down, and you'll see a button to "change photo." Click that button. 

Next, click the upload photo button. Make a few adjustments and finally click save. 

Boom!

Hell yes! You are done.

You just created a sweet Background for LinkedIn, all for the low cost of free. You can't compete with free! 

I have no doubt this article showed you how easy it is to update and customize your LinkedIn background photo. 

Below I'll leave links to a few other sites with free images you can use for your LinkedIn background photo. 

• PicMonkey

• Adobe Creative Cloud

• Visme
  
  
  

Do me a quick favor. If you liked this article, please share it on your social media. You'll be helping me out.

And if you want more tips on taking control of your life, building your personal brand, and marketing yourself online, sign up for my newsletter.

The TOP 7 Examples of a Personal Brand Statement You Should Replicate Today [2021]

Personal Brand Statement Examples

What is a personal brand statement?

A personal brand statement is a concise summary that answers who you are, what you do, how you help, and what sets you apart. A personal brand statement is 1-3 sentences that speak to your ideal audience that shows your value and a little bit of personality.

When you write your statement, think of it as your personal slogan or tagline.

For example, my personal brand statement is, "As a personal branding coach, I help entrepreneurs and online experts build their brand, become thought leaders, and market themselves online. With my coaching, you become the cause of your success."

In my personal brand statement example, I point out who I am, "a Personal Branding Coach." 

Then, I identify my ideal clients, "entrepreneurs and online experts." My clients own businesses or are experts in their chosen field that need to gain exposure through personal branding. 

Next, I identify what I do, help my clients build their personal brand, become thought leaders, and market themselves online.

Last, I provide what sets me apart and the unique outcome my clients receive from me and not my competition, " you become the cause of your success..." 

I work with my clients on marketing themselves online AND on the mental parts of taking control of their lives. 

You see, I can teach you all the marketing and personal branding you want.  

But, if you don't...

• Take control of your life, or someone else will.

• Learn from their past, but leave it there.

• Envision a new life, then make a plan to achieve your vision.

• Remember, bumps in the road make you stronger.

• Move forward one day at a time.

Then, you'll never "Become the cause of your success."

That's how I differentiate my brand from the competition.

Why You Need a Personal Brand Statement

I review social media profiles and websites all the time. Almost every day.

You have no idea how many profiles and websites just blend into a giant sea of the "same shit, different day." 

Rarely do I come across a unique profile that has a personal brand statement where I think..."Hell yes! This person gets it." 

Your personal brand statement is a small but essential piece of the puzzle when marketing yourself online. It helps you stand out from your peers and competition.

You can spread your statement across social media, your website, business cards, advertising, marketing materials, etc. 

You can expand your 1-3 sentence brand statement to provide more information on your website. 

Conversely, you can split up your statement to make a quick tagline for a business card or short social media content. 

Sometimes, I use "Become the cause of your success" on its own. Alternatively, I use "I help you build your personal brand and market yourself online."

Once you have a solid personal brand statement, you can remain "on brand" and stay consistent. Yet, adjust your message depending on the audience, goals, or the content you are creating.

Personal Brand Statement Examples

From these examples of personal brand statements, you'll see that some are a one-sentence jab. While others expand to three sentences, a jab, jab, right hook.

1. Neil Patel

“Do you want more traffic? Hey, I'm Neil Patel. I'm determined to make a business in Tulsa successful. My only question is, will it be yours?”

Neil poses a question first. The question stops his ideal audience in their tracks and they think…" Hell yes I want more traffic." 

Next, he introduces himself and tells you what he does, "make a business in Tulsa successful."

Neil even uses technology to personalize the message to your location, "Tulsa." 

Last, he asked you another question using a little psychology to make you want to reach out or know more.

2. Pat Flynn

“Hi! I'm Pat Flynn. Father, Husband, Serial Entrepreneur, and devourer of buffalo wings. I turn dreamers into achievers. Let's create something great together, and have fun doing it, too.”

Pat shows some fun personality with his brand statement. Showing your personality makes you human. It helps you connect with your audience.

Once Pat makes that connection, he adds his experience and how you can work with him.

3. Marie Forleo

“The world needs a special gift that only you have. Hi, I'm Marie. An entrepreneur, writer, philanthropist and an unshakable optimist dedicated to helping you become the person you most want to be.”

In Marie’s personal branding statement, she tugs at the heartstrings of her audience. She gets emotional which brings you into her world.

Using emotion is another great way to connect. Don’t be afraid to use this type of emotion in your brand statement.

4. Ramit Sethi

I will teach you to be rich. Do you know your earning potential?

Boom! Talk about hitting it out of the park! Who doesn’t want to be rich?

Ramit keeps his initial statement simple. He asks a question everyone will say “yes” to…

Then, he gets you in his funnel by asking you to submit your email address.

5. Joel Runyon

“Push Your Limits. I travel the world, run ultra marathons, and build businesses.”

Joel keeps his personal brand statement simple too. But he nails his target audience with the picture and text “Push Your Limits.”

There’s a certain audience he’s going after. He wants people ready for the extreme.

6. John Romaniello

“At Roman Fitness Systems, we do two things: Make People Hot or Get People Huge. Choose wisely.” 

John gives you two choices, do you want to be hot or get huge? I like it. Imagine the conversation if someone asked John, “So what do you do?”

John: “Well, I make people hot or get them huge. Which one do you want to be?”

Quite the bold, yet authentic conversation starter.

7. Tony Robbins

“Master every area of your life. Solutions to fit your time, your lifestyle and your budget.”

Tony’s personal branding statement is a little different. He’s been around a long time. His statement reflects both his depth and breadth.

Plus, he reveals to his audience that there are options to fit any budget.

When you get as big as Tony Robbins, your personal brand statement can be broader too. Until then, I’d keep it as narrow and targeted as possible.

Tips on writing a personal brand statement

Be concise. Whether you're speaking with someone in person or writing your brand statement on your website, resume, or social media profile, your personal brand statement needs to grab their attention. So keep your personal brand statement simple, short, and highly targeted. Once you grab their attention, you can go deeper.

Be authentic.. Your personal brand statement is the first step in building your know, like, and trust factor. Start off on the right foot. Don't understate your abilities or brag, but for the love of all that is good in this world, don't overstate either. Connect by being real.

Be unique. Stand out from all the same shit different day stuff out there. Find a way to differentiate yourself. Show a little bit of your personality. Being unique also goes back to being authentic. When you're unique, you'll attract your ideal audience and make genuine connections. 

Be flexible. Your personal brand statement will change over time. As you grow personally and professionally, your personal brand will change as well. You will need to adapt your brand statement to reflect your growth.

Be rebellious. Don't be scared to break the rules. Read, watch, learn from experts like me. But, make your personal brand statement your own. Be humble, but a little eccentric or contrarian. Test, Pivot, Test, Pivot. 

Now, it's time to turn it over to you. I hope this article helped by providing a few examples of personal brand statements that you can model.

If you want help building your brand and marketing yourself online, click below to schedule a free 30-minute strategy session.

Control Your Destiny. Schedule your free strategy session by

18 Disastrous PERSONAL BRANDING MISTAKES You Want to Avoid

How to NOT Market Yourself

In this video, I discuss 18 mistakes you want to avoid when building your personal brand. Don't miss these personal branding tips. Personal branding can be difficult.

But, no matter your job or industry, you need to learn how to build a personal brand and market yourself online. I've spent years building my personal brand. Plus, I've helped entrepreneurs and some of the largest organizations in the world grow their brands too.

Watch the Video:

Watch this video if you want to learn how to build your brand and market yourself online. In the video, you'll learn a few of the most common branding mistakes, such as:

1. Not Knowing "YOU" Before Building Your Personal Brand.

2. Not Setting Specific Goals For Establishing Your Personal Brand.

3. Building Your Personal Brand Around Someone Else's Idea Of You Thinking You Don't Need A Personal Brand

4. Not Putting Together A Plan To Manage Your Personal Brand 6...9...12..15...18. And, much much more.

I'm Stewart Swayze, a Personal Branding Coach and Marketing Consultant. As a personal branding coach, I help you build your brand, become a thought leader, & market yourself online. With my coaching, you become the cause of your success and not at the effect of something or someone else.

Learn more about my coaching: Click here

The Ridiculously Simple Way to Create Free Professional Backgrounds for LinkedIn

Backgrounds for LinkedIn

If you're ready to grow your personal brand and market yourself online, LinkedIn is a perfect platform. LinkedIn is approaching 800 million users. And, most of the users are from a professional corporate and startup environment.

Your LinkedIn profile picture and the LinkedIn banner is the first thing people see when they visit your profile. A background for LinkedIn presents a perfect opportunity to stand out from the crowd and build your brand.

In this video, I provide the step-by-step process to make backgrounds for LinkedIn by using a free LinkedIn banner template. You'll learn about the banner size for LinkedIn and how you can improve your personal brand with a custom LinkedIn banner. Plus, where you can find free images for LinkedIn backgrounds.

You might hear me say, LinkedIn banner, LinkedIn background image, or LinkedIn cover...they all mean the same thing during the video.

Watch the Video:

VIDEO TOPICS INCLUDE

• Backgrounds for LinkedIn

• LinkedIn banner template

• Banner size for LinkedIn

• Free background images for LinkedIn

• LinkedIn banner ideas

• Canva for DIY Graphic Design

• Personal Branding

During the video, I discuss a LinkedIn banner temple site Canva. I love Canva for DYI graphic design. Click here to check out Canva.

Another DIY graphic design site you can try is PicMonkey. Click here to look into PicMonkey.

I'm Stewart Swayze, a Personal Branding Coach and Marketing Consultant. As a personal branding coach, I help you build your brand, become a thought leader, & market yourself online. With my coaching, you become the cause of your success and not at the effect of something or someone else.

Learn more about my coaching: Click here

Personal Branding Tip: Color Outside the Lines

When I was in kindergarten and first grade, I refused to color inside the lines. My teachers tried everything they could to get me to hit that damn “developmental goal.” They wanted to check that box.

During parent-teacher conferences, those teachers would express concerns to my parents. But, my mom would always push back.

You see, my mom loved that I didn’t color between the lines. When the teachers displayed the kids' drawings on the wall, she could always tell which drawing was mine. My drawing stood out. It was unique.

My drawings represented me and only me.

Here’s the point.

Personal Branding experts like me will give you how-to guides. You’re going to read blog posts on building your personal brand. You’ll find content that has a step-by-step process.

Follow their tips and instructions. But… And this is a big ole booty…

You are unique. You are custom-made. There is only one of you in the world.

Your goal. Your personal brand. It’s screaming to stand out from everyone else.

So, learn from those guides and steps.

But, for the love of all things pigs in a blanket...color outside those damn lines!

If you need help building your personal brand and marketing yourself online, please reach out to me or schedule a free strategy session.

Take care my friends.

If you want to chat more, you should schedule a free strategy session with me. As a Personal Branding Coach, I'll help you create a custom strategy and plan to build your brand and market yourself. 

Take care, and have an excellent rest of your day. 

Change your life. Schedule your free strategy session by

>>> clicking here. <<<

Personal Branding Tip | Color Outside the Lines 2021 (Video)

Personal Branding Tip

Building your personal brand is hard. And, there are plenty of experts out there offering personal branding tips. Listen and learn to their instructions, but don’t get stuck inside a box.

In this video, I’ll give you a personal branding tip to stand out from the crowd but remain authentic.

Watch the Video:

I'm Stewart Swayze, a Personal Branding Coach and Marketing Consultant. As a personal branding coach, I help you build your brand, become a thought leader, & market yourself online. With my coaching, you “Become the cause of your success and not at the effect of something or someone else.”

Learn more about my coaching: Click here

18 Personal Branding Mistakes You Don't Want to Make [2021]

Personal branding can be difficult. But, no matter your job or industry, you need to learn how to build a personal brand and market yourself online. I've spent years building my brand and helping people and some of the largest organizations in the world build theirs too. 

When the pandemic hit, my brand was the only thing that saved my business. Seriously! My company, like other businesses, took a hard hit. Consulting and coaching opportunities dropped off. 

But, because of my brand, other opportunities popped up. All of a sudden, I had companies asking me to write white papers and case studies. 

I was like, "Say what?" Nobody's paid me to write before … 

Hell yes! "Okay, it will cost you $XXXX for me to write that." 

Guess what? They said, "YES!"

Boom, I was back in business. You see, because of my brand, my previous clients trusted me. Sure, the pay was less than a full consulting project, but I was making money and paying the bills.

Plus, I continued to add value and maintain relationships.

Once everything started to settle down a bit, my coaching and consulting picked back up. And, I have new services with a writing portfolio … more ways to make money. 

For those of you who work for a company and not for yourself, you need a brand too. Let's get real for a bit. 

Who gets promoted first, the person that works the hardest? Or the person that has a brand and knows the right people? 

You know the answer.

Who gets hired? The person applying through Indeed.com, or the known entity with a brand and an inside referral to the hiring manager? 

You know this answer too.

Now, let's get started. It's time for you to build your brand and market yourself. So, here are the 18 mistakes you want to avoid when building your personal brand. 

1. Not knowing "YOU" before building your brand

Before you build your brand, make sure you know who you are and what you represent. When you build your brand, you need to be your authentic self. Nobody trusts a faker. 

2. Not setting specific goals for establishing your brand

You're creating a personal brand and marketing yourself to accomplish goals. Write down at least three goals and a timeline. New job? Higher salary? More clients? Becoming a paid speaker? Goals, my friend … goals!

3. Building your brand around someone else's idea of you 

Speaking of authenticity, don't build your brand around what your parents, friends, or colleagues think of you. Be YOU! With all your craziness, weird little quirks, and everything else that makes you unique.

4. Thinking you don't need a personal brand

Like it or not, you ARE a brand. If I asked your boss or client about you … what they honestly think and say about you … that's your brand. Are you managing it?

5. Not putting together a plan to manage your personal brand

Speaking of managing your personal brand, do you have a plan? Have you thought through the steps of creating, building, and maintaining your brand? Well, you should.

6. Thinking building a brand is quick and easy

You see, planning and managing your brand takes time. And that's okay. The time you put into building your brand will pay off. More clients. Higher salary. Better job. More opportunities.

7. Not defining a target audience

You need a clearly defined target audience, not a general one. Your audience should be able to help you achieve your goals. Either directly or indirectly.

8. Not understanding your target audience

You need to understand everything about your target audience—their wants, needs, and desires. The more you know about them, the better chance you have to connect with them.

9. Not sharing your own thoughts and opinions

You'll build your brand and market yourself by posting content. But, no matter what content you post, always share your thoughts and opinions. Sharing someone else's article is great but won't build your brand. Being a thought leader is the best way to market yourself.

10. Posting but not engaging with your target audience

When you start posting content, you need to engage with your audience. Have conversations. Agree or disagree. Add value. Build relationships by engaging with them. 

11. Thinking you need a large audience for your brand to work

You don't need a large audience. You see, you have a specific and targeted audience. You engage with your audience. You have personal relationships with them. Your audience helps you with your goals because you provide them value in return. The size of the ship doesn't matter in this case. 

12. Being afraid to stand out from the crowd

You know the saying, "same shit different day?" That's how I feel 99% of the time I'm scrolling through social media.

People, so called "experts," are posting the same old crap. Everything looks the same. Not you. You're not afraid to stand out from the crowd. You're unique. You're YOU.

13. Worrying about what others think

Stop worrying about what "others" think. You're not building your brand for the "others." Your marketing yourself to a specific group of people. Your "tribe" to borrow from Seth Godin. Haters are gonna hate. Don't worry. Your tribe's got your back.

14. Not having a personal website

You need a personal website. Even if you work for a company and not for yourself. Build a website using a DIY website builder like Weebly or a WordPress website using BlueHost.

15. Not telling YOUR story

You have a story. In fact, you have 100s of stories. Incorporate your stories into your content. You're building YOUR brand. Your stories are a significant part of your brand. The good, bad, and ugly can make great stories, connect with your audience, and add value.

16. Not laughing at yourself when you make a mistake

You've made mistakes. You're going to make more mistakes. Laugh it off! I make them all the time. Don't be afraid to share those mistakes too. Make them a part of your story. Have a good laugh with your target audience. Ask them to share their mistakes with you. Connect and engage. 

17. Spreading yourself too thin across too many platforms

I 100000000% spread myself too thin before. I was trying to manage every possible social media platform, email marketing, blogging, YouTube, etc. I read all the experts that said, you need to be on anything and everything. Problem is … they have employees, freelancers, and teams to help them. I burned myself out! I took a little break and refocused. Pick 2-3 platforms where your audience hangs out. Build your brand and market yourself there. 

18. Not building an email list, NOW … like today!

Yo! You NEED an email list. Today. You don't own Facebook. You can be kicked off Twitter for whatever reason they want. Google can change their algorithm. But, if you have an email list … it's yours. Nobody can take your list away. People that join your email list opted-in to hear from you.

Build your website. Create a lead magnet using Cava. Build a landing page to capture emails. Create an account on ConvertKit for email marketing. Build your list today. 

Whoa! That's some good stuff. I have no doubt after reading this post, you're well equipped to start building your brand.

If you want to chat more, you should schedule a free strategy session with me. As a Personal Branding Coach, I'll help you create a custom strategy and plan to build your brand and market yourself. 

Take care, and have an excellent rest of your day. 

Change your life. Schedule your free strategy session by

>>> clicking here. <<<