After your photo and your name, your headline is the very next thing people see - and not just on your profile. It follows you into search results, connection requests, comments, and every post you write. It is the most-viewed sentence you will ever write on LinkedIn.
Which makes it strange how many people - including some of the most famous founders in tech - treat it as a job-title field.
Below are 16 real headlines, screenshotted from real profiles, annotated: what works, what doesn't, and the one formula that the best ones share.
The formula: “I help X do Y”
The best LinkedIn headline answers two questions before the reader ever scrolls: who do you help, and what do you help them achieve? That's it. “I help B2B founders get more warm leads.” “Helping entrepreneurs build businesses that don't burn them out.” The moment someone reads it, they know what you're about, what you're dedicated to, and whether that includes them.
Your headline is how you reinforce your positioning - the value you help people realize. A job title reinforces your status. Only one of those makes a stranger want to follow you, message you, or buy from you.
The gold standard: “I help X do Y” in the wild
Four headlines that lead with the audience and the outcome - and use whatever's left for proof.
Cassy Aite (Postbeam, Hoppier)
“Founder | Helping B2B founders get more warm leads on LinkedIn. Building Postbeam.ai 🛸 and Hoppier.com 🐰”
Full disclosure: this one's mine. Role first, then straight into the formula: who I help (B2B founders) and what I help them get (more warm leads on LinkedIn). The companies come last, because "founder of two companies you may not know" tells you nothing - the value does the work.
Dan Martell
“📘 Bestselling Author (Buy Back Your Time) 🚀 Building AI startups @Martell Ventures ⚙️ 3x Software Exits • $100M+ HoldCo 💬 DM "COACH" if you're looking to scale”
A masterclass in stacking proof: bestselling book, 3 exits, $100M+ holding company. Then the kicker - a direct call to action ("DM COACH") that turns a profile view into a conversation. Every element earns its place.
Graeme Barlow (Iversoft)
“CEO @ Iversoft | Multi-exit, 8-figure founder | Recently launched FounderLink & on a mission to help 1,000 founders pass their first $1 million in revenue...and scale 🚀”
Credibility (multi-exit, 8-figure) followed by a mission stated as a number: help 1,000 founders pass $1M. Specific missions are memorable; vague ones ("passionate about helping businesses grow") are wallpaper.
Justin Welsh
“Writer & Entrepreneur. I write The Saturday Essay for 200,000+ ambitious people living and working on their own terms.”
Who he is, what he makes, who it's for, and social proof (200,000+ readers) - in one sentence. Notice the audience is defined by identity ("ambitious people living and working on their own terms"), which makes the right readers feel seen.
Write yours in 30 seconds
Our free headline generator takes your role, audience, and outcome and gives you 8 “I help X do Y” variations with live character counts. No signup.
Open the LinkedIn Headline Generator →Positioning headlines: when the company is the value
A variation on the formula for founders and operators: instead of “I help,” the headline states what you're building and who it's for. Same effect - a stranger instantly knows if you're relevant to them.
Solon Angel (Remitian)
“CEO, Remitian | Building the modern tax payment infrastructure for CPAs and CFOs”
You may not know Remitian, but after eight words you know exactly what Solon is building and who it's for (CPAs and CFOs). That's the point of a headline: it does the positioning work his company name can't.
Mike Potter (Rewind)
“Co-Founder & CEO @ Rewind | Protecting the tools you use so you can unleash AI | SaaS resilience for the AI era”
"Protecting the tools you use so you can unleash AI" is an outcome statement written from the customer's side of the table. It also plants Rewind in the AI conversation - smart timing.
Alexander Rink (CDR.fyi)
“Co-Founder & CEO @ CDR.fyi | Accelerating Durable Carbon Removal”
Four words of mission after the role. When your company is early or niche, your headline is where strangers learn what category you're even in. Alexander's does that instantly.
Aydin Mirzaee (Fellow.ai)
“CEO @ Fellow.ai | Privacy & Security-First AI Agent for Meetings | Co-Founder: Fluidware (acquired by SurveyMonkey)”
Product positioning (privacy and security-first, a real differentiator in AI meetings) plus an exit for credibility. The acquisition parenthetical quietly answers "has this person done it before?" - yes.
Chloe Smith (Mercator AI)
“Construction AI to grow pipeline, improve win rates, and outpace your competition.”
A great employee example: no title at all, just the value proposition. Anyone from construction who lands on Chloe's profile knows in one line whether she's relevant to them. That's employee advocacy done right.
The personality play: character plus a receipt
Marc Lou
“Solopreneur shipping startups like a madman | $94,799/month”
Personality plus a receipt. "Like a madman" filters for people who like his energy, and the revenue number is proof you can't argue with. Not for every industry - but if your brand is you, this works.
The famous-founder trap: wasting the best real estate on LinkedIn
Here's the counterintuitive part: the more famous you are, the more views your profile gets - and the more an empty headline costs you. These are brilliant people leaving their positioning blank.
Tobi Lütke (Shopify)
“CEO, Shopify”
Two words, zero positioning. Here's what makes it a genuine miss: Shopify has one of the best missions in tech - "arming the rebels," helping entrepreneurs build great businesses. None of it made the headline. Imagine "CEO, Shopify | Arming the rebels" - same length, infinitely more memorable.
Harley Finkelstein (Shopify)
“Shopify President”
Same story. Harley is one of the most energetic evangelists for entrepreneurship anywhere - and the headline says "Shopify President." The title reinforces status; it does nothing to reinforce what he stands for or who he fights for.
Jimmy (MrBeast) Donaldson
“Founder of MrBeast & Feastables”
Yes, everyone knows MrBeast. But "Founder of MrBeast & Feastables" still leaves value on the table. Something like "Making the best YouTube videos in the galaxy. And chocolate." reinforces the brand promise for the people who do know him - and explains it to the ones who don't.
Iman Gadzhi
“Owner of Consulting.com, Hills & co-owner of Whop”
A list of assets, not a value proposition. It assumes you already know what those companies do and why you should care. Ownership isn't positioning - what do those companies do for whom?
Steven Bartlett
“Founder: Steven.com The Creator Economy Company.”
Closer - "The Creator Economy Company" is at least a category. But there's still no audience and no outcome. With 3M+ followers, every profile visit is reach; a "helping creators build X" line would convert more of it.
The exception that proves the rule
Alex Hormozi
“Founder Acquisition.com, Co-Founder Skool.com. Get your free scaling roadmap👇”
Proof that fame doesn't excuse you from working the headline - it just changes the job. Hormozi is plenty famous, and he still uses the space for a direct CTA to his lead magnet. A million followers, and the headline is still selling.
How to write yours (in 3 steps)
- Fill in the formula. “I help [specific audience] [specific outcome].” Be narrow: “B2B SaaS founders” beats “businesses,” and “3x their pipeline” beats “grow.”
- Add proof or a role after a pipe. Exits, numbers, named companies, your title - whatever answers “why should I believe you?” in the fewest characters.
- Front-load and trim. Only ~60-80 characters show in search results and connection cards, so the “I help” part goes first. Stay under 220 total - check it with our character counter.
Then make the rest of the profile tell the same story: your About section should expand on the same “I help X do Y” claim with the how, the proof, and a call to action.
Write yours in 30 seconds
Our free headline generator takes your role, audience, and outcome and gives you 8 “I help X do Y” variations with live character counts. No signup.
Open the LinkedIn Headline Generator →Keep building your profile
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