Making Your LinkedIn Profile Visible Online (or Hiding It)

The following post explores Making Your LinkedIn Profile Visible Online (or Hiding It).

When someone searches your name online, what do they find? For many professionals, the answer is their LinkedIn profile, which is often sitting right at the top of the search results.

Read: Finding Volunteering Opportunities on LinkedIn

Related: Knowing When to Connect or Follow on LinkedIn

That can be a powerful way to showcase your experience and attract opportunities, but it also means your information is available to lots of people (depending on your visibility settings).

Here’s what you need to know.

LinkedIn Profile Visibility

When someone searches your name on the internet, it’s likely your LinkedIn profile will appear in the search results. This may either be a positive or negative, depending on your preferences.

Visibility is a double edged sword. For job seekers and professionals building their brand, visibility is a good thing. However, if you’re trying to keep a low profile, that visibility might be less desirable.

The good news is that LinkedIn lets you choose if you want to be visible. LinkedIn gives you the tools to decide just how visible you want to be, whether you’re looking to stand out or stay discreet.

Why You Want Your Profile to Be Visible

There are a lot of good reasons to keep your LinkedIn profile visible on the web.

Recruiters, hiring managers, and potential clients rely on Google and LinkedIn searches every day to find qualified professionals. When your profile appears near the top of those results, you’re increasing your chances of being discovered and contacted for new opportunities.

Visibility also builds trust and credibility. A complete, public profile shows that you’re active in your field, confident in your experience, and open to connecting. It gives potential employers and collaborators a clear picture of who you are and what you offer.

Why You’d Want to Keep Your Profile Hidden

Of course, visibility isn’t for everyone. Some professionals have very good reasons to keep their information off public search engines. Choosing to stay hidden can also be a strategic move.

If you work in a sensitive industry, manage confidential projects, or simply prefer to limit your digital footprint, keeping your profile private gives you control over what’s shared about you online.

By turning off your public visibility, your profile won’t appear in Google, Bing, or any other search engine results. Your professional information stays within LinkedIn’s walls — visible only to people who are signed in and connected with you (based on your privacy settings).

How to Make Your Profile Visible

It’s easy to have your LinkedIn profile to show up when someone Googles your name.

The first step is to make sure it’s set to public. Simply go to your settings and turn on “your profile’s public visibility.” This allows search engines to find and index your profile. You’ll also need to display your full last name for your profile to appear in search results.

Once your visibility is on, focus on completeness. Add a clear, descriptive headline, highlight your experience, education, and skills, and keep everything up to date. The more complete and current your profile is, the easier it is for search engines (and people) to find it.

Regular updates are also helpful for signaling to both LinkedIn and search engines that your profile is active, which can help improve where it appears in results.

Click here for more information on managing your profile’s visibility.

How to Hide Your Profile from Search Engines

If you’d rather keep your information private, that’s entirely your prerogative.

Simply go to your public profile pettings, toggle “your profile’s public visibility” to off. This removes your profile from search engine results, though it may take a few weeks for Google to reflect that change.

You may also customize what information is visible to non-LinkedIn users. For instance, you may choose to show only your name and headline while hiding other sections like your experience or photo.

In Conclusion

In conclusion, I hope you find this article helpful for making your LinkedIn profile visible online (or hiding it). Whether you want to be easily discovered by potential employers or keep your personal information off the public web, LinkedIn makes it simple to manage your visibility.

If you’re ready for professional assistance with building a top notch LinkedIn Profile, my team and I are here to support you. JobStars is an A+ BBB-rated service that has earned multiple consecutive Complaint Free Awards. We look forward to hearing from you!