Your ticket to getting the best gamedev job – Step by Step guide to building a good LinkedIn profile

In this article, we’ll guide you through the most essential elements of your LinkedIn profile and share tips on how to improve your visibility and enhance your presence on the platform, all to help you land that coveted gamedev job.

Check our gamedev job openings!

Jobs in Gamedev

In this article, we’ll guide you through the most essential elements of your LinkedIn profile and share tips on how to improve your visibility and enhance your presence on the platform, all to help you land that coveted gamedev job.Let’s fill out the Intro Card!

Name Field

The only thing that comes to our mind is being consistent with how you introduce yourself.

If you introduce yourself as “Bob” at every event, it would be wise to put “Bob” in the Name field instead of “Robert .”

Try to think about how other people would look for you on the platform.

Pick the Industry

LinkedIn lets you pick the Industry that aligns with your career plans. However, keep in mind that this field influences the search results you may end up in. So even if you’re a junior game developer without prior experience in the gaming industry, you should pick something related to the gaming industry.

Remember that you can choose only one option.

❗ Create a custom URL address for your LinkedIn profile.

It looks much better to have your name on the LinkedIn page address than a random string of numbers and letters. Likewise, putting a neat personalized LinkedIn URL will look better on your business cards and email signature. Everywhere.

❗ Remember to keep your LinkedIn profile updated.

LinkedIn page is a search engine, and profiles that are kept up to date are rewarded with better visibility.

Add a Contact Info

Share some other ways you could be contacted with.

It can be your email, your phone number, Skype handle.

❗ Important

You can add multiple email addresses here. The trick is that at least one of them needs to be the one you have unlimited access to, like a personal one. You can add a corporate email as your second email address if you really want.

💡 Golden Tip:

Make your email publicly visible.

If a GameDev Job Recruiter doesn’t have you in their network, they need to spend credits to be able to message you. However, the number of credits is very limited, so Recruiters try to spare them as often as possible to be efficient in their job. So if they have the opportunity to message you directly, they will try to reach you and let you know about the gamedev job opportunity.

Add websites

Adding links to your websites can be crucial for Game Artists and Programmers.

💡 Tip for Programmers:

Adding a link to your Git Hub repo can help you showcase your best projects, work experience and highlight your skills. In addition, it’s the perfect way to gain the attention of a person who would like to recruit you to your team.

💡 Tip for Artists and Animators:

Link to your portfolio, Artstation or Behance account or your newest showreel is a must and a great way to showcase your skills.

Make sure to keep in your portfolio only the best stuff. Pieces relevant to the positions you would like to be hired to.

Good example: If you’re looking for a gig as a concept artist, you can skip old oil paintings from the University. Recruiters would look for concept art that match the art style the game company looks for.

Pick the perfect LinkedIn headline

Picking the right headline is ultra important. It’s the first thing Recruiters look at. If they don’t see any relevant keywords related to the role they’re hiring for, they’ll skip your profile and move to another one. We don’t want that, do we?

LinkedIn headline has a huge impact on the search results (SEO of your profile). Picking the right headline filled with your core keywords (buzzwords) can boost your chances of getting discovered by the right people (aka. Recruiters who can offer you a cool gamedev job ;))

You can read more on picking the specific keywords for your LinkedIn page here.

A headline is also there to sum in 120 characters (or less) who you are. It’s also one of the best ways to pick up the attention of a person visiting your LinkedIn profile (if it’s written well enough).

Let’s guide you through the best practices for game developers:

• Your headline can be (but doesn’t need to be) the name of your current position
• Your headline should be a position you would like to apply for

💡 Headline tips for Programmers:

• Don’t use generic job titles like “Software Engineer” or “Programmer.” It says nothing about the tech you’re working with. You can receive tons of irrelevant offers. It’s not the best practice.
• If you’re working with the specific game engine – put it in your headline. Example: Senior Unreal Engine Developer
• Wanna work with a specific programming language – Put it there! Example: Add “C++” to your headline. A recruiter would know that you should only be approached with job offers requiring experience with this language.
• If you’re not sure whether to use “Developer” or “Programmer,” just check the names of job postings that you would like to apply for. Chance is that the Recruiter will use the same phrasing. And it’s more likely that you will appear in the search results and get more profile views.

💡 Headline tips for Game Designers:

• If you’re interested in a particular type of work, you can add it to your headline. Example: If you’re a Game Designer whose job is to work on combat in games, put “Combat Game Designer.”
• If you’re experienced and interested in working with a specific game engine, don’t forget to put that. If a Recruiter looks for the best fit for the newest FPS game made with Unreal Engine, you would definitely stand out if you put “Game Designer – Unreal Engine 4.” in your Headline.
• Adding a platform you’re designing the game for could also be a way to go. Example: Recruiter is searching for a Game Designer who has experience in games designed for mobile. Differentiate yourself from the rest of the crowd by putting “Senior Mobile Game Designer” in your Headline.

💡 Headline tips for Game Artists:

• Suppose you’re an artist specializing in a specific type of art. In that case, the “3D Artist” keyword might not be the best way to appear in searches for an environment artist. “3D artist” seems to be too generic, and you might lose an opportunity to appear in searches for Enviro Artist.
• Is there a specific art style you are the most comfortable with? Like “Cartoon artist”? If Recruiters are looking for someone with a light and cheerful style – you might grab a few extra points and catch their attention.

🔴 Headline – bad practices

• Using Headline to share inspirational quotes it’s the best way to make yourself unsearchable. Don’t be that type of Linkedin user.
• Typing “NOT” to not getting offers related to whatever you decided to type after it. Example: If you’re a programmer who types “NO Recruitment pls” you’re gonna rank for “Recruitment” positions. Worst. Thing. Ever.
• “Helping [someone] achieving [something] with [something that I do]” statements. They might be ok, and they can build a sentiment toward your person, but if they aren’t populated with keywords, you won’t rank as high as others in the search. You can put these statements in the “About” – Linkedin summary section if you really want.

Profile Picture to Die For

❓ Question: Is it necessary to have a profile picture?

💡 Answer:

• It’s not mandatory to have a profile picture
• But it’s a crucial part of building your personal brand
• You can control how people should perceive you as
• It’s easier to build trust with people that we can see

The Do’s and Don’ts of a LinkedIn Profile Pictures

Working in the Gaming Industry has its pros.

One of them is that we don’t need to be perceived as very stiff people, so many of the rules that would apply to people working in Finances or Attorneys don’t apply to us. So it’s ok for people in gamedev to wear a T-Shirt or hoodies in the office. And generally have a more relaxed clothing style.

But there are definitely a few rules that wouldn’t hurt to follow to build a certain perception of yourself. You know what they say about first impressions, right?

DO’S

• Pick a photo taken in a decent resolution (no potato quality pls)
• Zoom in on your face
• Get dressed (I’m not joking)
• Pick a background that is not distracting a viewer from you

DON’TS

• Avoid full-length shots with you in it
• Don’t use copyrighted images or memes
• Avoid being in a frame with other people
• Avoid full body shots
• Bad light can ruin a really nice picture. If you don’t have a professional lighting setup, try to find an area with natural light. Skip the flash.

B is for Background Picture

❗ Why should you have a LinkedIn Background Picture (cover photo)?

Background pic it’s a tool to help you build your personal branding on LinkedIn. It helps to leave an impression.

Spend some time thinking about the cover photo that represents you the most.

If you’re a 2D concept artist – you might showcase the best art pieces from your portfolio.

If you’re a Programmer or a Game Designer, you could post a group photo of you and your Game Jam team.

Want to read more LinkedIn profile tips?

Game artist portfolio: build a perfect showreel

How to talk to gamedev recruiters on Linkedin? And first of all – why should you even consider doing that?

Pissed off at getting irrelevant gamedev job offers on Linkedin? – top tips for building a killer Linkedin profile

How to choose the right keywords for your Linkedin profile?

Personal branding on LinkedIn for game developers

Ah, one more thing: remember to make your great LinkedIn profile a public profile 🙂

That concludes our guide to making your LinkedIn profile a well-oiled machine to bring you the best possible gamedev job opportunities out there.

Remember, if you have any questions, we’re thrilled to hear from you.