How to Write a Professional Bio: Explanation & Examples

Let’s say you’re job hunting online. You have a polished resume and a well-written cover letter, and you feel that you’re ready for your job applications. However, these documents may not be enough, especially if you’re competing with plenty of other candidates. While your resume and cover letter highlight your relevant achievements and work experience, they don’t exactly paint a clear picture of who you are. 

To stand out and get the attention of hiring managers, you need a compelling way to present your background. This is where learning how to write a professional bio can come in handy.  In this guide, we’ll cover what a professional bio is, key details to include, and tips to help you craft one. We’ll also share examples of effective bios.

What is a professional bio?

A professional bio is a personal narrative that describes your professional and educational background, achievements, and skills. You can put your professional bio on your resume, portfolio, personal website, social media profile, or on your job application.

Unlike your resume, which has a comprehensive list of your relevant work experience, a bio lets you tell your audience a little more about yourself while highlighting the more important details of your professional experience. These include your skill set and notable professional achievements or projects that you’ve had. 

According to career coach Eric Ryals, “Your short bio has the potential to help you make positive impressions that can impact your professional development and success.”

However, while it does seem like you’re telling a story about yourself instead of formally enumerating your skills and work experience, it’s better to keep your bio short. According to Indeed, you have about six to seven seconds to grab the average reader’s attention with your application. This means you need to be able to make a brief self-introduction that can establish your credibility and quickly get the attention of potential employers or clients.

If you’re struggling to get started with writing your bio, you can connect with freelancers on Fiverr who offer custom writing packages to help you create a standout bio.

What should you include in a professional bio?

Important details you should add to your bio include:

• Job title: If you’re currently employed, state the title of your position, like “Content Strategist” or “Video Editor.” If you’re not currently working, you can mention your previous role or your area of expertise, like “Video Game Developer” or “Illustrator.”

• Education and certifications: List your educational background and certifications most relevant to your current position, like your university degree and job certifications and licenses.

• Notable accomplishments: Mention achievements that are pertinent to your role. For example, you can include projects you were involved in or other achievements at your current job.

• Professional goals: Talk about the goals you want to achieve in your career and why you do your work.

• Personal details: You can make your bio more memorable and unique by adding personal information about yourself, like your hobbies and interests.

• Call to action: Your bio should have a call to action at the end to encourage your audience to connect. For example, you can prompt them to visit your online store or mention your contact details so they’ll know how to reach you.

How do you write a short professional bio?

You can start writing your professional bio by following these seven easy steps:

1. Know your target audience

Before you start writing your bio, determine who you’re writing it for and which platform you’ll use it on. Are you writing a bio for your online store to attract more customers, or are you writing a bio for a job application? Knowing your target audience can also help you decide your bio’s tone and whether to write from a first-person or third-person point of view.

For example, a first-person bio could be more effective if you’re writing a bio for your online store. Using first-person pronouns will make your bio seem less formal and will sound more like you’re speaking directly to your customers.

On the other hand, if it’s for a job application, a third-person bio may be better. Third-person bios sound more formal, making them better suited for professional contexts like applying for a position at a company.  

2. State your current role and achievements

Make sure your professional bio highlights details that are most pertinent to your current job. If you’re currently employed, mention your specific role at the company you’re working for and emphasize accomplishments directly related to that position.

For example, if you’re currently a digital marketing specialist, specify that job title in your bio. Focus on accomplishments that align with your role, like boosting revenue or customer engagement for your company.

If you’re not employed at the moment, you can still showcase your prior roles and accomplishments that align with your current field. 

3. Add two or three past accomplishments

Adding your past accomplishments to your professional bio can help show your audience what you’ve done in your career. For example, if you’re an illustrator, you can reference your previous work experience and emphasize the projects you’ve contributed to, like illustrating for a comic book or drawing concept art for a video game.

Since your bio should be short, pick your top two or three key milestones and significant achievements from your career.

4. List relevant education and certifications

The next step is to add your educational background and certifications that are relevant to your work. For example, if you’re an accountant, you can mention your university degree in accounting and list your accounting certifications. 

Certifications, such as in areas like tax and financial planning, demonstrate your specialized expertise. So mentioning them can give job recruiters an idea of your accounting and bookkeeping skills.

5. Add memorable personal details

After listing your work experience, educational background, and accomplishments, you can add a more unique and personal touch to your bio by adding personal details. This allows you to tell your audience a bit more about yourself outside of work. It can also make your bio more memorable and help your audience connect with you on a deeper level. For example, you can list your hobbies and personal interests like art, music, or sports.

6. Consider standout awards and publications

In addition to your past accomplishments and work experience, adding the awards you’ve won can enhance your professional bio and boost your credibility.

For example, if you received an award for a project that you worked on, including that in your professional biography validates your proficiency and showcases your expertise in your career field.

As media producer and author Phil Cooke says, “Ultimately, your biography isn’t about bragging rights but credibility.”

7. End with a call to action

Adding a call to action at the end of your professional bio can drive your audience to take specific steps that align with your objectives. Your CTA can vary depending on the purpose of writing your bio. 

For example, if you’re writing a professional bio to look for clients for your freelance work, a CTA inviting them to reach out using your provided contact details can be highly effective.

To craft an effective bio fast, skilled professionals on Fiverr can assist you and provide quick turnaround options without compromising quality.

Can AI write a good professional bio for you?

Artificial intelligence has come a long way and has become a popular tool in the business world, whether it’s for speeding up work processes or creating content. If you use specific prompts and provide an AI bio generator with all the key details, like your work experience and achievements, it can write your professional bio for you.

However, a professional bio is an opportunity for you to introduce yourself to your audience. So, while AI can help put together a bio that lists your achievements and background, it may not capture the unique aspects of your personality. In contrast, writing it yourself allows your personality to shine through. This gives your bio a more authentic touch that reflects both your professional qualifications and who you are as an individual.  

Examples of professional bios

Your professional bio can vary in length depending on the platform where it will be used. For example, your LinkedIn summary can span a few paragraphs. On the other hand, you’ll have to work with more limited characters on social media platforms like X and Instagram. If you’re unsure how to tailor your bio to different platforms, consider connecting with experts on Fiverr who can help you create a compelling bio that’s optimized for each platform.

Here, we’ll list a few bio examples shared on different platforms and discuss what makes them effective.

Desiree Thompson’s LinkedIn summary

LinkedIn

Desiree Thompson works as a talent development onboarding specialist at Acxiom. Her LinkedIn summary is a great example of a professional bio. She effectively weaves personal details about herself, describing her skills and how these experiences helped shape her career path. Thompson highlights her communication skills through examples such as being part of the debate team and studying internal and external communication.

Her professional bio is only two paragraphs long, but she’s able to introduce herself and tell an interesting story about how she discovered and developed her communication skills. In her bio, she also shows how her skills fit into her job as a talent development onboarding specialist. With her communication skills, she’s able to help people effectively convey their potential to hiring managers.

Tim Cook’s company website bio

Apple

Apple CEO Tim Cook’s professional bio is on the official Apple website. His bio is a great example of a professional bio because it clearly summarizes his work experience, accomplishments, and relevant educational background. 

The paragraph describing his work experience at Apple before becoming its CEO details his responsibilities as chief operating officer. It shows how his work as the head of Apple’s Macintosh division played an important role in the division’s development and flexibility in the marketplace.

Madeline Miller’s X bio

X

Writing a professional bio for a social media platform like X can be a bit more challenging because of the character limitations. However, a professional bio doesn’t have to span several paragraphs to summarize a person’s work experience effectively.

For example, Circe author Madeline Miller’s bio on X is only three sentences long, but it clearly states her job as an author, a Latin and Greek teacher, and a play director. Her X profile also includes a link to her website so her audience can easily access more information about her books.

Hire a professional writer on Fiverr today

Writing your professional bio is a great way to present your experience and skills in your own voice, allowing your personality to do the talking. After all, who knows your background better than yourself? If you’d prefer guidance, Fiverr has writing mentors who can help you craft an effective professional bio. 

However, if you’re not sure where to start or you’re not confident in your personal bio writing skills, you can also get ghostwriting services on Fiverr to make your bio for you. At Fiverr, we have a wide pool of verified and experienced freelancers who can help you write a compelling bio that effectively reflects your professional identity and expertise.

[Find a professional bio writer on Fiverr]

Write a professional bio FAQs

How do you write a short bio about yourself professionally?

A professional bio effectively summarizes your work experience and your achievements. To keep it short, focus on key details that are most relevant to your current role. These key elements include:

• Job title

• University degree and certifications

• Accomplishments and awards

• Brief description of personal details

What is an example of a bio?

Here’s an example of a short and simple professional bio that you can use as a template:

John Smith is a Content Strategist at [Marketing Company]. With over 10 years of experience in marketing, John has led and successfully implemented marketing campaigns spanning various industries. He holds a bachelor’s degree in marketing management from the University of California and is skilled in content marketing, campaign management, and copywriting. In his free time, John enjoys reading and painting.

How do you write a bio that stands out?

A good way to make your bio stand out is to add personal details about yourself. You can mention a cause you’re passionate about or list your hobbies/interests. This can make your bio more memorable because it helps paint a fuller picture of who you are outside of work.