LinkedIn is adding new features to its premium experience for new and existing subscribers, including early access to a custom background feature for your profile, which will roll out to all members in the coming months.

Also new to Premium are some other visual updates aimed at helping users stand out, including a larger photo and expanded profile header. As pictured above, the profile page is starting to more closely resemble those of other popular social networks.

There’s a gallery for background images that Premium members are also getting access to.

In addition to the visuals, Premium members are now getting suggestions for profile optimization.

“We know it can be a daunting task when you don’t know what to put on your profile,” says LinkedIn’s Dmitry Shevelenko. “We wanted to make this process easier by prompting you with top keyword suggestions to help with writer’s block. These personalized suggestions are also optimized to help you get found in search. The profile summary is a great way to showcase who you are professionally and what you care about. What you say will have a very meaningful impact on the kinds of people and opportunities you attract.”

In search results, Premium members will now stand out more with profiles that are twice as big as other results with more info from your profile than others. Members will also have the ability to make their profile “open,” so that every LinkedIn users can see your full profile for free.

“You will also be able to access the top 100 results for How You Rank against your first-degree connections and company,” says Shevelenko. “This can be a great way to see how your LinkedIn presence measures up against your peers.”

LinkedIn launched the “How your Rank” feature a couple weeks ago. More on that here.

The company is also introducing a new starter subscription package called Premium Spotlight, which consists of all of the new features, but is only $7.99 a month compared to $23.99 for Business and $47.99 for Business Plus. You can see the comparisons here.

“This is just the beginning of many more changes and improvements we hope to make to our premium experience this year to help members stand out and be found,” a LinkedIn spokesperson tells WebProNews.

Images via LinkedIn