As one marketing expert once said: 'Active participation on LinkedIn is the best way to say: "Look at me!" without saying "Look at me!"' If you set your profile up professionally, take a creative approach and spend time updating it regularly, your chances of being noticed will be greatly increased.

With more than 500 million users, it’s easy to blend in on LinkedIn. Here are four ways to make your profile stand out.

1. Fill in the blanks

Firstly, make sure your profile is complete, that your picture is professional and that you include all the information about your work experience and the skills you’ve acquired. Alice Jakins, a freelance digital workflow facilitator who relies on LinkedIn as a way to find work, says the essentials for any LinkedIn profile include a punchy intro section and testimonials from people you’ve worked with.

2. Keep it fresh

Keeping your career information up to date on your LinkedIn profile makes you 18 times more likely to be found in searches by recruiters and other users. Don’t neglect your profile. Find ways to keep adding to it, perhaps by posting your own content or sharing interesting pieces related to your line of work.

Alice aims to write a post at least once every two weeks, but her goal is to create two posts a week and to share at least three industry-specific post per week. But, don’t let quantity trump quality. Your profile will be a representation of your personal brand. 'I compiled copy but I knew it could be better so I invested in a copywriter who refined my words. This helped me share a punchier intro,' says Alice.

3. Look for inspo

Connect with others in your field whose profiles really stand out to you and think about what it is that you like, then how you can apply similar strategies to your profile. Richard Branson is a 'hot favourite' for Alice. LinkedIn recommends millennials follow Dan Schawbel  for advice on how to craft your personal brand.

4. But be original

For years, the most overused word on LinkedIn has been 'motivated'. Consider looking for a better way to describe your drive and other skills so that your summary, headline and other bits of information on your profile are a breath of fresh air for those viewing hundreds of profiles every day. 

Robbie Abed, author of LinkedIn: How to Build Relationships and Get Job Offers Using LinkedIn: A No BS Guide to LinkedIn, says: 'Your summary needs to sell you, but it needs to do it authentically. Start at the beginning. Share your values. Have a sense of humour. Be a real living, breathing person with goals, ambitions, fears, interests, skills and hobbies. After reading your summary, your viewers should feel like they’ve just met you for a friendly chat over a cup of coffee.'

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