This post was written by guest author Stephanie Dickison. Find out more about Stephanie below.

One of the best ways to get more work and increase your network – and possibilities – is to be a member on LinkedIn.

But in order to get the most out of the site, you should be an active participant.

Here are some ways to increase your network, and net worth!

Amp Up Your Profile & Keep It Up-to-Date

Your profile is an instant snapshot of who you are and what you can do. You’ve only got a short amount of time and space in which to impress someone.

Make sure to include accolades (number of sales made, houses sold, awards won, etc). This is not just a resume – this is an introduction to possibly bigger and better things.

And update it as soon as you’re working on something new. Your profile won’t help you land anything new if you left the last job you listed 2 years ago!

Join Groups & Get Involved

Because LinkedIn is about business networking, you can join organizations about your work and interests and “meet” people in your industry, without the worry that it will get too personal or go off track as with applications such as Facebook.

Once you join a group, it’s important to become a part of the community – ask questions, answer colleague’s queries and put yourself out there. You’ll be amazed at not only how many connections you make, but how your industry that you know so well, suddenly opens up with new possibilities.

There are groups for everyone – alumni groups, networking, conferencing – and in case you want something more specific, how about the Official White House (where “professionals connect with the Obama Administration and each other”), Slow Food, The Association for Project Management, just for starters?

The Power of Your Contacts

You might be feeling like you don’t know anyone, but look at your address book. You know a ton of people in varying degrees of business!

These contacts will help you build up more contacts.

Importing your current address book from your email program to LinkedIn is easy and then you can see who’s connected to who and work from there.

Starting with people you know will help build the foundation of your network and will make branching out much easier.

Branch out

You don’t have to know someone intimately to contact them via LinkedIn.

Some members want to know people well and others just require a quick line or two about how you know one another. This means that you can reach people that you met quickly at a conference or know through a friend-of-a-friend.

Don’t ask just anybody, but at the same time, ask people you know peripherally. You’ll be amazed at how your network quickly grows.

Use LinkedIn’s Tools

LinkedIn is superb in giving its members lots to build their networks with.

First all of, personalize your LinkedIn URL. Go to http://www.linkedin.com/myprofile?editwp= to change it from a number to your name (mine is http://ca.linkedin.com/in/stephaniedickison)

Secondly, if you use Outlook, download the Outlook Toolbar 2.7.4 Download it now (Download Size:4.0 MB). It helps you network with just a few clicks, telling you when people who email you frequently are not in your network and lots more.

See more tools here – http://www.linkedin.com/static?key=tools

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Stephanie Dickison writes about food, travel, celebrities, technology and social media, among other things. 30-Second Commute: A Non Fiction Comedy About Writing and Working From Home covers her career as pop culture, music, book and restaurant critic. Find out more at her blog and follow her on Twitter.

*Photo by WebWizzard

Business executives and coaches constantly debate on the one asset that is needed to succeed in the business world. Some individuals say that charisma is essential, others note teamwork as indispensable. Still, a third group states that each individual situation calls for different leadership styles.

Above all else, success in the business world depends on your network. You can have charisma, the ability to lead a team, money, and heart but if you don’t have a network of connections that can help your business, you won’t make it very far.

Developing or growing your network is easy, especially with LinkedIn. Let’s take a look at how you can use LinkedIn Groups to form a helpful and formidable group of allies in your niche.

What are LinkedIn Groups?

LinkedIn Groups are communities of people with one particular interest or quality in common. There are a wide range of LinkedIn Groups, including groups for marketers, musicians, evangelists, and comic book fans. Whatever your niche or interest, there is probably a group. If there isn’t, you have the ability to create a group in order to build a community of like-minded individuals.

How do LinkedIn Groups operate?

LinkedIn Groups operate like message boards. Members can post topics, articles, or interesting facts and other members can comment appropriately. It’s a great way to spur on communication and to build rapport with people who are a similar mindset or interest.

LinkedIn recently revamped their Groups section and now users can “Like” other posts and a most popular posts feed displays when you first enter the group, giving it more of a Facebook-ish feel. Some Groups also have sections for job postings and promoting your work, which only increases the usefulness of the group.

How can I use a group to grow my network?

There are three ways that you can use a LinkedIn Group to grow your network. First, you can post various articles and opinionated questions in order to generate responses from others. Once members have responded, continue the conversation and build rapport. There is no point to post threads if you’re not going to respond to the insight other people have given.

Second, respond to postings that other members started. This will show that you are an outgoing person and that you don’t mind sharing your opinion. Just as if you were starting the thread, be sure to respond when someone else comments on your thoughts. Generating conversation builds trust and influence.

Finally, you can use the Members tab to see the members of the group and you can strike up private conversations with individuals. If you are looking for individuals in the Chicago area to meet and brainstorm marketing ideas, you might go through the members of various marketing groups and ask Chicago-based professionals if they would be interested in attending. If you go this route, make sure that you don’t come across as a spammer. No one likes people who spam and are only looking out for themselves.

Once you have found some interesting people, whether its through conversation or the membership list, send them an invitation to join your network. If they find that you would be a beneficial part of their circle, they’ll accept.

There you have it–growing your network through LinkedIn Groups.

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Eric Alpin is the Associate Editor of Folk Media and works for a telecommunications company in Baltimore, Md. He is a social media enthusiast, blogger, writer, and student with a passion for leadership and self-development strategies and techniques. Find out more about Eric on Twitter.

*Photo by tychay

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