Keeping yourself relevant, fresh and up-to-date can be a part-time job. But spending just 15-30 minutes per week on LinkedIn will most definitely help you in the long-run. 175 million registered users can’t be wrong!

Consider the following tips:

1. Make sure your profile is current and accurate. Keywords are essential in the recruiting process, so be sure to use them. If your profile is inaccurate and incomplete, then you will be passed over by your competition who took the time to fill out the detail on their profile. Being too detailed on LinkedIn is okay, as this will increase the odds that your profile is viewed by a recruiter.

2. Write a stunning Summary directed to your target audience. Ensure the following:

- Add dynamic details to specify your goals

- Focus on your relevant professional experience

- Establish a direct dialogue with the person or audience you’d most like to connect with

- Keep it concise

3. Include a professional picture that doesn’t include others, such as family members, pets, spouse, etc.

4. Edit your Public Profile URL to something meaningful, such as your name or job title. For example if you are a network engineer, a smart choice might be LinkedIn.com/in/systemadministrator…if it’s still available.

5. Contact Info must be filled out completely so a recruiter can reach you. At a minimum you’ll need a current phone number and private (gmail for example) email address.

6. In Experience, tailor your skills to match the detailed job descriptions for each of your positions throughout your career, including keywords. Add recent information to your profile just after you deliver your services to the customer. The project size, details and deliverables will still be fresh in your mind.

7. Fill out the Education section completely including all colleges or universities you attended. You never know when an alumni connection may help you.

8. Skills & Expertise is an important keyword tool. Adding these skills helps recruiters find you when they search on the keyword.

9. Take it to the next step and add a few widgets to your profile such as Amazon reading list, Twitter or even a link to your blog.

- Copy/paste your LinkedIn recommendations into a Word document and post it on Box.net. You can use this when applying for jobs via email or sites that allow you to attach multiple documents.

- Take advantage of the new Add Sections feature listed under the main profile box on your Profile page. You can add certifications, honors, awards, languages, organizations, projects, patents, publications, test scores and volunteer experience, as well as a variety of Applications.

Company Description

If you are having trouble deciding what type of content to add to your profile, an easy suggestion is to look for announcements regarding your employer, such as stock price announcements or “in the news” notifications. Copy the “about us” statement and add it to your profile under the correlating job history. Your profile may rise in search rankings since the web searches for relevancy.

Connect With Experts

Lastly, conduct online searches for whitepapers containing content in the subjects that interest you. Read the articles and send an invitation to the author(s) to connect with them on LinkedIn or via email. Tailor your invite by mentioning an interest that the author stated in their article. Add the article’s title in the subject line of an email or the body of the LinkedIn connection request to increase the chances of your message being read and responded to.

Once connected, keep communications going by asking their professional opinion. Ask questions such as:

• If you were in my shoes, what type of certifications or work experience should I focus on to help my career and give me the chance to work on cutting edge technology?
• What does it take to become a subject matter expert in your line of work?

Recruiters, feel free to add comments or ask for more information?