I attended the American Marketing Association Hampton Roads Chapter luncheon today, “Lost on LinkedIn?,” featuring author, speaker, consultant and radio host Mark Amtower. Mark’s LinkedIn profile includes 500+ connections and 200+ recommendations. He is a member of 30+ LinkedIn groups, starting a few himself. So, he knows what he’s talking about.

In the featured video Mark explains why CPAs should be LinkedIn and recommends the amount of time that should be spent managing your LinkedIn profile. Here are the Seven Secrets for Populating Your LinkedIn Connections from Mark’s presentation:

1. Your current contacts.
2. Those connected to your connections.
3. Those in pertinent groups.
4. Those who answer Q&A.
5. Those viewing your profile. (This requires a paid LinkedIn membership. Mark’s advice: If you opt for a paid membership choose the least expensive one.)
6. Those “you may know.”
7. Invite key connections from other social networks.
8. Bonus: Look up those you read about in trade publications and see if they are in your “network.”

What I’ve learned so far is that social media is changing our marketing world. Explore how social media tools like LinkedIn can support your marketing plan.