Are you LinkedIn yet? If not, it’s time to get out there. Social networking is a great way to be visible on the Web. If you are interested in job offers, opportunities to collaborate, and attracting new clients and customers, then you need to get busy building your profile on one or more social networking sites.

I recommend two networking sites: LinkedIn and Plaxo. Both are free to join at the basic level (of course, both LinkedIn and Plaxo offer additional features if you are willing to pay for them). After you sign up, it is easy to build your profile. Check out my LinkedIn Profile and my Plaxo Profile.

I’m sure there are dozens of ways to use LinkedIn and Plaxo that I’ve not discovered yet or that I’m choosing not to use at this time. That said, I appreciate and use LinkedIn and Plaxo for different reasons.

With LinkedIn:

• I can ask clients to write testimonials (called Recommendations) and send prospective clients to my profile to read them. I like this feature because I have a personal preference to not post testimonials on my website.
• LinkedIn allows members to ask and answer questions on a variety of topics. By answering a question, I am able to demonstrate my expertise to potential clients.
• I can send an email to all of the people to whom I am linked. For example, I can announce a new service I am providing or send out an inquiry.

With Plaxo:

• I use Plaxo primarily as an address book. It is the one place on the Web where I can maintain all my contacts (i.e., address book). Plaxo lets you import your contact lists from LinkedIn, Yahoo, Google, Thunderbird, Hotmail, Outlook, and other email clients. You can also export all your contacts.
• I can easily send e-cards to members of my Plaxo network.
• I’m alerted whenever someone in my network updates his or her profile. So, I know if someone changes jobs or gets a new email address or phone number.

What other social networking sites do you use and what are the benefits?