By now, you may have heard of-and even utilized-online social networking through the various sites available to the technically savvy, including Plaxo, LinkedIn, Naymz, Twitter, FaceBook, Ryze, and a host of others. However, you may not have realized the intensity that using these powerhouses can have on your job search.

To spell it out most succinctly, preserving job mobility, whether you’re merely maintaining your professional value or actively seeking your next leadership role, is core to stayed employed in one form or another. And, as you’ll find, the robust qualities and rapidly growing population of leading online networking sites make them a gold mine of opportunities for doing precisely that.

Most executives who have accessed these sites simply log in, create a profile, wander around a bit, and place a few connections. This, according to many social networking experts, means you may be missing out on the true value.

After all, executive recruiters WILL be looking for information about you on the Web. Maintaining a fresh, well-connected profile ensures that YOU will be in charge of what the world reads about your background.

Here are 5 tips that will bring your online networking knowledge up to speed and allow you to maximize your efforts during a career transition:

1 – Build your profile information carefully. After creating a profile, typically a simple process that allows you to edit key pieces of information, you’ll notice that most sites allow you to add a professional summary. This is where I’d advise against simply using the classic summary information on your executive resume.

Instead, create a bullet-point list of career highlights that includes some of your skills, your leadership expertise in particular areas, and your top achievements.

Remember that what you add is searchable by others who might be looking for you. This means that executive recruiters can search for you by occupation and location, so be sure to add a title such as “Chief Technology Officer” or “Operations Director” to generate hits on your profile.

My recommendation? Log in, and take a look around at others’ profiles to gain some ideas.

2 – Maintain visibility. When you first sign up, most networking sites will remind you to add connections through email addresses. Don’t limit this activity to your first sign-in! Keep on adding connections, rather than merely dumping the contents of your email address book in once and then forgetting about it.

Frequently finding others with which to connect serves two purposes: it keeps your profile on top of Web searches for your name (since search engines love fresh content), and it maintains a business presence for those who read your profile.

3 – Use the site search functions to aid your job hunt. One of the best-kept strategies for approaching contacts is this: after identifying a target company where you want to work, analyze a networking site to find company insiders, especially HR resources or, better yet, C-suite executives interested in your leadership skills.

Send your resume by the method requested on the company’s website, and then send an additional note to the contacts you find. Be sure to indicate that you have already sent a resume, and wanted to use the networking site to forward another letter of interest to them.

4 – Avail yourself of the extra functions. Some sites, such as LinkedIn, contain engines that allow you to have additional job search capability at your fingertips through access to major job boards.

In addition, LinkedIn and other sites contain forums where you can view and participate in question-and-answer activity with other membersfurther establishing your reputation as an expert and thought leader in your field.

5 – Regularly educate yourself on the optimum usage of each site. There are numerous ways to promote yourself as a leadership candidate using social networking sites-and someone is constantly coming up with more methods.

You can easily access training curriculums, blogs, and other resources that will bring you up to speed. In fact, enhancing your online presence has never been easier!

For example, Jason Alba’s book, “I’m On LinkedIn, Now What???” (check it out at http://happyabout.info/linkedinhelp.php), offers an in-depth look at the power of this popular site for professionals and executives in career transition.

In short, it pays to be aware of the impact your online presence can have on your job search. Accelerate your efforts by maintaining a profile that may prove to be instrumental to your success.

Image taken on 2008-12-19 21:01:26. Image Source. (Used with permission)