My goal is plain and simple…I want to turn your cold-call-selling process into a referral-buying process. (Gregg MacMillan)

Gregg Macmillan, president of TechneGraphics, presented a tutorial in 21st-century networking at the monthly STC-SWO meeting on September 21. He introduced us to strategies for exploiting mostly free social networking services (like LinkedIn, Plaxo, and Facebook) to our best advantage. Here’s a short summary of what we learned:

• Today’s networking is not your mother’s "meet, greet and pitch." What is called "social networking" on the Web is actually THE way to make important professional connections.
• Consider using social networking in a serious way to advance your job search, your career, and your professional reputation.
• LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com) is the premier business networking site for professionals, and here are five reasons why you should use it.
• If you have privacy concerns, you can control the level of personal information that is shared with your LinkedIn network.
• You can use LinkedIn to build or reinforce your personal brand.
• Recruiters often use LinkedIn to find candidates.
•  You can use your LinkedIn profile as a resume.