This document discusses how to maintain connections on LinkedIn through regular communication ("pinging"). It recommends growing your network, regularly updating your connections with your activities, and recommending others, which will help you receive recommendations in return. Specific tips include sending personalized connection requests and messages to contacts, writing detailed recommendations for others mentioning specific accomplishments or skills, and connecting with people in your offline network or through LinkedIn search and 2nd degree connections. Maintaining active communication through updates and messages helps your network stay engaged with each other.

1. Linking Mission 3: The Yin of Ping and the Yang of Pong 2011

3. Build a reputation

5. Making Connections

7. Connecting with your offline network

9. Sending a Connection Request The first step is to answer how you know the person. “Friend” will allow you not to request the Connection without knowing their e-mail. The others use LinkedIn to find your common ground. Then you must write a personalized Connection request.Let the person know why they should connect with you, like you would at a face-to-face event.

10. Sending Updates

11. Updates are non-pushy pings Sending a status update is a passive way of letting your network know what you are up to, and helps you find out what they are up to. You can connect your LinkedIn with your other social networks, but mind your audience.

12. Use messages to keep in contact Messages go directly to your Connection’s in-box, making this a strong way to personally contact people. Use messages to ping personal notes to people you may not have heard from in a while, like you would use an e-mail. Hey Joe, Long time no see. I’m going to be in London next week. Do you have time to grab a coffee? -- Megan

13. Recommendation Karma

14. When to make recommendations Whenever you can, recommend your colleagues and other people you have worked with. Your Recommendation should add professional value to their profiles. If they impressed you, recommend them. Often, the people you recommend will recommend you back, too!

15. LinkedIn Recommendations should be specific “Ben Grossman represents the next wave of dynamic speakers on Internet culture and its impact on business. His presentations have covered the pulse of the Millennials, the Return on Branding Influence, and I’ve heard a few other topics come out of Ben that were equally as interesting. He spoke at my New Marketing Summit event in October 2008, and then I watched him at Jeff Pulver’s Social Media Jungle in November. Those two performances were golden, and the audience in both cases were at the edge of their seats. Ben Grossman is going places. Will you be one of those places?” – Chris Brogan’s Recommendation for Ben Grossman When writing a Recommendation, you need to be precise about what you are recommending them for. This makes the Recommendation valuable.

16. Your rewards…. Besides the LinkedIn Karma you will receive through a good network, once you are one with your network you will be eligible to receive several earthly rewards. Your progress will be tracked weekly and prizes given out monthly. Recommendation Royalty – 7 pts for passing 5, 10, and 15 recommendations