LinkedIn has been busy with new features this year, and the new tools have clear implications for IT marketing professionals who are using social media. Though the features are intended to make traditional use (i.e., by members who use LinkedIn to manage their personal networks) easier, savvy marketers can turn these new tools to their advantage.

A new “browse panel” is being introduced, which will let users look at their connections by company, location and industry. For IT marketers, this can be a great way to spot trends quickly and identify the total range of contacts with a particular prospect or client. Quite simply, it will be easier than ever to gather and use social media intelligence.

Further, mini-profiles of your connections will be offered, allowing you to scan for changes quickly, and the tools available for messaging a particular contact are kept nearby. So, it’s easy to go from intelligence to action seamlessly.

Perhaps the most powerful enhancement, however, is tagging. Automatically, LinkedIn will add tags such as “colleagues,” “friends,” “partners” and “group members,” based on information that you supply. You can then organize contacts based on these tags and send messages to several contacts at once based on the tags used.

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[Source: LinkedIn]