9 ways to reconnect with LinkedIn pals who change jobs

When your LinkedIn connections change jobs, that’s the perfect time to reconnect.

But you might not always be aware of the fact that a guy you know left one company and joined another, or that a former co-worker was laid off from her job in corporate and started her own business.

That’s why I love the helpful photo chart that LinkedIn emailed me this morning with the subject line, “Joan, 245 connections changed jobs in 2010.  Did you reconnect?”

That got me thinking, how can I use this chart?

Here are nine ways to reconnect:

1. Send one of your connections a personal email on LinkedIn acknowledging their job change and wishing them well in their new position this year.
      
2. Write a recommendation for one or more people whose work you admire. But before you write it, email them, tell them what you want to do and ask if there’s a particular aspect of their work they’d like you to comment on. A keynote speaker, for example, might want you to comment on his excellent platform skills and his value to audiences and meeting planners.
     
3. Reconnect by asking about their favorite LinkedIn groups. 
     
4. If you see that they use the Amazon reading app on their profile, ask a question about one of the books they’re reading, or a book they want to read.
    
5. Offer to help them—for free. Everybody’s sick to death of being blasted by free commercials. So encourage your connections to call on you if they need help with (fill in the blank). Offering free advice positiions you as helpful, approachable and smart.
    
6. Comment on something you see in her profile and ask her a question about it.
    
7. Is he connected to someone you’d like to meet? If so, ask for an introduction.
    
8. If you publish a blog, and you’d welcome a guest post from one of your connections, on a topic in which she’s an expert, invite her to write for you, and link to your blog. This is particularly powerful if you have an audience that she’s itching to get in front of.
    
9. Comment on a recent status update.

But that’s only a start. Wayne Breitbarth, a LinkedIn expert and author of the forthcoming book The Power Formula for LinkedIn Success, will be my guest on a webinar at 3 p.m. Eastern Time on Thursday, March 3. It’s called Your LinkedIn Power Formula: How to Make Killer Contacts, Pull Crowds to Events, be a Star in Your Industry & Track Down Leads Like a Bloodhound.   We hope you can join us.

That’s my list. Can you think of other ways to reconnect with pals on LinkedIn? Share them here.