Boasting over 150 million users, LinkedIn has evolved into more than an online resume host or job seeking community. The social networking site has become a marketing tool for branding, networking, and driving web traffic. Below are six tips for using LinkedIn to drive traffic to your website.

1. Include Links in Your Profile

Utilize all three website link areas on your (employees’) profile(s). Add the company blog with keywords rather than your company name. For example, if you are a recruiter, instead of writing “Davis Group Blog,” write “Tips for recruiters and jobseekers.”

Add your company’s Facebook and Twitter profiles if applicable, or utilize that space to link back to your website with another relevant page and keyword-infused phrase.

Be sure to include a link to your LinkedIn profile in your email signature to let professional contacts or friends know to connect with you, and be able to search your profile for information.

2. Share Content
Update your status or share your company blog daily to become an expert to your connections. Post events, job opportunities, news articles and ideas that LinkedIn users will find useful. You can customize the text posted with the links and make these updates public.

You can also participate in LinkedIn Answers (answering questions users have about random topics) to help position yourself as an expert in your industry.

3. Join Groups (and Participate in Them)
There are LinkedIn groups for just about anything! Don’t overcommit yourself; make your selections thoughtfully, with both your strengths and potential consumers in mind. Be careful also not to self-promote frequently. You will be banned for spam immediately if the group has a good moderator. Instead, position yourself as an expert, making helpful comments when you can, and if you have a blog post that is genuinely relevant, share it. Finding these groups isn't hard as most of them are searchable by the keywords in their titles. You can also search for lists of good groups that others have recommended. For example, here is an article sharing the top LinkedIn groups for aspiring writers.

Connecting with people who have common interests and business goals will help improve your reputation online, and potentially your partnerships offline.

You can also form your own LinkedIn group. The advantage of this is that you gain access to all the members’ information and moderate content and discussion topics at your own discretion.

4. Utilize Applications
There are tons of apps that you can add to your profile, but just a few basic ones will really help boost your web traffic.

Wordpress (or a similar app) to showcase your blog on your profile for viewers.

Box.net to act as a repository for any white papers, case studies, or supplemental materials potential or current customers may find useful. If these are deemed useful by the user, you can guarantee they will visit your website for more.

Events to share events that your company will be attending (large and small) to spread your company’s presence in your market and industry area. The visibility will lead people to research your company.

And many more. Keep searching.

5. Conquer Your Company Page
If you market your product or service to businesses, make sure you have a company page, and that you’re using it to the fullest. Create keyword-rich company descriptions, include links to your website, and make sure employees link their profile to it.

You can create pages that highlight your products and services. Each one can include a photo, video, and link to your website. You can feature specific products and services, make a company status update, attach your Twitter feed or blog feed, and even access analytics for the page’s traffic.

6. Advertising
LinkedIn isn’t the most thoroughly tested advertising platform, but it does allow fairly specific targeting.These ads can direct users to your company page, events, or directly to your website. They are a bit more expensive, but have proven successful for most B2B companies thus far.

If you’re not utilizing your LinkedIn profile, company page, or advertising platform to drive traffic to your website, you could be missing out on more leads than you know. Simple changes can make a huge difference.

Continue reading: How Can Public Relations Help Increase Web Traffic
View all: "Driving More Traffic to Your Website" blog series