We're continuing a holiday tradition of revisiting our best articles of the past year. This post was originally published in February on our Broker channel.

The drum of how to use social media in real estate marketing keeps a steady, if repetitive, beat. Facebook has become such a shark tank for self promoting marketers that consumers are beginning to get aggravated. Facebook was never really intended for business, but it is what it is – a place for personal sharing and business sharing.

However, on the other side of the fence is LinkedIn – a website that is totally dedicated to business.

Sales professionals that do not take advantage of the latest tools for business development will stagnate today. Winning professionals maximize every opportunity to find new customers. LinkedIn is a great spot to connect with other professionals. Here are a few suggestions that you may want to keep in mind:

1. Advanced Search

LinkedIn has a great search tool. You can search for people by job title in your area – like all CEOs, Chief Marketing Officers, Vice Presidents, etc. You can also search by Lawyer, Doctor, and more to target those in upper income brackets. You can even search by company to see everyone that works for your area's largest businesses.

Tip: LinkedIn often offers free trials of their Premium subscriptions. Consider signing up for the trial to see the profiles of and gain the ability to contact those outside of your immediate network.