Every time you hand out a business card, that contact also should be added to your online social network, experts say. These sites are an opportunity for self-branding and building connections while on the job hunt.

Here are some tips on how to use online networking to search for employment.

•Connections: The more the merrier.

“Connect with as many people as humanly possible,” said Amy Webb, founder of knowledgewebb, a Web site that offers online novices advice on blogging, building Web sites and social media such as Facebook and LinkedIn.

LinkedIn especially works best with stacks of contacts, she said, because it’s meant to help build careers. The broader the net of people your name reaches, the more likely someone will find your name when trying to fill a position.

Don’t be shy, Webb said. Old colleagues, supervisors, professors, classmates, friends – all are appropriate professional contacts.

•Be profile-smart: Separate the personal and professional. Make sure the profile you’re presenting to potential employers is appropriate, said Veronica Fielding of Jump Start Social Media, a company that counsels people on how to use online networking.

Facebook can be a venue for keeping in touch with loved ones and posting silly pictures of years gone by, but that shouldn’t touch your networking efforts, Fielding said.

You can maintain separate personal and job-focused profiles to make sure employers don’t see something they shouldn’t.

Similarly, starting a blog or personal Web site gives you the chance to show off new media skills, your eye for page design or a particular talent. You have to be careful that you’re not branding yourself inappropriately, though, Webb said.

•Don’t sign up and forget it: Stay active. Develop an online community of people with whom you’re constantly communicating – asking questions and answering inquiries about current events and shared interests. After you feel comfortable, let them know you’re looking for employment.

Camaraderie

Office workers may have a bigger workload as hours drop and payrolls shrink, but they’re not taking it out on each other or their employers, one survey said.

“If anything, the relationships in the workplace are stronger,” said Reuse Staten, director of workplace research at Robert Half International Inc., whose Accountemps division developed the survey.

Eighty-seven percent of respondents said their relationship with their supervisor was good or very good this April, matching results from the survey done in 2005.

Meanwhile, 95 percent of the adult office workers polled said their relationships with co-workers were good or very good, slightly more than survey takers said four years ago.

Common-sense activities help maintain good relationships during stressful times, just as they do in more calm periods, she said.

•Don’t let the threat of downsizing make you selfish. Share credit for group tasks and make sure accolades go to those who deserve them.

•Keeping deadlines and commitments is more important now that companies are doing more with fewer resources.

•Volunteer, collaborate, be flexible. Take on jobs that aren’t specifically spelled out in your job responsibilities.

•Have empathy, especially as a manager or employer. Because there’s not a lot of money for bonuses and raises, plan group activities or volunteer work that helps drive team bonding.

•Encourage vacation time for recharging.

The Robert Half poll randomly surveyed 457 adult office workers in April.