By Sarah Lindenfeld Hall

During the conference, attendees had their pictures taken for their LinkedIn pages, sat through resume or interview critiques, met with recruiters from local companies and learned about everything from how to market themselves to how four local women got back to work after long breaks.

There was some great information and advice. Dunn, who I featured last month, hopes to keep the participants connected as their job searches continue. She plans to organize the conference again next fall.

For the moms out there who couldn’t make it, but are ready to get back to work, here are some tips and advice gleaned from Thursday’s sessions.

1. Update your LinkedIn page now.

Maybe LinkedIn didn’t even exist the last time you were looking for a job, but it is critical for anybody looking for one now. More than 90 percent of recruiters use LinkedIn to look for candidates and vet them, career coach Linda Conklin told the crowd Thursday. The site lets job seekers post a full resume with details and experiences for potential employers to see.

It’s also an easy way to connect with old colleagues, neighbors and friends, who might know somebody who is looking for the skills that you offer. LinkedIn groups allow you to meet up with alumni from your alma mater, professionals in your industry and others. Once you connect with old contacts, you can then set up one-on-one meetings to learn more about how the industry has changed since you left the workforce or what career decisions they’ve made for themselves.

But don’t immediately launch these conversations with requests for a job, said Carol Fishman Cohen, CEO of iRelaunch, which helps those who have taken career breaks. Instead, write that you’re in “information gathering mode,” she said, to show that you’re going through a thoughtful and deliberate process as you look for work.