Tom Gray's Social Network
Social Media and Networking Sites can represent an overwhelming number of choices for any business trying to establish a corporate or personal presence in the social media sphere.
To try to sort out which social sites have the best impact for business online, I took the opportunity, a couple of months ago, to ask the following question through my LinkedIn profile. I was recently reviewing the answers and felt they deserved a broader distribution. If you have your own take on the best social media and social networking sites for business, please weigh in on the discussion in the comments…
My Social Media Question
There are literally thousands of social media and social networking sites available to the business community. I’m wondering what you feel are the 3-5 most valuable for developing business opportunities?
I received a number of great answers starting with…
I believe facebook is rapidly emerging as the leader. They have so much traffic, incredibly sticky for users. I’ve heard some people refer to it as online crack… 
With all the applications that you can use to promote your business, connect with friends and customers there are so many advantages. I also believe, unlike linkedin, users (customers) are more likely to use Facebook all day (before, during, after hours) for many social activities, rather than just for work related social circles.
However, there are ways to drive lots of traffic using a variety of all available social sites, digg, twitter, delicious. I believe that all the available tools can be used together to generate traffic, keep people top of mind. It’ll be interesting to see if all of them can survive. Facebook will be here for the long haul, unless someone can develop something even more interactive.
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Carson Poppenger added the following clarification:
Tom, great post by the way. This is an incredible topic that just got me thinking. I did a quick check to see traffic comparisons between FaceBook and Linkedin. It’s not even close. Checkout the post I just put on my blog.
http://www.marketingcrackerjack.com/2009/01/social-media-traffic.html
LinkedIn - facilitates introductions
Facebook
LinkedIn
Twitter (although I am still figuring this one out – especially at the local level)
I think that Twitter, Linkedin, and NING Communities are excellent for business.
I also use Facebook but not as impressed as many others.
Depends on what you mean by business opportunities and exactly who the market is. Facebook does seem to have a good handle on very targeted advertising. For example, I put into my profile that one of my hobbies is sewing and now I get ads for fabric. I think that’s very clever because those ads actually interest me! It’s not based on my broad-based demographics like my age or income- although I get that too. For example, the other day there were anti wrinkle cream ads (based on my age I guess) and and ad for the Killers (based on my ‘alternative music” profile I think) . But there are limits to how businesses can use this information. Not many people will tell you their hobby is CRM mgt. Certainly LinkedIn is a great business networking site.
Twitter is interesting. There are people who follow me and I don’t know why. I follow people/groups that interest me. But it’s not a destination like Facebook and LinkedIn. I use Facebook for personal use, LinkedIn for business and Twitter cause I’m trying to figure out what it can really do. Myspace seems to be the music destination and YouTube the video one. Sites like Classmates and Reunion (now MyLife.com) seem to have focused on selling premium memberships rather than building value in the site on its own merits. LinkedIn provides a lot of value even without a premium.
It is a tough choice! And the answer depends on the amount of work and content creation you want to do.
First off, kudos for being on LinkedIn. It’s definitely on my list.
Facebook is clearly defining itself as the place to be. Create a profile for you, a Page for your business, events listings for your events, and list your services in the Marketplace. You can also post videos and pictures (which, if you have them, can be very useful), as well as write “notes” (a blog). For the more technical people, you could create an app about your industry for your new friends to put on their profiles.
Twitter (@andienns) is all about the conversation. In my brief time on Twitter (less than two months), I’ve already closed business deals.
YouTube is a great site to get attention, as well. You do have to actively create content, though.
Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook - all are very different and do require a level of effort to create and maintain. None of them are about the raw numbers, but rather the relevancy of your friends, followers and fans.
Hi Tom!
Great question. I believe that the basic 4 are LinkedIn.com, Naymz.com, Ecademy.com, and Facebook.com. That is where everyone needs to start. Then the blogging and micro-blogging sites like twitter.com and plurk.com are wonderful to building relationships and credibility.
I believe that each person has to find their favorite or most comfortable site to dig in and network and do their business the most good. Realtors have activerain.com, for example. Professional speakers do well with speakersite.com. There are so many.
Because I use social media every day, youtube.com and blogtalkradio.com are critical to my success, and the networking aspect is wonderful on both of them.
Using feeds from your twitter, your blog, and youtube for example, can update your profiles on many sites even if you do not visit that often.
Naymz.com can further a relationship by offering a testimonial and a connection, but does not usually foster conversation unless you are connected on other sites. Naymz is important to get your name and reputation built up online.
My philosophy is multi-dimensional connecting with your contacts. By the time you are connected on 3 or 4 sites. you have the opportunity to be noticed by them and to feel distantly related! Just the conversation about why you are on the other sites may bring about a new way of relating to that person.
Networking is all about relationships, and relationships breed business opportunities.
People need to take advantage of clubs and groups on the sites to really get in there, share information and opinions. Linked In is so much better now with the discussions, and of course the Q & A’s.
The groups that have grown up around the networking sites are very important, such as My Linking Power Forum by Vincent Wright. Everyone needs to know the people in these forums, learn from them, and be mentored by wise professionals like Vincent.
Combining face to face networking with online networking is the best. Dr. Ivan Misner is the guru for networking and building business. His organization, BNI (bni.com), is the ultimate way to learn to move networking contacts into opportunity.
If I could only have one site (which I pray never happens!) I would choose Ecademy. Ecademy.com combines the business and relationship aspects of networking so well for me, plus the global neighborhood feeling that is very important to me. People that I have been connected to on Linked In for years become friends with me on Ecademy. Thomas Power and his wife and staff are amazing at offering training, tips, and opportunities to move your networking to higher levels all the time.
Thank you for the opportunity to answer such an important question in our word, Tom. Yes, you are a wise one!
Warmly,
Dr. Sally Witt
www.drsallywitt.com
Great question Tom and I must say I’ve learned a great deal from reading the responses.
I certainly rate Linkedin for ‘finding decision makers and influencers’.
For delivery and supply-side contacts I certainly rate ecademy.com and agree with Sally about the founders Thomas and Penny Power. If you ever get the chance to hear the personal story about ecademy from either of them then grab the opportunity with both hands, its inspiring. The culture of ecademy is ‘how can I help you’ and believe me, it works! Pay-it-forward in action.
What’s Your Opinion?
Use the comments to share your opinion on what social media and social networking sites are the best for building effective business relationships and uncovering business opportunities.
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