Choosing Social Networking Sites Carefully
Posted on 01. Sep, 2010 by Guest Post in Business, Entrepreneurship, Internet, Social Media
Everyone knows how big social networking is for business owners these days. Social networking was originally intended to make it easier to maintain personal relationships, but businesses have made social networking a priority as well. Premier sites have made it possible for businesses to grow their contact lists, manage their relationships and created the concepts of viral marketing.
Businesses of all sizes have taken part in social networking to promote their business in ways that they could never have dreamed of fifteen years ago. Executives from all Fortune 500 companies promote their business on LinkedIn and companies with no marketing budget have the opportunity to make themselves front page news all over the country.
In order to make the most of social networking, businesses must learn to manage their social networking resources carefully. It requires an investment of time and sometimes money just like anything else. If a company wishes to benefit from social networking they must manage these resources carefully.
One of the mistakes that entrepreneurs often make is choosing the wrong social networks to invest in. They end up spreading themselves too thin rather than focusing on the most appropriate sites.
Facebook is still the most popular social networking site and it’s free. However, entrepreneurs must be careful not to make the mistake many others make investing all their time there. Currently Facebook users are made up predominantly of people aged 25-54, with another 25% being 18-24.
In recent years more emphasis has been placed on business networking through Facebook. Nevertheless, it is not as effective for professional networking as sites like LinkedIn, and Twitter is just as good a platform for many viral marketing programs.
A number of new sites other than LinkedIn have been created for business networking. Some of the more popular sites include Xing and Ryze. Xing is a great platform but it is difficult to get much of it without paying for the premium services. Ryze is a good social network for new entrepreneurs, but it is not as popular as it was when it was first introduced.
These sites still can be worth joining even for users who aren’t interested in paying for premium memberships. However, if they have a hard time finding and connecting with other users with the free plan, they should be careful before they invest a substantial amount of time and energy using them.
Businesses especially need to be concerned about the number of paid business networking sites that are almost completely inactive. They exist only to continue scraping membership fees, mostly from new clients who don’t know what (or how little) they are actually getting from the services. I won’t name any of the sites I have joined here, but I have run into a number of them.
The best rule of thumb is to focus on either the most popular networking sites or those that are most specifically targeted to a niche audience. New businesses must always keep in mind that benefits from social networking only come with hard work. They must approach social networking just like any other business strategy and look for the best return on their investment.
About the Author: Kalen Smith is the founder of Engineer-a-Business, a provider of business-to-business services and informational products for developing technology businesses. Read more about Kalen here.
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33 Responses to “Choosing Social Networking Sites Carefully”
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Jake Adams
01. Sep, 2010
Kalen, some good insights here. I personally still like LinkedIn the best, a bit more professional than Facebook or Twitter. I have to admit I am a little curious as to which sites are the “inactive” networking sites still accepting fees. Want to make sure they are avoided by all means. Thanks.
Aluminum Cases
01. Sep, 2010
This is a relevant post to us as we just started developing a presence on Twitter and Facebook for our company. I agree that it is a big investment of time and sometimes money. You won’t get much benefit from simply joining and leaving your account inactive.
Morgan
01. Sep, 2010
Yes it’s not always about the amount of social networks you’re apart of, but which ones will keep you connected the most efficient way. Pay sites aren’t always the best – unless specific to your niche and is obviously among the top sites among peers. Great tips here!
Don
01. Sep, 2010
Kalen makes very good point about excessive time on Facebook. Simply due to the expansive nature of the popular social network sites attempting to attract the largest general audience audience possible, they are quite complex and it is very easy to spend a lot of time just trying to navigate to post the most simple information.
Don
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02. Sep, 2010
We just have to experiment them one by one, in order to get the most effective outcome. Currently most people are using facebook, twitter and G.buzz in their blogs. Those who are still choosing the right social networking sites, try those that are used commonly. Just my opinions.
Robert Jordan
02. Sep, 2010
Interesting demographics about Facebook. It will be interesting to see if any of these social networks will fade out in the next few years the way that MySpace has.
JohnAtBlogtrepreneur
02. Sep, 2010
@Robert: I wonder the same thing. There was a time when MySpace was really popular, even for businesses. Now, unless you’re 13 or a music artist, it’s not really relevant. Hopefully the other networks have learned a lot from the mistakes of MS.
tires
02. Sep, 2010
@John, you hit the nail on the head in regards to myspace, it’s clearly phasing out, and it’s turning into a new audience market share that actually uses myspace, and yeah it is filled with underage people.
Personally I am not too sure if facebook is the best to place to network, it can work yes, but it’s a very limited in terms of connection just look at the demographics to answer that, at least thats how I feel. I am probably wrong though.
Till then,
Jean
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02. Sep, 2010
Interesting comments about MySpace. Yes it is the perfect example of how a popular social networking site can fade away. I don’t think MySpace quite had the dominance that Facebook currently has. Facebook seems to have a lot more users who have all invested a lot of time setting up their profiles and connecting with people they know. This time around it would be a lot more difficult for Facebook to fade away.
Credit Girl
02. Sep, 2010
I can’t even begin to emphasize how important it is for business owners to use social networking sites. For one, it allows you to reach out to your clients/customers and get feedback from them. All in all, it really opens up the lines of connection with those who are utilizing your business. Second, it makes commercial advertising so much cheaper simply because business owners would need less of it. Anytime they have anything to promote, it can go on Facebook or Twitter. Social networking has gone a long ways and thank goodness for it!
Homejobsite
02. Sep, 2010
Social networking is like listening to rock music and then moving on! There is always something new new floating down the pipeline,,, especially when its connected with selling or promotion…
JohnAtBlogtrepreneur
03. Sep, 2010
@Credit Girl: I completely agree! Social media, when used properly, is the greatest marketing tool to come along… maybe ever. There’s no other completely free way to reach so many people. It’s the “when used properly” part that hangs many up, but if you take the time to learn how to harness the power, it’s fantastic!
Carlton
03. Sep, 2010
Xing and Ryze both sites are getting popular now.
Napkin Rings
07. Sep, 2010
Do you guys have some tips on how should one work with facebook. I have some 520 fans over there but i dont get more than a dozen clicks to my blog from there when i post something new. Even those clicks i have, rarely result in buying my products. Almost all of my traffic comes from google, which is great, but i would really like to have more benefits from having a fanbase on facebook.
Voip Calls
08. Sep, 2010
Was reading how Dell made 1 million from Twitter via Viral marketing. Take my words Twitter is next current search engine and would take world by storm. No point discussing here how he should do that, but as an marketeer I can see huge potential in twitter.
car battery
09. Sep, 2010
Nowadays, I see people joking about MySpace calling it MyGhostTown. It’s quite a remarkable transformation how they went from being ‘the’ online page to have to a mostly dormant site anymore. Facebook and Twitter look like being formidable platforms for the future as well as Linkedin which is always a viable option.
Tej Kohli
10. Sep, 2010
Yeah That right , Social Marketing is very also useful in Branding and making a Impressive looks on Web
Bryan @ Free At Home Jobs
10. Sep, 2010
I’ve noticed that LinkedIn is has gained so much popularity over the past couple years, I still have yet to sign up and really start using the network. I never really had the chance to get into Twitter too much, either. While social networking sites can work great for branding, they can take up a lot of time. That’s why whenever I’m ready to start digging into social media, I’m most likely going to outsource it, rather than do it myself.
Financial Adviser
10. Sep, 2010
There are several companies that do not allow their employees to use Linkedin, for example. Somehow they are afraid of losing valuable employees or they would
be constantly bothered by linkedin contacts. Yet if done right Linkedin can be a valuable resource. Recently I had a project to complete with a tight time frame. Asked the question on Linkedin and saved myself several days of work
If you have a career plan, you have to make use of the social networks, it will improve your job performance, help you change careers and find the right job.
Generators in gurgaon
12. Sep, 2010
These days, I see individuals joking about MySpace calling it MyGhostTown. It is quite a outstanding transformation how they went from getting ‘the’ on-line web page to have to a largely dormant web page anymore. Facebook and Twitter appear like being formidable platforms for the future at the same time as Linkedin which is continually a viable selection.
my online income system
12. Sep, 2010
Interesting thoughts Karen. I always go first for Twitter, Hubpages, Squidoo.
Lately I am shying away from Squidoo, if my topic is focused towards Internet Marketing. They have revised their policies and are constantly revising.
JohnAtBlogtrepreneur
13. Sep, 2010
@Financial: You mean they don’t allow employees to use LinkedIn at work, right? I would never work for any company that dictates which sites I can use outside their facilities. Working for someone else would be bad enough without them telling me what I can and can’t do in my off time.
In any case, yes, LinkedIn is a great tool for any professional. Whether you’re looking for clients, industry contacts, or a job, it’s by far the most professional of the popular social networking sites.
The 90% Rule
15. Sep, 2010
We’ve enjoyed great success from social media campaigns, primarily on LinkedIn, Twitter and certain social bookmarking Web sites. You are correct in saying that social media is a lot of work. In order to be a success at it, you must put in a lot of hours. Isn’t it funny how something that was supposed to be a time saver has actually created more obligations!
seo services
15. Sep, 2010
Right, We Should very choosy to select the social network website for your business promotion..All Big Business house are now on the top networking website just because of their present on the web and create a circle. but we need to learn the way to promote our site. so you need to know every tools and application of social networking website to promote your business…
Keep Cheers
Vineet
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20. Sep, 2010
@Napkin
Create a fan page
Design it with a good call to action
Use words Click here on it -> people click
These are some simple ways to have more conversions on Facebook
how to publish your book
20. Sep, 2010
@johnatblo As an employee I voiced your opinions, till one day I was actually paying the staff from my pocket.
I realized how when the twenty some girl sat and spent her time sending one lines on twitter and the occasional facebook update, it cut down on productivity.
After a point, there is no demarcation between off time and on time. Employees will send a tweet when they want, Not in break.
Eventually I had to fire the girl, because it was affecting the whole team. So yes, tell me where is the line between Freedom and too much freedom?
JohnAtBlogtrepreneur
20. Sep, 2010
@how to: Having managed staff for over 20 years, I understand what you’re saying and the frustrations that come with the whole scene.
I don’t agree that there is no demarcation between off time and on time. When you are paying someone, they are performing duties for your business. Period. When you are not paying them, what they do (for the most part) is none of your business. If your employees “will send a tweet when they want,” you haven’t gotten them to buy in to the fact that it’s in their best interests to serve the company while the company is paying them.
The mistake that so many owners and managers make is setting policy based on the actions of a few. Even if you’re doing a great job managing, you’ll still have a few who just won’t work out, and you cut them lose. But to say that an employee can’t have a Twitter, FB or LinkedIn account on their off time is shooting yourself in the foot, because it’s sending a message that you think you own them, and they’ll do everything they can to prove you don’t.
Usama
22. Sep, 2010
Thankyou for telling us what is worth what. I think people do tend to waste a lot of time on one site. You shouldn’t be afraid of trying out new stuff because you don’t know what fortune it might bring.
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22. Sep, 2010
At Facebook we can launch our own business page which can be backed by very affordable advertising program run by FB. Through advertising or your own page at Facebook, you can generate 400% more traffic as compare to other sources of traffics.
Mauricio Malchevic
22. Sep, 2010
@Custom Essay is right. The technique that he mentioned is the standard way to run a social media campaign in Facebook.
bikram
23. Sep, 2010
this is a real puzzle to me. I have invest a lot of time in facebook without any return :S
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12. Oct, 2010
Thank you for the guest post Kalen. I agree how important social networks are, and how important choosing the right one or ones for your business is vital.
George
02. Feb, 2011
There’s a good McKinsey Multi-channel marketing report at http://www.wgg-associates.com . It talks about multichannel marketing in general but endorses what Kalen says about choosing carefully – and strategically.