Social Networking Sites Provide a New Way to Connect
Social networking sites are providing an affordable option to reach customers and niche groups without having a large advertising budget.
Social networking encompasses Web sites that have gotten plenty of attention in the last year, including the popular MySpace, Facebook and LinkedIn networks.
The best way to understand these new opportunities is to dive into social networking sites on your own. Let's go over the basics of Facebook, MySpace and LinkedIn and then give some examples of how it can help your business.
MySpace
Despite its popularity with young people, social networks like MySpace are widely used among adults. Visitors to MySpace are mostly adults. People age 25 and older comprise 68 percent of users, according to ComScore.
Having a profile open to a large audience does not have to be risky for your reputation. You control the level of detail in your profile and you can adjust privacy settings to allow only "friends" to find you. Profiles can include photos, videos and interests.
Facebook
Facebook functions in a similar way to MySpace, but it is mostly differentiated by more structured profile pages. Like MySpace, users can add personal information about you and control privacy settings.
Photo sharing is very popular on Facebook. Users often upload photos to their Facebook profiles, and let their friends browse the albums. Viewers can add comments to the photos.
Facebook connects users through common interest groups, high school and college networks and geographic networks.
LinkedIn
Linkedin is a professional's social network. Users create profiles that are more like a resume, listing education, qualifications, and professional experience. Linkedin is used to stay connected with professional contacts for potential job openings, partnerships and for general networking.
Photos and more personal information are less prominent. Recently LinkedIn added the ability to add a single photo to a profile.
HOW CAN THESE SOCIAL NETWORKS HELP YOUR BUSINESS?
Consumers are increasingly comfortable with socializing online. Major social networks attract people to the internet community with the opportunity to connect to others. Users categorize themselves by region, education, date of birth, religious and political alignment, culture, language, likes and dislikes. They provide highly valuable marketing information on a voluntary basis.
CONNECT WITH CONSUMERS
Much like how Google is using their search technology to target ads based on keywords, content, and geography, the social networks are connecting ads with relevant user information. Advertisers can designate ads to be shown to consumers who, based on profile content, have an interest in the product. Advertising messages can be inserted into free add-on applications, like Texas Hold'Em Poker and arcade-style games, that have become popular on MySpace and Facebook.
Social networks are great brand builders as well because users are spending a lot of time on the sites, and sharing links to groups and applications with friends is fast and easy. Some popular groups see hundreds of members join in a single day due to the ease of inviting and sharing links.
STAY CONNECTED
Linkedin is a great place to show other professionals what you're made of and what you can do. It also works well for finding the resources to move your business plans forward, such as potential employees, financers, and experts. The power lies in the ability to search profiles for keywords like "venture capitalist" or "web marketer", and finding the exact people you're looking for.
WHY TAKE THE TIME?
More and more people around the world are using the Internet, and they're looking for places on the Internet to spend meaningful time connecting with friends, playing games, and becoming familiar with their favorite brands. As consumers move online and into more social networks, brands need to be there to greet them with useful, entertaining, and legitimate web content where users can find it.
