What is Social Networking
Social networking is a way of connecting with people. It began with friends, then it was people with similar interests. More recently, this has taken on a more business orientated function. People connect with businesses. They can get the latest news from their favorite websites, as well as share interesting online material with their new-found friends. It has become not only a way to keep in touch with customers, but also a way to let the customer help out with the marketing.
Social Networking is Growing
Less than a few years ago, most forms of social networking were being banned from workplaces. The astute among us did warn that this was a little like banning email – that it was counter productive and not forward thinking. While it has yet to reach the functional potential of email, social networking plays a different role, and is starting to become important in its own ways.
Content is King – Again
So now, viral material has become more important than ever. Sites like Digg and StumbleUpon give users their chance to vote on what they like, putting more emphasis on the content providers to create stuff with more value. On top of this, Facebook has become the fourth largest website in the world, and is many people’s most significant interaction with the internet. To ignore this in today’s world is commercial suicide.
The Facebook Edge
A Facebook presence is only just beginning to become imperative. Up until now, people have shared material on Facebook without the help of the businesses in question. However, it is now becoming increasing important to establish a Facebook presence. With the aid of Facebook’s new “Pages” feature, your company can send updates directly to users’ home pages.
The Alternative Social Networks
Of course, there are other sites such as MySpace and Bebo that share a large percentage of this similar market, and these shouldn’t be ignored. When addressing these alternative networks however, it is important to understand that their demographics can often differ significantly from that of Facebook. Their way of doing things is different. Discover the nuances between the different social networking sites in order to achieve success.
Learn to use all the different social networking sites to build up a strong and trusted relationship with your customers, and it can pay dividends in increasing both brand awareness and customer loyalty.