Right from the start of the Internet there has
been Internet marketing. But you don’t have
to be a huge corporate business in order to
market your business or product online. One great
way to promote your business online is by using
social networking. Social networking has been
around for ages for example farmer coops, or
small business owner’s groups are social
networks where business owners join or meet for
the purpose of sharing ideas, concerns, products,
and more.
Online social networking is the same way. There
are thousands of online groups that are geared
towards a particular group. Some may be for a
particular type of business while other may be
more general to include a wide range of
businesses. By using social networking online
it’s possible to connect with businesses
around the world that may need your product and
at the same time you can find businesses that
have products you need for your business.
Networking can provide the possibility of finding
not only customers but also the best deals with
suppliers.
To start social networking online all you need to
do is join one or more social networks. There are
thousands of social networks online, just doing a
search on Yahoo or Google will provide an almost
endless list. If you want to find a more specific
network to your particular business try a search
such as “social network for
hairdressers” or “social network for
machinists”. Just insert a word or two that
are directed to your business.
Not all social networks are as big as
Classmates.com, YouTube or MySpace.com but often
the smaller networks can provide the best
contacts. Yahoo and Google groups both offer a
wide range of specialized social networking
groups and is an excellent place to start looking
for a social network to promote your business.
MyLot is another social network online but you
need to be careful about not blatantly promoting
– you can however network with people around
the world and make some excellent contacts.
Most of the online social networks are very
simple to join and free. All you do is register
with their service by choosing an ID, a password,
and providing an email address. Some may ask for
your real name but this information is kept
private it that’s what you want – but
why would you if you’re promoting your
business.
Social networking services such as MySpace and
myLot are not all business oriented people but at
the same time for free you can put your business
in front of thousands and thousands of people.
As mentioned earlier not all social networks are
for business but you can still use them for
business. The key to doing this is your profile.
Most social networking sites will assign each
member a ‘profile page’. This page is
where you and your business can shine and attract
attention. Take time when filling in your profile
and make sure to provide a link to your business
web site. Remember you have the potential of
thousands of people viewing this profile page and
each of those views is a potential customer or
supplier contact.
The best features of using social networking to
promote your business are free and easy business
building tools. Most social networking sites are
free to join, if you are working with a limited
advertising budget this may be important for your
business. And, you don’t have to be an
internet guru or marketing expert to use them for
building your customer and/or supplier list of
contacts. If you’re not using social
networking to promote your business you really
should give it a try.
Faith Wright-Draper (aka
byfaithonly) has been writing for over 40
years as a journalist, ghostwriter, and
freelancer. She currently writes for
several blogs, freelances, and writes on
her own website www.byfaithonly.com