Business Social Networking

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Business Social Networking

With the advent of the Internet, business social networking has become very popular. Business social networking is actually no different from other kinds of social networking, at least it is done on the same communities and portals, but it is different in the sense that these groups are populated by persons who want to discuss business-related matters. In fact, even on popular social networking websites such as MySpace, Facebook and Twitter, you will find several groups that are just there for some business communications. You will even find some websites that are only for business networking. Chief examples here are LinkedIn and, to an extent, Twitter as well.

What is business social networking exactly? This is a platform for people with different kinds of business interests to come together and converse. This is a means for people to communicate and collaborate and sometimes even start ventures together. This is a way by which businesspeople meet businesspeople and it does not matter what exact business one is in or even what country they live in. There are various things that are universal across businesses and those are the ones that are mostly discussed on business social networking groups. And, if the networking is done locally, then it is mostly to find out more about certain rules and regulations that might apply in a particular local area.

How Do Business Social Networks Benefit Someone?

  1. One of the main benefits of being a part of a business social network is that you get to know what’s currently happening in your line of business. You get to know how other businesspeople are coping with things, what strategies they are adopting, what marketing methods they are using and so on. You understand various things about your business that you don’t know. This helps you run your business in a more knowledgeable manner.
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  3. Another thing about being a part of a business social networking group is that you get some added security and stability. If there are some policy changes regarding your business that you don’t know about, you can find out through your social group. You also get to know what the other people are doing about it, which helps you plan your strategies as well.
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  5. Also, you can get in touch with several people who could be useful to you in various ways. Some of these could become your virtual employees to whom you can outsource your tasks. Some of them could become consultants in some capacity, such as a tax consultant. Some of them could help you in some other operation related to your business. You might also find employees to work in your physical establishment.
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  7. In some cases, entrepreneurs with great ideas but no finance have also been able to find venture capitalists and angel investors through social networking groups. All they need to have is an idea that seems to be promising. There are many people who want to invest their money in something lucrative and they keep looking for people who have that spark in them. If you are that kind of a person, it might be possible that you find an investor for your business.

How Do You Get Started with Business Social Networking?

Getting started with business social networking is the same as getting started with any other kind of social networking, only that here you have to be more serious about what you are doing.

There are various ways in which you can get started with this kind of networking, but here we shall describe an ideal way to go about it.

  1. First, you need to zero in on some business networks that you want to use. You could actually use any social networking website because all of them have some or the other business groups on them.
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  3. Make your profile. Make sure you detail your profile as much as possible. Since you are here for business networking, put a picture, give your professional name and write a brief summary of what you do. Some social networks directly ask you if you are joining them for business networking. If that question is asked, key in your affirmation.
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  5. Once your profile is active, start searching for business groups. You can do a simple keyword search on the social network and you will be shown various such groups. Concentrate on the groups that can really benefit you, and join those groups.
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  7. You must always keep looking for business groups and join the ones that interest you. With most social networks, you get group emails in your inbox so that you always know what’s going on. This feature might need to be enabled or you might need to specify that you want email notifications.
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  9. Once you are in the group, start participating in their discussions. Make intelligent posts and you are sure to start building your fan base. Some websites help you get introduced within their networks. But if that feature isn’t present on the networking website that you are joining, then you should see what you can do to introduce yourself to the group. Making intelligent posts and giving the right replies to other’s questions is a good way of making your presence felt.
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  11. When you have become better acquainted with what the network is like, it is time for you to build your own business group. You can easily make your business group on most websites, and then you need to invite people to join it. Again, you can find people based on special qualities and traits that you might be looking for. Send several invitations everyday because not everyone you invite will join in with you.

This is the way you go about participating in and building your own business social networking group. Once this group has been established and people have started conversing on it, you will realize how important it is to your venture. So, don’t let go off these opportunities; do some research and find out good networking websites that you would like to join.