Create Industry Contacts through Social Networking

Posted on October 20th, 2009 | by John Baril |

Aside from being easy and fast, social networking as a marketing device is a fun way to promote services or products. Since most people in networking sites are friends or have at least been acquainted in terms of similarity in interests, it is also an easy way to know who you are dealing with.

However, social networking sites are not made for business purposes alone. It is, above everything else, a place where one can socialize. This means that whatever it is you want to promote, it will only be accepted in a community if you socialize first. This should not be a problem. Since when has advertising been so fun?

I remember a friend of mine who loves to make wallets and small dolls. Internet savvy and updated in any developments in technology, she used her social networking account to tell us all about her products. Since I know her personally, I checked out the product photos that she uploaded in her page. It surprised me when I found out she made more income in five months of promoting it online compared to a year of telling people personally about her products. I realized that social networking reaches a broader audience and gives a sense of professionalism. This may surprise most people considering promotion or professionalism is not primarily what social networking is for.

But the thought of creating a site for your product, uploading photos and the like adds to that sense of seriousness about the business. It tends to make people believe in you more. I, for one, forgot I was visiting a friend’s page. From then on, she made contact with other industry people related to her market. And now, two years later, she is still making progress with her business.