"Social Networking" is all the rage and pretty much everyone I know is using Facebook, Linked In, MySpace, Bebo, Twitter, Blogger, Flickr, YouTube.....and so on and on and on......
But though these sites were primarily for personal us, they have been drawn into the business domain as more and more companies create profiles, pages and posts. However, is this really necessary, or just a cry to anyone prepared to listen (or read) that "we are better than them....so there!"
Well, surely its a bit of this, everybody likes to be popular and some companies like to feel they have done a good job, especially when comparing themselves to someone they might perceive as being further "up the ladder" than them. Indeed maybe some companies think this is all social networking is for, to see who can shout loudest!
In reality, social networking, done correctly, should be an extension of a company website, and should promote interaction, banter, feedback and, most importantly, recommendation from clients and potential clients alike. Different social networking sites perform different functions for business, much as they do on a personal level, and signing up to them all is not particularly advisable. Imagine customers logging in to a Flickr page you have never used, and noting that nothing has been updated for 2 years! That hardly gives the right impression about a company, static and stuck in the past.....
The best solution is to choose a mix which suits you and your company and fits in with your business, allowing updates at regular intervals and as often as appropriate (eg: Twitter at least daily, Blogger a few times a month etc). We at Dischromatics took the view that we should have a Facebook fan page for client interaction, photos and short "snippets" of our daily work, plus banter, a MySpace page to look after our musical clients, a Blog for more lengthy insights and Twitter for short snappy up-to-the-minute updates which are also fed to the website. We also have news items on the website for contract and product information, plus I personally have a LinkedIn profile for recommendation amongst the business community.
All-in-all, its rather a lot of effort to keep on top of social networking at the same time as running a business, but does it work and is it worth it?! In short, yes it is! Time is a great factor in building up a network and though our new site is just over a month old, and the social networks have only been linked to it since that time, we have already built up a considerable follower and fan base, received several recommendations ourselves and found industry contacts for jobs I needed done. I would recommend the right blend of social networks to any business, large or small, provided you have the time to update.
No comments:
Post a Comment