Posts Tagged ‘linkedin’
Twitter Schmitter
Monday, May 19th, 2008
I have beef with Twitter. To me, it’s an oddly socially accepted and encouraged form of stalking where the "victims" volunteer themselves.
Aside from the creepy factor, from its inception I have never really understood how thousands of people #1 care so much about what other people are doing that they would subscribe to and check instant updates via a personal feed, and #2 that said number of people actually believe that that many OTHER people care enough about their minute happenings so much that they’d consistently update these feeds.
Twitter’s usefulness has long been debated and I have clearly chosen sides. But I can’t argue with the fact that Twitter’s traffic numbers have nearly doubled in recent months . Looks like more and more people from my side are hopping the fence to join the other "volunteer victims" and "stalkers"…traitors…
Okay, perhaps I’m being a bit harsh on Twitter. But I really don’t see how it can keep up it’s stamina? Sooner or later, it’s going to loose steam right? After all, not everyone can keep up with everyone to that degree all the time and still make actual useful contributions to mankind…can they? Heck, I have enough trouble keeping up with my MySpace, Facebook and LinkedIn accounts!
Here’s how I see Twitter succeeding: in the business world. While people can really care less what their best friend ate for lunch today, they might really care what lunch specials their favorite restaurant is having. And while they might ignore that their little brother just beat Grand Theft Auto 4, they might really want to know that Best Buy is putting the game on sale for the next 12 hours for 50% off (that would REALLY be worth "tweeting" about don’t you think?).
If that’s the future of Twitter, sign me up. Otherwise, count me out.
Do you think businesses will be Twitter’s savior or am I completely off my rocker?
Tags: Business, E-Commerce and E-Business, facebook, linkedin, myspace, Rebecca Button, social networking, twitter
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How to Turn Your Social Networking Contacts Into Customers
Friday, April 4th, 2008
There are social networks out there for almost any interest. What you may not realize is that there are large social networking groups specifically focused on business, that you can use to add to your customer base.
One such website is LinkedIn . With 14 million subscribers, LinkedIn, is considered the preeminent business networking website available these days.
The way LinkedIn works is that you sign up for it, just as you would any other social network. You even create a profile, which is information about you and your interests.
As you set up this part of your profile, remember to keep your business hat on. You do not want to be overly personal - you are representing your business, not your personal identity.
Make sure to put all important information about your business in your profile. This way, if someone looks at your profile, they will be able to learn about your company.
Managing Contacts
Now you need to add contacts to your page. These are people linked to your profile page. On social networking sites like MySpace, these would be known as friends, but on LinkedIn they are called contacts.
While you may not know many people on LinkedIn, that doesn’t mean you can’t find plenty of people you know. LinkedIn will let you search through their database of users for people you know and have worked with in the past.
You could look for old high school or college classmates, current and former co-workers, or other business people in your community. Ask these people to add you to their contact list.
Making New Contacts
Make sure to put a little variety in the people you ask to be on your contact list. While having all of your current co-workers is fine, you should also look for other people you know or are acquainted with so you have a broader base of contacts.
While you may think these people already know you and that you will not get new customers this way, you may not be considering the repercussions of their adding you to their contact list.
Once you are on their list, you are also more closely connected to their contact lists, which probably hold many people you don’t know.
Get Active
Now it’s time to get involved. There are quite a few forums on LinkedIn where people discuss various aspects of business life. They may have questions about some aspects of business, or just want to discuss a recent Fortune article.
No matter what is happening, get active. The only way more people will know you’re out there is to let them see you getting involved in conversations.
One important thing to keep in mind is that you should NOT openly promote your business or ask for customers. This type of activity can get you removed from the site.
Instead, you have to settle for a more passive advertising campaign or making yourself visible, being involved and letting the new customers come to your profile to find out about you - and your business.
Tags: Generating More Sales, getting customers, leeia ladipohm, linkedin, online networking, Sales, social networking
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