Why You Need to Join More than One Social Network

Chatting to fellow business owners at local networking events recently, I’ve discovered that some people who use the social networks to make new business connections often favour one of ‘the big 3’ sites (Facebook, Twitter & LinkedIn) and ignore the others. This is a mistake as they could be missing the opportunity to reach a whole section of their target market.

LinkedIn – known as ‘the professional network’ and used by corporate-types seeking employment in large organisations. In addition, consultants and professional service providers connect with people they know in ‘real life’, congregate and converse in the groups. Anyone who take the time to learn and apply the more advanced features can get a lot from this network.

Facebook – regarded as the place to be if you’re in a B2C business, although there are plenty of opportunities to connect and communicate with other business owners. I’ve noticed some professional service providers turning their backs on Facebook, believing it isn’t a serious place for business owners. Admittedly contributions to groups and pages tend to be more light-hearted and conversational, but they’re good places for building relationships as well as connecting with those who prefer FaceBook to LinkedIn.

Twitter – so many business owners dismiss this micro-blogging platform as a ‘waste of time’ – which it can be if you don’t have a plan on how to use this online wonder, but it’s an all important link to all the other pieces of the social media network. Twitter is for making new connections, who you may go on to also connect with on other sites; for automatically updating your status on LinkedIn and FaceBook; for inviting people to visit your blog and read about your latest promotion.

Joining more than one social network will increase the number of connections you make, and it greatly increases the number of times you can get your message in front of those connections. And it needn’t mean spending hours online!

How many networks do you belong to? Do share your experience in the comments below. If you found this post helpful, a Retweet would be appreciated