Get Savvy with Social Networks

Sites such as Digg, Twitter, Facebook, and MySpace are great sites for networking, chatting, and catching up with old friends. But, these sites can also be valuable marketing tools as well. If you know a bit about search engine optimization and great content, you can use all of these sites to your advantage.

How?

If you plan to go the social networks route, get ready to spend a lot of time online. Building up your clientele is possible via these sites, but it is not a simple task. You will have to spend hours networking, joining groups, and writing educational content. Is it worth it in the end?

Many modern marketers swear by these networking sites. Those that put time and effort into building up their online presence often see quick results. Still, you have to know how to use a site properly in order to gain anything from it. Here are some fast tips:

->NETWORK : as in real life, you will have to find key players online that you can network with. Join discussion groups, speak with those in your industry, and connect with important decision makers. The trick here is to find only those people that can increase your business - in short, don’t add every person you know to your page.

->TIP-TOE : don’t start selling your business right away online. If you come off as trying to pitch your product, people will turn away from you quickly. Instead, spend some time on a site, begin to meet people, voice honest opinions, get your name out there, and then start to talk about your own business.

->BLOG : set up a blog that contains recent, informative, articles. Now, some people tend to include lots of SEO (search engine optimization) keywords into their blog articles, but this must be done with skill. You don’t want people to know that you are trying to increase site traffic.

The Art of the Article

If you have never been gifted with words (or a keyboard), don’t try and write your own articles - this can lead to immediate disaster. Articles that are full of misspelled words, typos, and errors will not put you in a professional light.

Instead, hire a professional writer to compose articles for you blog weekly, monthly, or daily. These writers have been working with the web for a long time, and they know how to gain attention. If you wish to incorporate search engine optimization efforts into your site, simply inform your hired writer.

However, if you think that you have spelling and grammar down to a science, go ahead and write your own articles. Just remember that you want to gain readers that trust your opinion, so skip the sales jargon and stick with information that actually helps clients.

Social networks provide a lot of opportunity for those that know how to use them effectively. To begin using these sites, start by spending some time reading what other contributors are writing. Then, start your own blog or social network profile and begin to introduce your product, services, and business philosophies.