Review Host asked:


How you would like to meet and communicate with other internet users, especially ones that share the same views and beliefs as you do? If you would then you may want to think about joining a social networking website, if you haven’t already done so. When it comes to easily finding and communicating online with other internet users, social networking sites are, perhaps, the best way to go http://www.friendss.info

If you are interested in joining a social networking website, the first thing that you will need to do is find a network to join. You can easily find a number of networks by performing a standard internet search. For the best search results, you may want to search with the words social networking or social networking websites. In your search, it is likely that that you come up with a fairly large number of different networking sites. Popular sites that may be included in your search results may include, but will not be limited to, MySpace, Orkut, Yahoo! 360, FriendFinder, FriendWise, Facebook, and Classmates.

Once you have made the decision to join a particular social networking website, whether or not it is one of the ones mentioned above, you will need to need to register with the site. Even free networking communities require that you go through the registration process. Once you are registered, you should be able to start communicating with other community members. Before you start communicating, you may need to develop your online profile or profile page, depending on the networking site in question. Although it may seem easy enough to create a profile, there are many internet users who are unsure exactly what they should and should not include.

Perhaps, one of the most important things to include in your online website is your picture. While a personal picture is optional, it is ideal. Many internet users enjoy taking to someone that they can see in their minds, without a picture this is difficult. If you are looking to use social networking websites just to meet new friends you may not necessarily need to post a private picture, but you may need to if you are looking to find love online. When it comes to internet dating, many individuals will not even view an online profile if a picture is not included.

In addition to your photograph, you may want to include your name. Now, when it comes to your name, you need to be cautious. You are advised against giving your full name, especially if your profile or profile page contains a personal photograph of you. In addition to your name, you may want to put down your location. As with your name it is important to display caution. Your picture, your address, and your full name can be dangerous, especially if it falls into the wrong hands. As much as you would like to fill your social networking profiles with personal information, you are advised to think about your safety before anything else.

You may also want to include information on yourself. This information may include your hobbies, issues that are important to do, your likes, and your dislikes. With many social networking websites, including MySpace, you will find that there are preset profile fields for this information. In addition to preset questions or categories on your likes and dislikes, you may also find additional information, including fun questionnaires. Many social networking websites will ask that you describe your favorite color, your goals in life, your most embarrassing moment, and so on. As with your other personal information, it is important to stay as vague and possible and not use any full names, especially real ones.

By keeping the above mentioned points in mind, you should not only be able to create an online social networking profile that is filled with valuable information, but you can do so while staying safe at the same time. Your safety on the internet is in your hands, that is why it is important to think about safety, as well as internet popularity.

Jonathan Mac asked:


Ask anyone who is using the Internet regularly about websites like myspace, yahoo 360 or classmates. Everyone will have one common answer that these are social networking websites. These social networking websites have increased in popularity through the recent years. People who have been using these kinds of social networking websites will be well aware of their popularity and also the reason behind it. Let’s see something that helps these social networking websites to draw the attention millions of people towards them.

EASE OF USE

With wide variety of social networking websites in use, there are different reasons for their popularity in the Internet. The fist feature noted in most of the social networking websites like Myspace is their ease of use. Even one with very little knowledge about the Internet could use these social networking websites. These social networking websites are made so simple so that users can easily navigate through the pages.

EASE IN GETTING NEW FRIENDS

Second aspect is the easiness in making new friends with the help of these social networking websites. There are many people who really love to make new friends online. The reason being, social networking websites allow the users to get the information about the interests of the other Internet user before making any contact or conversation with him. Without these social networking websites we would have to connect to others through chat rooms, and learn about their interests by actual conversation before considering them as friends.

FREE TO USE

Another noticeable feature of social networking websites is that most of them are free to use. All we have to do is to make a free registration in these social networking sites. Once the registration is complete, we are all set to go. This free registration for a unique service is one of the main aspects that make these social networking websites more popular. However, some of the social networking websites like Classmates offer only a free trial membership. You can try the website and decide whether it is worth paying for. Since most Internet users don’t really want to pay for something that they can get for free, these paid social networking websites have only limited number of members.

MORE BENEFITS

Meeting new people and making new friends online is the basic use of these social networking websites. Apart from making friends, most of these websites have started including some additional features. The additional features they offer are, free webpage, free music, free videos, free blog etc for their members. There are people who use these social networking websites for business promotion.

Mentioned above are very few of a bunch of benefits of these social networking websites. These are the reasons why these networking websites are at the top.

Susan Friedman asked:


Over half of all Americans between the ages of 15-34 consider themselves active social network users. They regularly visit well-known social networking sites, such as MySpace or Facebook, or log onto specialty social networks, like Ravelry (devoted to the fiber arts) or GroupRecipes (for the foodie set). While industry research tells us that television watching is declining, especially among this age group, social network use is on the rise: average users spend seven to eight hours a week online.

This time spent on social networks clearly affects buying decisions. An estimated forty percent of all social networkers say they use social networking sites to learn more about brands or products they like, according to GreenBiz.com, with twenty-eight percent saying they’ve had a brand or product recommended to them by a friend.

The message is clear. Strategic use of social networking can help a company grow. It’s an effective use of target marketing, reaching out to one’s customers where they are.

However, in order to capitalize on social networking’s power, you have to do it right. Execution is everything. Make no mistake. Every time you log onto Facebook, MySpace, or other social networking platform, you’re representing your company in a very visible arena. The world is, quite literally, watching.

There are five common mistakes Nichepreneurs™ make when it comes to social networking. Here’s what they are — and more importantly, how to avoid them!

Mistake #1: Dismissing Social Networking as “Just a Fad”

Social networking may have emerged as a phenomenon only recently, but it is a manifestation of something as old as time — word of mouth! Customers value the opinions of colleagues, relatives, peers and friends above almost anything else. This has been true for generations. Social networking has merely expanded the definition of friend. Technology has made it easier to communicate with more people than ever before — a person could have hundreds of friends they’ve never once met in person. That’s a power and a privilege that no one is going to let just fade away.

Mistake #2: Mistaking Social Networking for Advertising

Social networking is a form of relationship marketing. It works best when you view it as an opportunity to build your brand, a prime platform to let your customer base know who you are and what you represent.

At the same time, you’ve got a fantastic chance to learn about your customers. If you actually stop and read what they post, you’ll learn a tremendous amount about who your customers are and what’s important to them. Where else do you get your customer’s pure, unvarnished opinions served up to you on a silver platter?

Don’t spoil this prime market research opportunity with unwelcome advertising. It’s fine to let people know you’re in business, but that can’t be the only thing you bring to the conversation.

Mistake #3: Failing to Connect Online Interaction with Real World Consequences

This mistake is often a generational problem. Nichepreneurs who grew up before the Internet was such an omnipresent force can have a hard time understanding how words on a computer screen can have real consequences on the every day course of business.

Compounding the problem is the fun, freewheeling atmosphere prevalent on many social networking platforms. It’s easy to forget the potential results when the commentary’s flying fast and furious. However, your words can come back and haunt you later. Remember — it all counts! The days where an organization can dismiss poor behavior with “It’s just the internet” are long gone!

Mistake #4: Using Sock Puppets

Sock puppets is the term applied to social networking accounts that are created with the intent of hiding the poster’s true identity. Individuals often create sock puppets in an effort to avoid the real life consequences discussed in mistake number three!

Sock puppets can be used to boost, support, or defend a company’s position. Conversely, they can be used to tear down, disparage, or make negative commentary about a competitor’s organization, products, or services.

Either way, it is a bad idea! Many denizens of social networks are incredibly tech-savvy, and it won’t take them long at all to discover who is really behind a string of negative or hostile commentary. Exposure can be a public relations nightmare.

Honesty is the best policy. Either be willing to own your commentary, by posting under your own identity, or don’t say them at all!

Mistake #5: Overestimating Social Networking’s Role

Social networking is powerful. It is influential. It is, in many cases, free to participate in. However, it is NOT the end all, be all solution to your marketing needs. While it is tempting to try to solve many of your marketing challenges with social networking, it is important to remember that social networking is a tool, not the only tool.

Use social networking efforts to augment your existing marketing efforts. There are small, start up companies that market themselves solely via social networking. However, this is a self-limiting strategy: even if you reach every single person on that network, you’re still missing out on a large number of potential customers who never log on.

Keep your perspective. Social networking might not eat into your budget, but it does take time. Realize that at best, social networking can significantly augment and enhance your marketing and promotional efforts — but it will never wholly replace it!

Zora asked:


ok at social networking sites like Myspace and Hi5.com, you’ll notice a big trend with the obsession of long haired men or long haired women social clubs/groups. Sometimes these clubs/groups are dedicated to 80′s rock hair, or emo hair styles for men. Many of these clubs/groups have thousands of users, and many of which are seeking a date with one of the long haired members. But now there is a social networking dating site that is geared towards single long haired men and long haired women: LongHairedSingles.com.

With LongHairedSingles.com you’ll see the usual social networking features like on Hi5 or Myspace such as creating a user profile, blogs, arcade, photo gallery, chat room, email, classifieds, instant messenger, rate photos and groups. LongHairedSingles.com also has additional features such as being able to take and create pools, plus take and make quizzes. You can even send gifts and crush alerts to your secret admirer.

When users use the Long Haired Singles features, they will earn points and be able to buy and give gifts to other users.

The first steps a user should do when they sign up with the Long Haired Singles website:

1. Add a photo. Add one main photo and at least one photo that goes into the gallery. The user photo will not only go into there gallery but the websites gallery. When that happens, everyone who visits the Long Haired Singles gallery will be able to view the users photo, and thus, more exposure for them. Adding a photo also gives the user activity points.

To add a photo to the gallery, go to: Submit Items, Upload Picture. Add an image title, tags, and choose the right category. Upload Picture and refresh browser.

How to add a main photo: Go to Profile Image, and click on Change Picture. Upload your image and refresh your browser.

If you don’t have an image yet but still want some sort of image on your profile, you can go to clipart.com or photobucket.com. You can find fun free gif images that are royalty-free to use.

2. Familiarize yourself with the web sites navigation menu:

When your in the section My Account, go to settings. There you can change your password, e-mail and other account information. The section Profile Settings, allows the user to change what is said on there profile. And along with being able to change your picture, you can also change your pages background layout. Search the Internet for free social network backgrounds, like myspace layouts, or free photobucket.com pictures.

3. Now that you have your profile and images set, seek out new friends and potential mates! Go to the browse section and single out the perfect long haired lover for you.

4. To quickly get responses send free emails, add comments and send crush alerts to all the cuties. When your adding a comment, add cute graphics like the ones you can find on any glitter graphics site.

5. Now that your a member of the Long Haired Singles Community, become a regular. New people sign up everyday, and every time you sign up, you’ll be on the front of site.

Use these tips wisely and you’ll have friends and potential long haired mates in no time.

Make sure to tell your friends about the LongHairedSingles.com web site and invite them.

Michael Hutchins asked:


I realize that for adults on the social networking sites, many of these tips are common sense. As I point that out, I also know that nothing is “common” about common sense. The tips are not listed in order of importance. Here they are!…..

1.) Decide on the type of networking you would like to engage in.

Most people that are new to social networking are nor aware that different sites cater to different groups of networkers. Some sites are for people in particular age groups, others are for people with specifics hobbies and interests. Still other sites cater almost exclusively to business networking. Before you join a site, spend some time getting a sense of what type of networking is most popular. For the newbie to the networks, MySpace and Facebook are good choices. Generally, these sites have wide appeal to a large cross section of networkers with a wide variety of interests.

2.) Have A Plan When Putting Together Your Profile

Virtually all social networking sites provide members with a personal profile page. Unfortunately, many people spend very little time planning the content to be included in their profile.

WRONG!

Remember, people will usually review your profile before deciding if they want to contact you. The information that you supply can attract quality networking opportunities. Let people know, via your profile, exactly what type of online relationships you want to pursue. Answer ALL profile questions honestly, with no hidden agendas. Oh, and by the way, include your picture. People want to “see” fellow networkers!

3) Let The Online Relationship Develop Naturally

One of the biggest mistakes made by social networkers is to “force” their agenda on new contacts. This type of selfishness does not work in the offline world, so why would it EVER work online? Become acquainted with your contacts first. Let them know that you intend to be a useful resource. During this process of getting to know each other, both of you will discover if you have mutual intentions. Do not rush this process of discovery. It could provide the foundation for a very beneficial, long term, relationship.

4) Do Not Get Too Personal Too Quickly

This tip is in the ‘common sense” category, and is similar to tip #3. Personal experiences have prompted me to include this tip. I have been contacted by individuals, and within the 1st EMAIL, they are disclosing very personal information, even inviting me to come meet them!! This approach is dangerous and leaves a bad 1st impression. It is a definite “red flag” if individuals give you “too much information” too soon.

5) Do Not “Hit And Run!”

 

Many people make the mistake of joining too many social sites. In their excitement to begin networking, they fill out profiles to every site under the sun! These same individuals spend very little time navigating each site. They will also make the mistake of adding a bunch of “friends” at first, and never following up with them. This “hit and run” approach is not a good way to form online relationships. Only become a member of a site if you plan to become an active member of the community. Without active participation, you will never achieve trust within the group.

In Conclusion….

Hopefully, these tips, and your common sense, will make social networking more productive. If you are specifically interested in the adult social networks for business, the FREE curriculum at Renegade University is a perfect training ground. It is possible to earn while you learn marketing with video, articles, email, and even marketing to the Web 2.0 communities.

You will also learn how to brand yourself in the social networks, and how to gain access to FREE social media tools.

Joan Finholt asked:


Social networking seems to be the new catch phrase for many internet marketers. Yet it leaves many busy business owners wondering if it is worth all the hype. Social networking takes time, time that many business owners just don’t feel they have.

So is Social Networking worth the hype?

Yes…and no. It largely depends on how it is approached. Social networking is the process of joining professional and social networking sites for the specific purpose of creating business and ultimately profits.

Social networking can result in:

- Powerful business partnerships – Customer relationships – Added value and benefit to the community – Improved credibility and expert status – Brand awareness – Increased reach and exposure – Gained knowledge and education

Social networking is a very powerful tool and it can result in tremendous profits however if approached with the sole purpose of generating profits, efforts may fall short. Here are a few guidelines to get the most from social networking:

1. Where to join? One mistake many business owners make is to join too many groups. To get real value from a forum, membership site, or chat room you have to have the time to contribute on a regular basis. Belonging to 10 social networking sites is great if you have the time to contribute to them every week, however it is recommended to start small. Dip your toe in so to speak. Join one or two groups that provide the most value at the time. As your business grows and your schedule allows, add more groups to your list.

2. Join groups that are specific to your industry. There is a forum or membership on just about every topic under the sun. Fitness, pet training, recycling, hiring, cleaning, software, coffee drinking, etc the list goes on and on. Additionally, there are professional forums and social networking sites that can provide tremendous value. LinkedIn is one of the growing professional networking sites, and WarriorForum is a very popular forum among internet marketers.

3. To find groups to research simply type your industry and the word forum or membership site into your search engine of choice and see what comes up. For example, “surfing” + “Forum” generated 579,000 results on Google. That’s a lot of surfing forums!

4. How often to contribute? In order to make your presence noted and to have any kind of effect on a networking site, business professionals have to make regular contributions to the site. Otherwise membership is nothing more than a business card stuffed in a pocket. No one will know you’re there.

So what is a regular contribution? Weekly visits to a membership site or networking site are a minimum requirement. Many networkers schedule social networking into their calendar. For example, on Wednesday nights they schedule two hours to visit their forums and social networking sites they belong to.

How to promote subtly:

1. When evaluating membership sites, forums and networking sites it is important to make sure a personalized signature is part of joining. Your signature is the one resource that fellow members have to find you online. Most sites do not allow blatant self promotion so that means a signature can be key. Be sure to include a link to your website and a quick USP that states what you do.

2. Two tools to help. Because forums and membership sites can contain thousands of posts, it takes a lot of time to read through posts and decide which are appropriate to respond to and which are not. http://www.botsurfer.com/ is a tool that can scan forums for you based on preset criteria and cut your social networking time in half.

3. Adding a social networking feature to your business website. A great way to get involved in social networking is to create your own forum right on your company’s website. Snitz forums, http://forum.snitz.com/, offers free ASP based forum software. It’s a solid product that’s been around for more than 10 years.

Mike Claggett asked:


Networking whether for socializing or for business is what makes the world go around. Not Love. Well love keeps it positive and interesting, but without socializing, love doesn’t have a chance. Don’t think so? Then how do you explain sites like MySpace has literally millions of users and all of the on line dating sites combined have less.

Do you know what the main purpose of a social networking website is? If you are an avid internet user, it’s you likely do. Social networking websites are online communities that make it easier for internet users to meet and communicate with each other. If you are an internet user who enjoys using the internet to meet new people, there is a good chance that you already belong to a social networking website. What about an online blog? Do you have a blog? In a way, your blog is like having your own personal social networking site. If you have a blog, do you know that you could use your social networking website to promote your blog?

The goal of most business owners is to make a profit. There are of course a few that have business web sites only to support their products or provide information. But for the purposes of this article, I’ll only be talking about sites with the primary purpose of making money. Obviously the hope of the site/business owner is to generate income from the selling of a particular product or service. However, to sell that product or service business owners need to alert the general public and preferably a targeted portion of the public at large (Thier niche), to the availability of their products or services. Customers cannot buy a product or a service if they do not know that it exists. Obviously that’s why, as a business owner, you need to advertise your business.

When it comes to advertising there are many business owners who literally cringe at the thought of putting together an advertising or marketing plan or campaign. Have you planned your campaign and are you working your plan? Is it costing you more than your are making? There is a good chance it is because most traditional advertising methods cost money. Many cost a LOT of money.

As a business owner you want to make a profit and not spend any more than is absolutely necessary to make the profit you want/need to, right? Fortunately, if you believe that all forms of advertising take money, you’ll be glad to know you are mistaken. Although you may have to spend some money to make your business as profitable as you want it to be, there are ways to promote your business and the products or services that you sell without having to spend any money at all.

Promote your blog through your social networking site and vice versa? Why would you want to do that? Honestly, in this day and age, if your in business and have to ask yourself that question you probably need to look into the upside of owning operating your own blog and reciprocally linking with one or more of your own social networking site pages. The whole purpose of a blog is to document your thoughts, views, and opinions on a particular topic, issue, or subject to boost your credibility in the eyes of your reader as an authority on what you write about. What good will your blog do if no one reads it. Social networking sites are a way to get readers for your blog.

Is your curiosity peaked yet? There is a good chance that it is and rightfully so. One of the ways that you can promote your online business, without having to spend a dime, is by using something that is readily available online. That thing is an online social networking website. A large number of internet users, in fact literally millions of them, belong to at least one social networking website, if not several.

When it comes to promoting blogs, there are many blog owners who decide to let the search engine do the work for them. Search engines, such as Google, Yahoo, and MSN use special techniques that read/scan the content on your website. That content is then used in part to link your blog website with particular keywords. This means that you run a blog on graduating from high school in New York, there is a good chance that your blog will appear in searches done on New York high schools.

Although many blogs are successfully ranked in search engines, not all are. That is why you are advised against relying solely on search engines, when it comes to promoting your blog. There are other ways to promote your blog besides social networking, such as “blog and ping” or “Tag and Ping” but I’ll leave those subjects for another article you can find at my blog.

When it comes to social networking, there are many individuals who think of building new online friendships or online relationships. While these types of relationships are the most common, did you know that social networking is also used for businesses? A lot of businesses? In fact, that was originally how social networking got started.

As previously mentioned, if you love meeting with or talking to people online, there is a good chance that you belong to a social networking website or community. The individuals that you talk with and that are in your community are likely the individuals that you wish to target. Since most social networking websites work to connect internet users who have the same goals and common interests, there is a good chance that your online friends will enjoy reading your blog. But, before they can read your blog, you have to let them know that it exists.

Although social networking websites are traditionally focused on those that would like to make online friends or develop online relationships, there are networking sites that are designed primarily for business owners. Ryze.com is a good example. These websites will not only allow you to share your business information with other business owners, but it will also allow you to develop close relationships with those that share an interest that is similar to yours. Essentially, this means that you could not only learn valuable business information, but you could also walk away with a new business partner, a new friend or a business prospect.

When it comes to promoting your blog on social networking websites, you have a number of different options. Your first option is to include a link to your blog in your community profile or profile page on your social networking site. This will allow other community members to checkout your blog, only if they wish to do so.

The other way is to inform your online friends of your blog through Private Messages (Or PM’s). Once you join a social networking website and create or join a network of friends, you should easily be able to communicate with those friends. Sending each of your friends a private message with information and a link to your blog tends to be more effective than just placing a link in your profile or on your profile page. As well, a PM is more personal. Naturally, you will want to offer the link to your blog in a kind of “Oh, by the way”, fashion or maybe asking their opinion of one of your recent or past blog posts. The last thing you want to do is make it appear you are soliciting your new friend.

As previously mentioned, social networking websites with a focus on businesses, are a great way to promote your business. However, this does not mean that you should completely forget about the other online social networking websites, the ones that are designed to make online friendships. Although you may not learn any valuable business tips by joining “Yahoo! 360″ or “MySpace”, if you are subtle in your approach, you may be able to end up with new customers and new customers is exactly what your business needs.

As you will see, there are like minded people that will join an online community to make friends and or to learn more about what they are interested in from the people they meet in a social networking community regardless whether it is business related or not. There are a number of different ways that you will to go about promoting your own profile or profile page so as to not appear as though you are actually advertising. If you are planning on joining a traditional online social networking website, to gain access to millions of potential new customers, you are urged to be careful when making your online Social Networking webpage or profile. One thing that internet users hate is being solicited for business using the guise of wanting to make friends.

This does not mean that you cannot use social networking to your advantage; it just means that you need to be careful with how you do it. Instead of creating a “MySpace” page or a “Yahoo! 360″ page for your business, you are advised to make one for and about yourself, but, of course, you will want to include information on your business as part of your ‘interests’. You never know, but, in addition to promoting your blog, you may also make new friends along the way as well by linking to your social networking profile page from your blog.

By joining a social networking website, especially one that is popular and has a large number of members, you should be able to generate interest in your business, including the products or services that you sell. If your social networking friends are interested in the same things as you, and your blog and is compelling enough to drive your social networking friends to your business site, that interest generated traffic could turn into sales; thus making your social networking experience more than worth your time and effort.

After all, it’s FREE, it’s easy, there is the potential of making additional profits doing it, and it can be a lot of FUN! There is nothing quite like making more money and having fun doing it.