What? You Dont Know what Social Networking is?

Social Media and Social Networking are two very popular buzz words these days. Almost everybody has heard of them. You must be saying “Yeah so what?” or maybe “that’s for teenagers” . According to a survey conducted by e-marketer 58% of adults still don’t know what Social Networking is.

Well my friends, in a single statement I would say that this is the evolutionary stage of the newest and most successful form of communication and marketing. Let’s have a look. I will try to explain it as simple as possible.

I will start off by first explaining to you the terminologies and then we can take it from there.

Every business needs customers and also needs to know their likes, dislikes and buying trends. It is also important to get feedback from the customers to find out how the product or service is and how it can be improved. In the past this information was gathered by using forms and conducting surveys. This consumed a lot of time and money.

It was also vital to develop and build a relationship with the customer .O.K. now the word relationship is the key word here and its where all the fun begins.

Now you don’t want to limit this special relationship with just one customer. You want to have many and you want this number to constantly grow as it will benefit you personally as well as professionally. Now this group of special people/customers/clients will form your network. Ok now that is the second key word.

So this will become your social network with whom you will socialize and get personal and professional benefits. When I say personal benefits, please keep in mind I am mentioning only ethical practices. For example if a client is very close to you and is in real estate and you are planning to buy or sell some, then this contact may go out of the way and provide you with some service or give you extra advice that may benefit you. It will basically be that he is repaying the kindness and prompt service that you deliver to him when he comes to you.

The above example is a real world scenario. Now take the same example and apply it to your internet friends and connections. That will be your online social network.

It is defined by whatis.com as

“Social networking is the practice of expanding the number of one’s business and/or social contacts by making connections through individuals. While social networking has gone on almost as long as societies themselves have existed, the unparalleled potential of the Internet to promote such connections is only now being fully recognized and exploited, through Web-based groups established for that purpose. Social networking establishes interconnected Internet communities (sometimes known as personal networks) that help people make contacts that would be good for them to know, but that they would be unlikely to have met otherwise. In general, here’s how it works: you join one of the sites and invite people you know to join as well. Those people invite their contacts to join, who in turn invite their contacts to join, and the process repeats for each person. In theory, any individual can make contact through anyone they have a connection to; to any of the people that person has a connection to, and so on.”

I found a great video that explain this concept in a very very simple manner. It was made by Lee LeFever and his video series is one of the best I have ever seen. Judge for your self. Here is the one on Social Networking:

Now Social Networking is an end and the Social Media and its tools are a means to that end. It’s the different tools that provide a platform for communicating and sharing information with one another.

Some of the most popular ones are

I have identified a few of the more popular tools, but keep in mind this list is not exhaustive.

Blogs: This is one of the most popular and useful means of getting the latest information on a certain topic. A blog is like a newspaper that gives you the latest information, tips and trends. The best part is that the information is coming from a person with his experiences and opinions and that gives the reader a better and clearer picture. People don’t want to read the manipulative stories by corporations. They want the latest information from PEOPLE, and that’s why people like to read blogs more than corporate newsletters. The comments on the posted articles also help to give the writer direct feedback in very little time. Blogs can be personal as well as of companies.

It’s a prediction that the companies that don’t have blogs by the end of 2009 will lose competitive advantage over those that do.

Podcasts: These are basically audio blogs. It can be considered synonymous with having your own radio station. Podcasts are very popular with busy executives who like the efficiency of being able to learn when they can’t read. They can simple listen while doing other things or while travelling because you don’t have to listen to them live. You can record them and play it back when ever you like.

Imagine the possibilities of reaching thousands of people world wide and spreading your information through your very own personal radio station. Now that’s called power! And the best part is that it’s almost free! You don’t need any fancy or costly equipment, just a mic, computer and internet connection and VOILA! You can start broadcasting.

Video podcasts: Now this is again one step further. It’s both audio and video communication and is synonymous with having your own TV station.

Is all this great? Your own newspaper, radio station and TV station, if combined with proper planning…you could do wonders for your business! And it’s all free. It needs nothing more than what you already have. Isn’t the internet and technology wonderful!

Microblogs (for example, Twitter and a host of others): Very fast, targeted and responsive, they’re a great way to ask questions and get quick answers or to promote a timely idea or service. Interactivity is excellent, but content is limited to short messages and it’s difficult to integrate multimedia.

Virtual worlds (for example, Second Life and others): These venues may be good for real-time events, but the software is still too complicated for most people to use. Its good for events with a strong visual component.

Well after this article I hope that you have at least some idea as to what this all is. The best way to get more information on it is to actually join a few sites and get networking!!