subject: Social Media Works [print this page] However, social media is a highly effective way to get your business up and running. For example, let's say that you just launched a new business that sells stylish children's clothing in the area where you live. Now, let's say that you have done a little research on your niche market and have found out that most people who purchase the kinds of clothing that you sell frequently use the Internet as a means of finding the best deal. In this case, creating a Twitter account can really help build your online presence and credibility because it allows you to directly communicate with those people who shop at your store. Additionally, it allows you to receive feedback (both positive and negative), which can greatly help you to more successfully target your core audience.
In addition to microblogging sites such as Twitter, there are also other social media sites as well. For example, Facebook is one of the largest (if not the largest) social media site that people use today. Originally meant only for college staff and students, Face-book has since opened up to the public and met a more than warm reception as each day, millions of people log in to build and promote their business, become fans of causes that they believe in and communicate with friends and loved ones who live hundreds of miles away. If you play your cards right, you can really use a social networking site like Facebook to your business' advantage. For example, every time one of my friends becomes a 'fan' of a business or cause that they support, it shows up automatically in my news feed when I log in. If the business or cause that they joined looks like anything, I may click on the link to the Face-book fan page in order to read up more on the business. If I like what I see, I may click within that fan page on a link that will take me directly to that business' web page.
There also other networking sites that aren't necessarily geared towards promoting your business, but which are great for meeting other people and/or professionals within your niche. On line communication is so vast that it now encompasses a large part of what many businesses spend their marketing and time on. On line business networking meetings such as webinars and chat rooms now spill over into real life meetings where you can officially put a face to the name of someone you have befriended in one of your on line communities.
While there is still a lot left to learn about online social networking, there is no doubt that social networking has cemented itself in most prominent businesses as a solid way to build a business' on line credibility as well as their overall marketability. Whether you are just starting out with your business or whether you are a more established business that is now looking to branch out into the world of online marketing, social media networks can certainly take you where you want to go.
