The business purpose of social networks is to build relationships with people in your target market, who could become your customer and who may lead you to a lot more customers (their friends).

Some people just don’t get this.

They don’t do their due diligence to find where their target market is active. Instead, they just find a social networking website and immediately put themselves out there. Then another and another and another.

The fact is, you can’t effectively interact on more than a handful of social media. Maybe it’s just a couple or three, or five or six. But if you try to do more than that, you’ll get splattered all over.

And notice that word “interact”? That is really an important word. There is no sense in joining a site unless you are going to interact with others who come there.

And notice back back in the first paragraph, that phrase “target market”? The purpose for a business in social networking is to build relationships with people who will become your customers. That means you need to be able to describe your customers, and you need to know where they hang out. You need to go there and listen as they talk and find out what really excites them and what really frustrates them.

That knowledge puts you in position to be helpful to these potential prospects. You can research and find information that they’ll value - and build a relationship with them in doing so. You can answer their questions yourself - and build relationships by doing so.

As you build and strengthen these relationships, as you make yourself valuable to people in your target market, your business will build. That is the point of a social network.

It takes time and it takes commitment to do just one social network right. There’s no way you can be involved in even a dozen networks and still do justice to them and put yourself in the best light for the connections you need to really build relationships.

So don’t spread yourself too thin. Do your research, and find two or three or four places your target market gathers. THOSE are the networks you need to join. Then listen. Then interact. Give value.

That’s a plan that works.

Richard Dennis

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