Online Social Networking Goes Professional

Once again – the media of social networking prevails, now in a business setting. With the immeasurable success of MySpace and Facebook, it was only a matter of time before it was converted into a business concept as well.

Social-networking sites like [1] Facebook and [2] MySpace are so massive that it’s often hard to effectively connect with like-minded people with similar interests and backgrounds. It’s not surprising then that some entrepreneurs are deciding they need their own online meet-ups.

There’s a fast-growing number of social-networking sites geared specifically to entrepreneurs, including [3] Sta.rtup.Biz, [4] StartUpNation.com, and [5] YouNoodle.com.

Small-business vendors and credit-card companies are also hoping to get into the game (of course, with the hope that these business owners will also be more committed to their products). Some include [6] Visa Business Network on Facebook, [7] American Express’s Open Forum and [8] Dell Business Community. (Before you delve in, you might want to read my [9] previous post about common social-networking mistakes business owners make.)

Each network is different and caters to a different audience, so you have to check them out to see which one feels most appropriate to you. For instance, some are geared toward seeking [10] business relationships and [11] funding from other entrepreneurs, while others focus on [12] swapping business ideas.

[via WSJ Small Business] posted by Kelly Spors