Social Networks, from Facebook to Twitter: How to Leverage Them for Strategic Marketing

Let’s tackle this phenomenon! It’s fascinating to understand the ‘know-how’ and the benefits of social networking sites without feeling overwhelmed by them, but rather by systematically gathering all the information.
All this is certainly with a view to a strategic social marketing action plan. A ‘social system’ is fundamental for your health.

Here you will find ten advantages of social networking sites, plus some extraordinary resources:

1. Facebook.
It’s the grandfather of all sites. According to Alexa Rankings, Facebook is currently the fifth most popular site in the world. Facebook is the perfect space to develop online relationships. The site now boasts over one hundred million online users. Unfortunately, too many marketers have adopted the mindset of these users, which is to create a shoddy Myspace on Facebook, endlessly posting links on their profile space. This is enough to make anyone give up. If you are simply ready to build relationships, enormous marketing potential will open up before you. The best resource is Mari Smith, a specialist in relationship marketing and buzz marketing. You will find a wealth of golden rules on her fan page by searching on Facebook.

2. Squidoo.
There has been much debate about whether Seth Godin’s collection of half a million pages (whom I honestly consider the king of marketing) continues to provide quality traffic, following the blow it received from Google not so long ago. However, as Seth himself states, Google is known for rewarding pages that are worthwhile, so if your Squidoo lens provides quality content, Squidoo will reap endless benefits from your web presence. Analyze Rena Klingenberg‘s Squidoo traffic level lens for excellent information and resources.

3. Hubpages
Hubpages is pretty much the same as Squidoo. Instead of a lens, you build a hub. Hubs with overly aggressive affiliate promotions will not be approved. Only original and appropriate content will make it. On Hubpages itself, you will find a great many excellent hubs that tell you ‘how-to’, which will help you delve into the subject.

4. Stumbleupon
This site is absolutely impressive! Install the Stumble button on your Firefox browser to vote sites up or down, or simply bookmark your favorite site on the fly while you’re browsing.

5. Mashable
Mashable is the world’s most important blog covering all the news on Web 2.0 and social networking. It is very popular among bloggers and social networking enthusiasts, with a growing number of prominent visitors daily.

6. Digg
Digg is a community-based social networking site with a readership of technology experts. You can submit your articles, posts, videos, photos, etc. If the community finds them, you will be discovered. If a link to your content is posted on Digg and is voted up by the community, you could receive hundreds or even thousands of visits in minutes. Look for Dean Hunt. Dean Hunt‘s content has been featured on the front page multiple times, and on his blog, he offers an excellent free report titled “Confessions of the Buzz Content Hustlers”.

7. Technorati
Simply put, Technorati is the Google of blogs. Technorati was created to help bloggers gather and share information for global online conversations. Technorati currently claims to track over 112.8 million blogs. Once you have enough content, you need to register your blog with Technorati. It’s a good idea to have your friends or others promote your blog through Technorati.

8. Mybloglog
It is the key to global conversation across the blogosphere. Mybloglog allows bloggers to talk to each other and get to know their readers by monitoring their blogs and active communities. This is generally made possible by a sidebar widget showing recent visitors to your blog. Mybloglog consolidates your existing web presence and connects you to affinity reader and blogger communities, adding contextual elements to the conversations you participate in.

9. Propeller
Several years ago, when it was acquired by Aol, Netscape wanted to follow in Digg‘s footsteps and added social news. Thus, Propeller was born. Propeller is a social news portal that, like Digg, is driven by popularity voted on by the community. Make sure your content is newsworthy and original when you submit it to Propeller.

10. Mixx
It is the direct competitor to Digg. It is receiving a lot of attention from CNN, which is now adding “Mixx.it” buttons to all its content. It is a fun group of diverse characters, including a former banker, a croupier, a skateboarder, a self-proclaimed eccentric, and a die-hard cricket fan. Be sure to add Mixx for strategic social marketing.

And let’s not forget Twitter!
This list would be incomplete without mentioning Twitter in the portfolio. Twitter‘s 140-character microblogging conversations are literally taking over the web. CoachDeb has created the ultimate Twitter guide, so if you’re still in the dark about how Twitter works, download the Twitter Handbook. Further information on strategic social marketing and the benefits of social networking sites is available for free.

Translated by Marika Giori