More and more online marketers are searching for the perfect social marketing solution. A big part of the solution is knowing how to find these sites. Most of us know about the "famous" social marketing sites like Facebook, Twitter, Blogger and Wordpress. But you would be surprised to know that these represent just a drop in the bucket of what is out there:
These following social marketing solutions are what many would consided the core of the social networking concept:
- ClassMates, http://www.classmates.com
- Bebo, http://www.bebo.com
- Deviant Art, http://www.deviantart.com
- Facebook, http://www.facebook.com
- Flickr, http://www.flickr.com
- LinkedIn, http://www.linkedin.com
- Meetup, http://www.meetup.com
- MySpace, http://www.myspace.com
- YouTube, http://www.youtube.com
- Gather, http://www.gather.com
- imeem, http://www.imeem.com
- Itsmy, http://www.itsmy.com
- My Yearbook, http://www.myyearbook.com
- Webshots, http://www.webshots.com
The Blogging Social Networking solution is very popular - and if done well and consistantly, this might be all you need to do.
Here are some social networking sites that emphasize on blogging or micro-blogging (like Twitter):
- Blogger, http://www.blogger.com
- Livejournal, http://www.livejournal.com
- Twitter, http://www.twitter.com
- Windows Live Spaces, http://www.spaces.live.com/
- Wordpress, http://www.wordpress.com
- Vox, http://www.vox.com
- Xanga, http://www.xanga.com
Here are is social networking solution with sites that focus on certain interests like music, books, coffee or pop culture.
- Advogato, http://www.advogato.org/
- Amie Street, http://www.amiestreet.com/
- ANobii, http://www.anobii.com/
- CafeMom, http://www.cafemom.com
- Buzznet, http://www.buzznet.com
- Broadcaster, http://www.broadcaster.com
- Cake Financial, https://www.cakefinancial.com/
- Care2, http://www.care2.com/
- Eons, http://www.eons.com
- TravBuddy, http://www.travbuddy.com/
- Travellerspoint Travel Community, http://www.travellerspoint.com/
- BlackPlanet, http://www.blackplanet.com
- Elftown, http://www.elftown.com
- Flixster, http://www.flixster.com
- Geni, http://www.geni.com
- Goodreads, http://www.goodreads.com
- Gossip Report, http://www.gossipreport.com
- Guild Café, http://www.gamerDNA.com
- Hospitality club, http://www.hospitalityclub.org
- Last.fm, http://www.last.fm
- Library Thing, http://www.librarything.com/
- Lifeknot, http://www.lifeknot.com/
- Live Mocha, http://www.livemocha.com
- One World TV, http://tv.oneworld.net/
- Plaxo, http://www.plaxo.com
- Ravelry, http://www.ravelry.com
- Sci Space, http://www.scispace.net/
- WAYN, http://www.wayn.com/
International social marketing is more and more in demand.
They may be specific to one place (region or country) or cater to the worldwide population.
- Friendster, http://www.friendster.com
- Face Party, http://www.faceparty.com
- Friends Reunited, http://www.friendsreunited.co.uk/
- Biip, http://www.biip.no/ (Norway)
- Cloob, http://www.cloob.com/
- Cyworld, http://us.cyworld.com/
- Fotolog, http://www.fotolog.com/
- Frühstückstreff, http://www.fruehstueckstreff.org/
- Grono, http://www.grono.net
- Habbo, http://www.habbo.com
- hi5, http://www.hi5.com
- Hyves, http://www.hyves.nl
- IRC Galleria, http://www.irc-galleria.net/index.php
- iWiW, http://www.iwiw.hu/
- Profile Heaven, http://www.profileheaven.com/
Social media sites specialize in sharing media and news with other members of the community. This is where bookmarking also comes into play.
- Digg, http://www.digg.com
- StumbleUpon, http://www.stumbleupon.com
- Del.icio.us, http://del.icio.us
- Reddit, http://www.reddit.com
- Fark, http://www.fark.com
And for the younger generation. . .
- College Tonight, http://thequad.com/
- Gaia Online, http://www.gaiaonline.com
- NeoPets, http://www.neopets.com
- Student.com, http://www.student.com
- Reunion, http://www.reunion.com
Each one of the above social networking sites represent an opportunity to drive targeted traffic to your articles, blog or your website. Remember that the key to social marketing is to be social - no outright sales pitches are allowed.
So, now you have a huge list of sites! Where to start? First, start with the concept that you prefer and try the various sites in that list and pick one or two. Focus on that one for a while and see how it goes. Don't jump into all of them at once. Pick one, stick with it for a while, evaluate your results and see if you have the time to add another one or to just move on altogether. The power of social networking is incredible and growing continuously - an absolute must for online marketers.
What if you are not that social and you don't have the time to spend on these sites? If you understand the power of social marketing but don't have your heart in it enough to be consistent with them as a marketing tool? Then I suggest you take a look at this social networking solution that does the work for you on auto-pilot. It's saved me countless hours and all the stress that comes along with trying to squeeze everything in.
Laura Shapiro is a Home-Based Business Owner and Consultant in addition to being a full time Mom. Is a Home Business your Dream? It doesn't have to be - let me help you make it a reality. . .
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