From LinkedIn to Heels and Deals; does targeted networking work?
If you're ready to start networking online your next question might be: which sites should I sign up to?
While the social media site Facebook is a great platform to promote your business and will generate some interaction between you and your client base, business partnerships will be better suited to other sites, such as Linkedin.
LinkedIn is a social networking site designed for professionals. It claims that executives from every Fortune 500 company have member profiles on the site. The profiles focus on members' professional experience and skills.
Signing up is free, but it does offer different levels of memberships and based on the number of connections you have, you may opt for paid-for services on the site.
As of January 2013, LinkedIn reported more than 200 million registered users in more than 200 countries and territories. Each user profile is based on your curriculum vitae making it easy to share and view people's expertise and knowledge.
Lisa Richards from daVinci marketing uses LinkedIn frequently. "It is the only one I use and this is more for information than networking. I like the discussion forums which often give good insights and ideas," she said.
Craig Stuart from recruitment firm i-Expatriate uses BNI connect and LinkedIn. "LinkedIn allows targeted approaches and allows you to find out people who you need to be referred to," he said.
BNI is a business and professional networking organization that allows only one person per professional classification or specialty to join a chapter.
BNI Connect integrates face-to-face networking with a comprehensive online networking support system. The mission of BNI is to help members increase their business through a structured, positive, and professional 'word-of-mouth' program, which enables them to develop long-term, meaningful relationships with quality business professionals.
BNI membership 'is like having dozens of sales people working for you' according to the organization, 'because all of them carry several copies of your business cards around with them. When they meet someone who could use your products or services, they take out your card and recommend you.'
Nigel Holt from copywriting firm Stylus has found Nabbesh.com useful in generating business leads.
Nabbesh is a verb meaning "search" in Arabic. The website offers a skills marketplace connecting skilled individuals - students, entrepreneurs, retirees or people in between jobs - to opportunities matching their skills. Opportunities can be generated by other individuals or by companies.
Users can choose to list their skills and find project-based work, hire someone with the right skills or just connect with like-minded individuals.
"I believe that targeting a specific company or individual often makes a referral more likely as those in one's referral network are clear in exactly what one is looking for. General referrals on the other hand, require one's colleague to interpolate what the requirement is, and this can often not be sufficiently accurate to lead to referrals," said Holt.
Targeted networking can open up a Rolodex of people specifically in your industry already. Heels and Deals is one such site with a chapter in Dubai that targets female entrepreneurs.
Their goal is to be the global networking community for female entrepreneurs by building a business platform that creates independent wealth for members and employment opportunities for female entrepreneurs.
Heels and Deals works to increase the number of female-owned businesses across the globe. Members network online, on their website, and in-person at events currently held in Dubai and Hong Kong.
For Fiona Theboul from Icon ProLab targeted networking is a great time-saver. "Once you identify what you are looking for and who you would like to work with it is easier to ask for business," she said.
However, her preferred site is still LinkedIn. "LinkedIn is the best networking site because it allows you to look at individuals and company profiles before making a connection. If you feel they are someone you would like to work with then you can take it to the next step," said Theboul.
Other popular sites include Orkut. It was founded in the US but is now based in Brazil, after it failed to take off in the States. More than 50% of all traffic to Orkut comes from Brazil. It is also popular in India, which supplies another 17% of the site's traffic.
© Zawya BusinessPulse 2013
