There seems to be a great deal of emphasis on social networking as a means to connect with people of share interests. For example: Sphinn targets marketers and allows bookmarking and networking as a means for internet and search marketers to interact. As well, there are many other forums and sites aimed at allowing greater interaction among marketers. But, this leads on to question: Does this really help the marketer? It appears to me that the usefulness of these sites is finite. This is not meant to undermine the importance of socializing with your peers, however this might serve to insulate marketers from what was really important. Furthermore, marketers might market themselves better by interacting with those people who might potentially require their marketing savvy. I don’t know many non-marketers checking out Sphinn any time soon.

What do I do different?

Well, it’s no secret that I don’t socialize with other marketers. Not because I am a snob or anything, but they are not my niche market. Furthermore, I doubt any of them will ever contact me because they need help with their search engine optimization, right? I socialize with people who are interested in other things. Music, films, travel, books, and so on. Not only am I also interested in these things, but it is the insights and experiences of socializing with these people that really lends itself to understanding the needs and desires of consumers.

That being said, there are some key points to consider when engaging in social networking online.

1. There is a lot to be said for a little personality. It is, after all, SOCIAL networking. An online social network can get rather large, and it always helps to stick out among the crowd.
2. Don’t be shy. Having one or two or three strong connections in your social network is not going to cut it. Be social. Try to make a few new connections each day, or each week, depending on your availability.
3. Social networking is not for getting other people to do stuff for you. Sure, that might happen down the road. But it is not a good idea to start out with “Hey, Digg this”. Generally, I disregard any request from someone I don’t know asking me to do something, and I will be disinclined to socialize with them in the future.

Social networking affords so many opportunities to anyone looking to reach out to a niche market. As social sites often include some form or another of folksonomic tagging, it is very easy to find and identify individuals of a specific interest, and often these individuals have joined themselves to social groups. Consumers are very savvy these days though. I would not suggest this as an opportunity for sending mass messages to people. But it is a great way to spot trends and learn more about the people you are looking to appeal to. And if you truly integrate yourself, there will be an audience for your ideas.