A few articles ago, I wrote about social networking and blog writing as necessary additions to your on-line marketing efforts and the more I read and surf the net the more I am convinced that using social networking or joining a blog group is the way to go to stay competitive on the Internet.

There are number of social networking sites that have become extremely popular on the World Wide Web(Facebook, You Tube, Blogger and hundreds more). The reason behind the popularity of social networking web sites is that users can save the links to various web sites of their interest and frequently will return to their favorite sites, if the content is fresh and of interest..

I suggest you consider the following actions before you embark on using social networking and blog(s):

1. The first way to begin social networking is to chose a social networking web site that has a high traffic and good circulation. Equally as important make sure it is specific to your product or service. If you are a real estate agent, you want to search for a real estate site and then search further and find a specific region, state or city that fits your business. Remember, it is of no value in just joining a real estate social network or blog if the audience is to large and not relative to your area of expertise. A social networking website with good number of visitors can turn out to be an excellent place for marketing your products. As example, type in Savannah Real Estate Blog/social networking into your favorite search engine browser and check the results. My compliments to Mike Farmer for his Savannah real estate blog. He gets it!

2. Take the time to create a good bio or a home page that you can use on the sites. A good site that is attractive will attract more visitors. Adding images, graphics, and art work will also help in making your site more professional looking. Use Word Press or other “free or open source” web site software to create your site. I use Word Press for my blog (www.sysconn.com/ask) and it is simple to use and keep current. If you do not want to take the time to setup your site, there are a number of local web design companies that can do it for you inexpensively.

3. Once you find the site/group you want to join take the initiative to interact and establish your interest in the group. DO NOT immediately offer your service or product but first demonstrate your expertise and willingness to be part of the group. A link to your blog or web site is okay but should not be the first thing a viewer will read. Put a link at the end of your comment.

4. Consider, once you have joined a group and you have your site ready, to offer some freebies to visitors by providing useful links (web sites addresses) that offer the products that are linked to your business or products. This will help increase your popularity. Savannahbnb.com does a good job of adding useful links on their site. Not only are they providing visitors useful information but they are also gaining “links” and link popularity is a key in getting better ranking on Google and several other search engines.

5. Be diligent in writing frequently and insure the content is useful and meets the standard for the social networking web site. The content should be impressive as well as comprehensive.

6. Always visit other social networking web sites and find out the latest trends. The Internet continues to evolve and understanding what is working and where the “interaction” is going will help you improve your networking and the content you are offering.

Applying social networking and blog marketing techniques is not difficult but the benefits are impressive. We are using both techniques and we have seen our “unique visitor” population increase significantly and that is the bottom line.

I personally use Blogger.com (Google Program) as my blog for various social networking sites and you can view it at: http://enjoyingsavannahga.blogspot.com/

Chuck