Praise for

The Truth About Profiting from Social Networking

“Smart business people are using social networking to support their marketing and overall business strategies. But it is hard to do it right without understanding both social networks and the community norms you’ll find there. Rutledge’s book not only gives smart advice on how to navigate those waters, but does so with examples that are easy to understand and translate for use in your business.”

Jason Falls, Social Media Explorer Blog

“This book could help your business make money and sales using social networking. From using MySpace and Facebook to using an internal social networking system, it covers it all.”

Linda Roeder, Social Networking Weblog, and Personal Web Pages Guide, About.com

“Social media takes community effort. As such, networking is of utmost importance on social networking sites. To become a successful contributor, you need to be a team player. Don’t be afraid to reach out to anyone, big or small. Making that connection and maintaining that connection is critical; everything else will fall into place from there. Rutledge uncovers all the necessary skills to use these tools in this easy-to-understand book.”

Tamar Weinberg, Techipedia

“Using online social networks for business and professional advancement requires more than just understanding the technology. Social networks are all about human interaction. This book provides numerous examples, ample advice, and easy-to-follow guidelines for those looking to navigate the previously uncharted waters of technology-enabled social networking.”

Amanda G. Watlington, Ph.D., A.P.R., Owner, Searching for Profit

“With The Truth About Profiting from Social Networking, Rutledge provides deep insights into social networking and how to profit from its proper usage, both financially and in your career.”

Allen Stern, Editor, Center Networks

“There is a right way and a wrong way to use social networks. Rutledge uncovers these truths and makes understanding the difference between them clear so you can achieve success and avoid failure.”

Jason Bean, Blogger, b5media

THE TRUTH ABOUT

Patrice-Anne Rutledge

PROFITINGFROM SOCIAL NETWORKING

© 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc.

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Rutledge, Patrice-Anne.

The truth about profi ting from social networking / Patrice-Anne Rutledge. -- 1st printing.

p. cm.

ISBN 0-7897-3788-4 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Online social networks--Economic aspects.

2. Social networks--Computer network resources. 3. Information society--Economic

aspects. I. Title.

HM742.R88 2008

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vii

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Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xi

Part I The Truth About the Social Networking Phenomenon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1

TRUTH 1 Social networking is a lot more than MySpace and YouTube . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

TRUTH 2 Forget everything you think you know about social networking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

TRUTH 3 The traffi c stampede: numbers don’t lie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

TRUTH 4 With social networking, change is the only constant . . . . . . . . 15

Part II The Truth About the Most Popular Social Networking Sites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19

TRUTH 5 MySpace isn’t just for teenagers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

TRUTH 6 LinkedIn is the place for business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

TRUTH 7 YouTube is for profi t, not just play . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

TRUTH 8 Facebook extends beyond the collegiate crowd . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Part III The Truth About Finding a Job Through Social Networking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .35

TRUTH 9 Forget the old rules of the job search . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

TRUTH 10 Throw away your traditional resume . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

TRUTH 11 If you want to get hired, go where people are hiring . . . . . . . . 43

TRUTH 12 Recruiters really do want to fi nd you . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

TRUTH 13 It’s who you know that counts…most of the time . . . . . . . . . . . 51

TRUTH 14 Following up outside your virtual community is key . . . . . . . . . 55

Part IV The Truth About Recruiting the Best Candidates Through Social Networking . . . . . . . . . .59

TRUTH 15 The world of recruiting has changed forever . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

TRUTH 16 The best candidates are often the ones who aren’t looking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

TRUTH 17 Be your own detective: fi nding candidates’ secrets is easier than ever . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

TRUTH 18 LinkedIn is the recruiter’s favorite social networking tool . . . . 71

Part V The Truth About Networking Your Way to Business Success . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .75

TRUTH 19 A social networking marketing plan is not a traditional marketing plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

TRUTH 20 The right kind of “socializing” can lead to big profi ts . . . . . . . 79

TRUTH 21 Reaching key decision makers requires trust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83

viii

Part VI The Truth About Launching a Product or Service Through Social Networking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .87

TRUTH 22 The $2.2 billion tip: advertising where the crowds gather pays off . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

TRUTH 23 If you don’t “get” social networking, your campaign won’t work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91

TRUTH 24 Marketing to the MySpace generation is different . . . . . . . . . . 95

TRUTH 25 Making them hungry makes them buy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99

TRUTH 26 Viral videos are for business, not just fun . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

Part VII The Truth About Corporate Social Networks . . . . 107TRUTH 27 Corporate social networking has arrived . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107

TRUTH 28 You need to embrace the virtual water cooler . . . . . . . . . . . . 111

TRUTH 29 You can get something for nothing: free, open-source social networks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115

Part VIII The Truth About Social Networking for Social Causes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119

TRUTH 30 Social networking is changing the world of online fundraising . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119

TRUTH 31 Networking for good makes good sense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123

TRUTH 32 Get social, get elected . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127

Part IX The Truth About Social Networking Success. . . . . 131TRUTH 33 Online networking is still networking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131

TRUTH 34 Quality counts: more isn’t always merrier. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135

TRUTH 35 Online branding: your profi le is how the world sees you . . . . 139

TRUTH 36 Learning from the masters can make you a master social networker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143

TRUTH 37 Six degrees of separation is more than just the name of a movie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147

TRUTH 38 Social networking doesn’t happen in a vacuum . . . . . . . . . . 151

Part X The Truth About Making Connections That Count . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155

TRUTH 39 Connect and reconnect: develop a network that works for you . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155

TRUTH 40 You can never have too many friends…or can you? . . . . . . . . 159

TRUTH 41 You can connect with the rich and famous . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163

TRUTH 42 You’ve got mail…but you shouldn’t always answer it . . . . . . 167

Part XI The Truth About Social Networking Privacy and Safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171

TRUTH 43 Social networking makes your past an open book . . . . . . . . . 171

TRUTH 44 You never know who is reading your profi le . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175

TRUTH 45 Knowledge is the key to safeguarding your privacy online . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179

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Part XII The Truth About the Future of Social Networking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183

TRUTH 46 Social networking will expand exponentially in the next decade . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183

TRUTH 47 Social networking is going mobile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187

TRUTH 48 Not all social networking occurs on social networking sites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191

TRUTH 49 Creating your own social network is easier than you think . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195

TRUTH 50 You don’t have to follow the trends just because they’re there . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199

References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203

About the Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207

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xi

Introduction

Social networking is just one component of what’s called Web 2.0, the next generation of websites and services that emphasize collaboration and connectivity. Although the experts continue to debate the exact defi nition of Web 2.0, one thing is certain: Social networking sites, blogs, and wikis are connecting the online world like never before. Web 2.0 has changed the way the world connects and communicates, and the evolution is continuing.

Social networking has generated a lot of buzz, media coverage,

and conversation in the past few years. In spite of all this attention,

however, many misconceptions remain. Social networking isn’t just

for the young. It now reaches a large, mainstream audience. Many

popular sites report than half their visitors are over age 35. It isn’t

just for fun or pure socializing, either. Companies, organizations, and

individuals around the world are profi ting from their participation on

popular social networks such as MySpace, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

Social networking also isn’t just for the tech-savvy. Strategy counts far

more than technical skill in developing a successful social networking

campaign. In this book, you learn 50 “truths” about real-world social

networking and how you, too, can profi t from your social networking

experience.

This book is written for anyone who wants to tap the power of

social networking for professional reasons. Marketers, publicists,

small business owners, independent professionals, job seekers,

fundraisers, and activists all can fi nd ways to profi t from strategic

social networking. It’s a viable business tool that opens up new ways

to connect with others who can help you achieve your business

goals. The goal of this book is to provide you with a solid foundation

on the basics of social networking, give you some insight into future

trends, and encourage you to think strategically about the best ways

you can leverage the power of social networking to enhance your

business, your cause, and your life.

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PART I: THE TRUTH ABOUT THE

SOCIAL NETWORKING PHENOMENON

TRUTH

1Social networking is a lot

more than MySpace and YouTube

2

Just what is social networking? Ask three people, and you’ll get three different answers. Although most people have a general idea of the basic concept, social

networking means different things to different people depending on their background, interests, goals, and level of computer savvy.

MySpace (www.myspace.com)

and YouTube (www.youtube.com)

are two of the most popular sites

on the web. For many people, these

two sites satisfy all their social

networking needs. But the world

of social networking is much larger

than its two highest profi le sites.

Business networkers could determine social networking isn’t right for

them after visiting MySpace and YouTube if they didn’t also check out

the many business-oriented sites that could offer them much greater

benefi ts.

In other words, the world of social networking is wide and diverse.

Although early adopters of social networking skew to the young, the

trend has now moved into the mainstream with sites for all ages,

backgrounds, and interests. There’s something for everyone, but you

need to know where to fi nd it.

A quick tour of the world of social networking gives you an idea of

the vast differences between these sites as well as the possibilities

for how social networking could benefi t you. Some of the best-known

and most-visited social networking sites include

Bebo (www.bebo.com)—Bebo reports more than 25 million

members and is particularly popular in the UK. Bebo Bands and

Bebo Authors draw musicians and writers looking to connect with

their audience.

Ecademy (www.ecademy.com)—A business networking site with

150,000 members, Ecademy offers numerous networking groups

based on your interests. It also offers in-person networking

events, primarily in the UK.

Just what is social networking? Ask three people, and you’ll get three different answers.

3

Facebook (www.facebook.com)—Starting as a community for

Harvard students, Facebook opened its doors to anyone with an

email address in September 2006 and increased its membership

by 89 percent in less than a year.

Friendster (www.friendster.com)—Friendster has a member base

of 50 million users worldwide and is particularly popular in the

Asia Pacifi c region.

hi5 (www.hi5.com)—With more than 60 million registered

members and 25 million unique visitors per month, hi5 aims for

an international audience with a localized interface available in

multiple languages.

LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com)—The largest and most popular of

the business networking sites, LinkedIn offers profi les of more

than 19 million professionals and is particularly popular with

recruiters…and those who want to capture their attention.

MySpace (www.myspace.com)—Arguably the most popular

social networking site on the web, MySpace is expanding from

a youth-dominated demographic to encompass members of

all ages. Although poor site design and numerous less-than-

professional MySpace pages can be a detractor, MySpace is still

a great networking tool for the right people (think musical artists,

marketers aiming for a general audience, authors of mainstream

novels, and so forth).

Orkut (www.orkut.com)—Google may have founded Orkut,

but that hasn’t translated into worldwide popularity. Its most

signifi cant user base is in Brazil and India, where it captures a

high market share.

Ryze (www.ryze.com)—Another business-oriented social site,

Ryze has more than 500,000 members and offers a number of

special interest networks.

XING (www.xing.com)—An active business-oriented social

networking site that is particularly popular in Europe. XING was

renamed from openBC/Open Business Club in November 2006.

YouTube (www.youtube.com)—The world’s most popular video-

sharing site.

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4

Want even more options? Niche social networking is a hot trend, with

microsites sprouting up for almost every conceivable niche audience.

Some examples include

aSmallWorld (www.asmallworld.net)—By invitation only, for

celebrities and the business elite

BlackPlanet.com (www.blackplanet.com)—Emphasizing

connections between African Americans

85 Broads (https://secure.85broads.com)—For career women

who attended a select list of leading universities

CafeMom (www.cafemom.com)—A networking site for mothers

Dogster (www.dogster.com)—For dog lovers everywhere

Gaia (www.gaia.com/community)—For the socially conscious

crowd

GLEE.com (www.glee.com)—For the gay and lesbian community

MilitaryPlanet (www.militaryplanet.com)—For members of the

military

New England Venture Network (www.venturenetwork.vc)—

Social networking for venture capitalists

Ning (www.ning.com)—For do-it-yourselfers who want to create

their own social network

Shelfari (www.shelfari.com)—A site for book lovers and authors

ShoutLife (www.shoutlife.com)—A Christian social network

Ultrafan (www.ultrafan.com)—For sports fans

Although these “person-to-person” sites represent the most common

type of social networking, other sites also fall under the realm of the

somewhat fuzzy defi nition of social networking.

5

TRUTH

1These include

Photo-sharing sites—Flickr (www.fl ickr.com), Zooomr (www.

zooomr.com), and Photobucket (www.photobucket.com).

Social bookmarking sites— Digg (www.digg.com), del.icio.us

(http://del.icio.us), and StumbleUpon (www.stumbleupon.com),

which enable you to share your favorite sites and news stories

with other users.

Micro-blogging sites—Twitter (www.twitter.com), Pownce (www.

pownce.com), and Jaiku (www.jaiku.com), which merge brief

blog-like text updates with social networking functionality.

Video-sharing sites—Revver (www.revver.com), Veoh (www.

veoh.com), and Google Video (video.google.com), as well as the

frontrunner YouTube.

Savvy social networkers have found ways to promote

their businesses, products, and causes—and even

themselves—on the variety of social networking sites

available on the web.

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TRUTH

20 The right kind of

“socializing” can lead to big profi ts

80

The huge traffi c that social networking sites generate makes many marketers see equally huge dollar signs. To be sure, any site that draws in hundreds of millions

of visitors on a regular basis has the potential to bring big profi ts to savvy marketers. The key is understanding the right way—and the wrong way—to make “socializing for profi t” a viable business model.

There are two main ways to use social networking as a business

development tool. First is the advertising and sponsorship model. For

certain businesses, this can be a good way to generate awareness

and drive traffi c to their site.

Advertising on the major sites can

work well if the goal is to attract

a large, general audience. If the

target is a niche audience, such as

dog owners or moms, advertising

on relevant niche sites can be

even more lucrative. There are

some downsides to this approach,

including competition, expense,

and the inundation of this type of

advertising that has resulted in visitors conditioning themselves to

ignore website ads. The campaign must be compelling enough to

stand out from the rest.

The other way to use social networking as a business development

tool is the active participation model. In this model, investment is

in time rather than money. By creating a solid presence on a social

networking site, you can engage with potential customers and

develop brand loyalty. The main downside to this approach is that

it takes time to develop the kind of presence that creates a true

relationship with your customers. It’s an ongoing effort as well, not

something that you can do once and then ignore.

When talking about a social networking marketing campaign,

the second approach is what most people have in mind. Using a

comparison to the traditional business world, social networking is

more like public relations than direct sales. It’s what creates the buzz

that makes people aware of your products and want to buy them.

Any site that draws in hundreds of millions of visitors on a regular basis has the potential to bring big profi ts to savvy marketers.

81

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FITSTRUTH

20If your goal is to make a lot of money through direct sales on social

networking sites, think again. A presence on a social networking

site that comes across as a hard sell puts you at risk of alienating

your audience and driving them away. On some sites, you may even

violate their terms and agreements.

Emphasize a low-key, relationship-building approach when using

social networking for business purposes. That doesn’t mean that you

can’t be strategic and focus on increased sales as one of your primary

goals for participation. In fact, if

you don’t have a solid plan, you’re

unlikely to succeed. It just means

that you need to understand the

unwritten rules of social networking

and play by them to develop that

special connection with your

audience that makes them buy.

For an example of what works and

what doesn’t, let’s look at one social

networker’s experience in carrying out a social networking marketing

campaign to increase the sale of his products.

Andy is a fi tness trainer who creates his own line of fi tness DVDs.

To compete with DVDs produced by larger companies with bigger

budgets and better distribution, Andy decides to generate some

good buzz and word-of-mouth marketing through social networking

sites. To start, he creates a presence on MySpace. He uploads sample

clips of his DVDs, highlights his qualifi cations as a fi tness trainer,

and reposts the heavily sales-oriented, call-to-action web copy that’s

focused on driving sales on his own website. He also tries to befriend

as many people as possible who share his interest in fi tness.

Unfortunately, he sees little impact on overall sales. He even

receives a few messages from people who tell him to stop trying to

sell them things. It’s time for a new approach. With a revised strategy

in place that emphasizes building awareness and generating buzz,

Andy reworks his MySpace presence. The new page offers a custom

design geared to fi tness enthusiasts as well as blog posts and other

useful content of real interest to his target audience. With Andy’s

new commitment to posting content on a more frequent basis and

Emphasize a low-key, relationship-building approach when using social networking for business purposes.

82

becoming a truly active participant, his audience begins to grow.

Andy also develops an innovative contest with valuable prizes that

encourages viral, word-of-mouth marketing and additional publicity.

Within weeks of launching the revised site, sales are picking up.

Andy then decides to create a similar campaign on a social

networking site dedicated to fi tness buffs. He also posts a number

of video clips on YouTube. These videos include clips from his DVDs

and a series of quick video fi tness tips that become popular with

the YouTube community. Andy soon becomes known as “the fi tness

guy” on YouTube. With his combined campaign on three targeted

social networking sites, Andy’s sales—and his reputation as a fi tness

expert—continue to grow.

By focusing on the right way to use social networking, you can

defi nitely generate a profi t. But you need to clearly understand

the kind of “socializing” that really works with this medium. Social

networking is about relationship building. It’s an online opportunity

to develop a connection with your target audience, to generate the

kind of buzz that makes people think of you fi rst when they

need a product like yours, and to convert casual visitors

into loyal customers.

207

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Acknowledgments

Special thanks to Michelle Newcomb, Laura Norman, Karen Gill, and

Lori Lyons for their feedback, suggestions, and attention to detail, all

of which made this an even better book.

About the Author

Patrice-Anne Rutledge is a social media consultant, bestselling

author, and Certifi ed eMarketer (CeM). She specializes in teaching

others to maximize the power of new technologies, such as social

networking, blogging, podcasting, and social media, to promote their

business, career, or social cause.

Patrice is the author of 25 books on technology, business, and

communications for leading publishers including Pearson, Macmillan,

Prentice Hall, Random House, and Ziff-Davis Press. Her most recent

books include Special Edition Using Microsoft Offi ce PowerPoint

2007 and The Web-Savvy Writer: Book Promotion with a High-Tech

Twist. Her books have received strong reviews and endorsements,

several awards, and have been translated into 11 languages.

Patrice has also contributed hundreds of articles to magazines,

newspapers, and websites around the world including Interactive,

Business Strategies, Microsoft Offi ce Solutions, Dot-Com Builder,

Small Business, Career Woman, InformIT, and ZDNet. In the corporate

world, she has held senior communications management positions at

leading technology fi rms including Oracle and PeopleSoft, where she

led a team of 60 professional communicators around the world.

Patrice is a member of the eMarketing Association and Public

Relations Society of America (PRSA). She is active on several social

networks—including LinkedIn, Facebook, XING, and Ning—which she

credits with further developing her own career as well as increasing

sales for her many books. She can be reached through her website at

www.patricerutledge.com.