Social Networking: Not just for college students

Social networking sites like MySpace and FaceBook are not just for college students. While this link 
highlights how to use the sites for marketing a business, there are some great tips here for marketing and branding yourself.

Does it work? Heck yes. Check out the Wall Street Journal article, “Moguls of New Media,” profiling many of the sites’ stars and their results. For example, according to the article “Christine Dolce, whose MySpace page boasts nearly one million friends — making her arguably one of the most connected people on the Internet. A 24-year-old cosmetologist who until a few months ago worked at a makeup counter in a mall, she now has a manager and a start-up jeans company and has won promotional deals for two mainstream consumer brands.” She also snags $5,000 per personal appearance. Another site profiled, YouTube.com, helped some musicians gain a fan base. Flickr.com helped one photographer land a gig with Toyota.

The samples demonstrated in the Wall Street Journal article are pretty amazing. A lot went into the online identity and presentation of these self-made ”stars.” They created brands for themselves and gained a fan base.

These are tips you can use to increase your professional brand identity online. Maybe the next job offer we’ll hear about is yours!

Posted by Wendy Terwelp