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Gevril and Haurex Italia dinner during Baselworld in March 2011 with Larry Brauner standing in the background.
Baselworld 2012 is right around the corner!
Jul
12
Social and Business Networking Evolving
Filed Under Networking and Marketing Strategy, Offline Online Integration, Social Media and Social Networking Sites
Business social networking flourished in ancient times. Anything you might have called technology had to have been very primitive. The now quaint Rolodex wasn’t invented until 1956.With the invention of personal computers in the seventies, people began storing contact information electronically using increasingly sophisticated software programs, such as Act!
Online Networking Emerges
Online social and business networking as we know it emerged in March 2003 when Friendster went live. I became a member of Ryze, my first business networking site, in November of that year. At age 51, I had become an early adopter of online social and business networking.
During the past seven years, countless social and business networking sites have appeared. In November ‘07, I started Online Social Networking in order to blog about effective use of these networking sites, which had already become part of the newer larger social media space.
Social and business networking sites are here to stay. The largest of the networking sites, Facebook, already boasts about half a billion users.
Social and Business Networking Changing
Although all savvy online networkers strive to take their online relationships offline, off- and online networking integration has recently become a major phenomenon with location- based social media, such as Foursquare, and offline networking sites, such as Meetup, gaining every day in popularity.I predict that mobile technology and mixed off- and online networking will dominate the social space for years to come and enrich it in exciting ways.
I’m creating my own niche at the intersection of off- and online business networking, and I hope to be able to tell you about it soon.
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Tags: Business Networking, business networking sites, mobile technology, online social networking, Ryze, social networking, social networking sites
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Larry,
Reading your blog is like reading Shakespeare. You know it’s brilliant, but it sometimes takes me 2 or 3 three readings to understand and appreciate what you are saying.
I think what you’re talking about is the convergence of online and offline business networking. Is that the main point you’re making? That business people who are already online will seek to deepen their connection to their network by following up with their virtual contacts offline.
And those who have shunned online contact in the past will understand they can expand their influence by going online to interact with current connections and make new ones?
Out out damn… sorry Jack, I was losing myself there.
You are right, I am talking about the convergence of offline and online business networking.
I’m also suggesting that advances mobile technology will enable radically new forms of social media.
Larry, I’ve noticed you are not the only site that mentions Foursquare. How does that platform fit in compared to Facebook and LinkedIn, and how do you reckon the three platforms will co-exist down the digital road apiece? (Always enjoy reading your blogs!)
Dave, Foursquare is a mobile phone application that lets users check in at their location and post a short message. Its main business use is in hyperlocal marketing. There are nearly countless social platforms out there, including social and business networking sites. All is in a state of flux, and nobody can accurately predict how one will relate to the other in the future.
It is the convergence of online and offline social media that makes the social media world a great place to play
Location based social media is going to impact businesses in a strong way, I think. In speaking with clients - this new way of being social brings a new understanding and acceptance of social media.
With online and offline networking becoming more important sites Raw Business are becoming more important.
They bring together the opportunities of social media like Facebook and Twitter mainly aimed at social networking, with a little B2C marketing involved. Sites like this put B2B networking on the map.