Effective immediately, Last time we discussed the business building benefits of using social media. However, in order to make the most of this valuable tool, you have to choose the right sites and as you may have learned, there are many more to choose from than one would initially imagine. It all depends on the primary focus of your site, and how many categories you wish to use.

To assist you in choosing the appropriate social media site for your needs, let’s explore some of the more frequently used sites, giving you a brief description of their primary focus.

* Twitter.com is a free micro-blogging and social networking service, which you can download free from the internet. By using Tweets people can send and read each other’s current updates. The maximum number of characters per tweet or post is 140, and is displayed on each person’s profile page. Tweets are then delivered to a person’s circle of ‘followers’, which can be close friends, family or business contacts.

* Squidoo.com is a free-access system of interactive pages, or lenses pertaining to different topics of interest. These user-generated web pages can be based on each person’s passion for any one subject. Learning code is not necessary for using Squidoo, and pages can help to achieve a type of popularity not commonly seen with other interfaces. This is primarily due to the association made with other pages, which often range in the thousands.

* Facebook.com is also free for download from the internet. Used as a social networking website, any user can join multiple networks and even create their own fan page to draw an audience of prospects. Adding friends and sending messages is also possible. Profiles can be added for the use of friends, colleagues, and prospects in order to keep in touch and up to date with one another.

* HubPages.com is designed primarily around advertisement sharing revenue for high quality content. It allows members to create individual pages on specific topics of interest. However, HubPages differs from other networking in one unique way. It uses Google Adsense API to manage any revenue sharing amongst writers. Users submit articles in a magazine format, which when posted can generate income for the writer or Hubber if they have their own personal Adsense account. All material posted, otherwise known as Hubs, remain the intellectual property of the Hubber at all times.

* Google sites are a relatively new part of Google Apps for organizations and companies. It has made it simple for anyone to click a button or two in order to create a website, sharing all types of information. From company team projects to family updates, you’re able to keep everything in one place for easy access. With the ability to embed different features such as documents, videos and photos, it’s easy for anyone with access to your page to add or edit anything as needed.

* MySpace.com is another social networking website using an interactive, user-friendly network of friends, profiles, blogs and more for people worldwide. A free interface for users, MySpace depends on revenues generated by advertisements. Some various tools available within a MySpace account are blurbs, blogs, multimedia, comments and profile customization. Then there are the numerous features available, such as groups, bulletins, news and polls. MySpace was even employed by candidates in the 2008 presidential election in the United States, in an effort to reach the younger voting crowd.

These and many more social media platforms can make communications with your employees, family and friends, and your target audience not only more accessible, but also faster and easier than any other method before.

The way people are using the World Wide Web changes on a daily basis. For those who aren’t up to speed with the latest workings and advantages of the internet, they may feel at a loss. They may not have discovered the workings of social media. Ultimately, they may not realize the importance of using these new methods for running an online business.

Social media is, in the most basic sense of things, a shift in the way people share and discover news or informational content. It makes it easy for people to interact with the information they are receiving, instead of simply reading it in a newspaper or magazine. Social media allows people to instantly connect and interact with people all around the world.

Social media enables you to:

* Gain a presence online
* Improve your website traffic
* Establish credibility for you and your business
* Connect personally with your audience
* Glean valuable information to help you grow your business
* Enhance your likability, an important buying trigger

Whether your online business is just starting out, or is a large corporation, the addition of social networking can be an imperative step to your marketing strategy.

Examples of such social media platforms are social networks like Twitter and Facebook, blogs, podcasts, wikis, content communities as well as micro-blogging. They share many, if not all of the following attributes:

* Participation – encouraging others to comment or contribute to any given conversation or topic
* Conversation – social media is seen as an open conversation instead of a broadcast you would receive from a news broadcast. Newspapers, magazines etc…
* Connectedness – using links to other people, sites and resources
* Community – sharing common interests such as business ventures, politics, pastimes etc…
* Openness – open to feedback and participation, encouragement of comments, and sharing of information

We are all human with a need to build business contacts, share ideas, and create friends and inspiration. Having communities at our fingertips with the support we need, or colleagues available instantly to hear a new campaign strategy makes today’s business and personal lifestyle easier in a sense. Time zone issues can be eliminated, postal times no longer worrisome and long distance bills potentially a thing of the past in most cases, whether for business or personal reasons.

This simple addition to the way your business is currently functioning can bring you clients from areas you never would have thought to look, and all with the ease of what social media has to offer you.