Social Networking with sites like MySpace, Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter can be a dramatic tool for your SoyLuscious® soy candle business. But there are a few important things you should know before you start setting up your social network (or, if you already have, here are a few things that can help you start getting better results.

What Social Networking Isn’t
First, let’s talk a moment about what Social Networking is not. It is not simply another channel for selling your wares. The quickest way to kill your social networking is to turn your SN sites into another version of your e-commerce site.

Why? Well, as social networking implies by its very name, it’s function is SOCIAL, not commercial. It is  a venue of communication. Of connecting with POTENTIAL markets and establishing a relationship. A relationship that ,we hope, will result in ongoing sales down the line, but the foundation of the relationship is not built on a sale.

What it IS
If you’re stuck in commercial mode, it might help to look at Social Networking as a continual effort to establish, build and maintain your list. A way of grabbing, growing and holding onto your market. And as almost everyone in business ought to know by now, a repeat customer is much cheaper to serve than capturing a brand new customer.

The easiest way to get repeat business is to establish a relationship. And all relationships live and die on communication. Use your social network to communicate with your market by offering regular, useful information AND by listening to their comments, concerns and suggestions. And responding to them

To really get the most out of your “network community,” do little things to make them feel special. Early access to new products. Special deals for those “in the know.” “Member’s Only” products tailored to your die hard fans. That sort of thing.

MySpace, Facebook, Linked In, Twitter
Each of the major social networking sites offer their own advantages and challenges. MySpace is typically younger and more informal. Facebook is typically college and young professionals. LinkedIn is more corporate and entrepreneurial. And Twitter is a way of feeding your hardcore fans a steady diet of the minutia of your SoyLuscious® soy candle business. Which is better? I’d say none. Use them all. Each offers fairly direct access to quite specific market segments.

In coming installments, I’ll cover each of these more in-depth. But for now, remember, each of these is a way to build a targeted community around your soy candle business. Nurture that community and your business will grow.