Last week I took a page from the Verizon tv promos. I picked my own network. My Facebook page went from 99 to 68 (now 72, I think). Now 99 may not have been much from the jump, as I see many folks that I am connected with have over 200. However, the question in my mind is, "Are they all networking?" If they are not, that is a total waste. My Twitter page and Myspace page are next on the list. I have already left many Nings.
Anyway, my network is a collective group of professional individuals who offer services to help Indies, and professional Indies. My network is built on two aspects:
1) Those who I support by showing patronage to their business, through encouraging words, and/or helping them make business connections.
2) Those who support my business by showing patronage, uplift me through encouraging words, and/or help me make business connections.
So, I am not looking for 200 plus people who just sit there and read my posts (or not).
Ning is another social media. I truly like the concept of Ning, I believe it is more laid out for business networking. However, some of the Nings that I have been a member of, have been somewhat disappointing. The first Ning that I joined was in the 100's when I became a member. So you can imagine the positive networking that took place. This Ning is for woman, and we truly supported each other. As a matter of fact, my network still consist of some of those wonderful women. However, the Ning started to grow and today it is well over 5000 members. Did I mention this was in a years time? Yes! So now members are getting lost in the "sea", some original members are not as active or have left completely.
About six months ago, I became a member of another Ning for women. This Ning is not as massive as the other, the creator is looking for quality not quantity. What I enjoy most about this network, is that the creator promotes your business as much as she can. She also introduces members to each other, that she feel can benefit from each other. This Ning could be better, if the members interacted more.
Building a network? Put forth genuine effort.
