Christopher Hatch

These are probably the big 3 so called “social” networking sites (I’m not sure what the point of the word social is, what’s the other choice? Anti-Social networking where people go to discuss their ASBOs?)

I’m interested in discovering how people are using these, and more importantly – are they using them differently.

For a while I linked up Twitter and Facebook – this annoyed Facebook users who didn’t want their stream littered with all the Tweets. (They are presumably happy with latest quiz results and finding out “What type of fruit you are?”)

Step 2 was to use selective twitter and use the #fb hash-tag to update Facebook if I thought it was interesting enough. In fairness nothing is that interesting but less stops FB being swamped.

Then we come to Ping.fm – used by the great and the good to update millions of networks at once. Brightkite, Jaiku, YouAre, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn all updated with one swift click.

This has always struck me as an impersonal way of updating a status – mainly because of this nagging belief I have that different audiences really don’t want the same message.

Twitter anything goes – in the main it’s just noise. Apparently you can lose followers by mentioning Britain’s Got Talent too much (it was more than @4NBrentCross could take) but the mix of business, pleasure, commentary, links, reviews and randomness seems to work.

Facebook – I’m not too sure what the point of Facebook is. I think I am concluding that it serves little point from a business point of view. From a keeping in touch aspect it might serve some point, however I’m fairly sure I don’t really have 300 ‘friends’ and I expect a fair number of them couldn’t care less what I’m doing anyway.

LinkedIn is the mystery one – does anyone ever read status updates on it? If so why? What are they looking to get from it. It’s business orientated so linking Twitter to it is pointless for most Tweets, the groups – well the ones I read are so slow moving as to be almost moribund.

As an aside Brightkite - might be worth a look – especially if you want to “target” people near you. Also Mobypicture is useful if you want to share images and video around the web.

All in all I’m not sure what this post is about now but perhaps it is saying treat individual “networks” as just that – individual, try to target the people you are communicating with information that is relevant to them and where they are reading it.

I had a Twitter epiphany the other day. I unfollowed loads of people because I never read a word they wrote, nor did I care.  I’m not saying they were boring, just with so many people Tweeting the noise became too much.

Some may have in turn unfollowed me.  However I really couldn’t care if they did.

Why? Good question. Let me answer. I decided to take the age old advice, control those things you can and ignore those you can’t.

I can’t directly affect how many people, and who, is following me. I can hope that my 140 character insights into events, my life and quick quips are entertaining enough for people to wait for the next one with abated breath, but if they are not I’m not going to loose any sleep over it.

What I can control is who pumps their thoughts into my computer. So I decided to focus instead on people that fall primarily into three different camps:

1. People in 4Networking.  From a business and social perspective it makes sense to follow and interact with these people.  Some I consider my friends and all I consider potential suppliers / clients.
2. Celebrities – well why not. Perhaps I am helping to massage their egos but they add a little spice.
3. Local people – this was my main directional change, yes the Internet is world wide but that doesn’t mean I should follow people in Texas just because I can. Again, from a business point of view my aim is to have my company known locally.  By interacting with local people that meets that aim quicker than interacting with an American.

This rather useful website was one that helped me find some local people, then by following their followers, well you know how it works.

Will this strategy prove useful in the long run – who knows. Certainly it has had the benefit that Twitter is no longer just noise, but posts that might be useful.  And I am in no way suggesting that every local person is interesting enough to follow (and those that do not grab will be dumped!) but focusing what I’m looking for can only help improve the whole Twitter experience.

Perhaps the summary of this is too many people seem obsessed with the number of followers (@desperate Please RT, only 4 more to get to 1000 followers, help me get there), but it is not the number that matters.

It’s the value of them. I now value the people I follow. Do you?

Next week has a number of great networking events.  Tuesday sees the launch of the Portsmouth group and Wednesday see the ever popular Bournemouth group continue to go from strength to strength.

Thursday however sees the 4Networking event of the week with the third birthday celebrations in Bridgewater before wrapping the week up with the spectacular Fareham breakfast.

If you’re in business and you want more business check out http://www.4networking.biz/welcome

A brief mention at this early stage of the blog about 4Networking.

4N is a business breakfast group, and one in which I play an active part as an area leader.  It really is a different way of doing business and this week I have manged to meet like minded business people in as diverse places as Marlborough, Bournemouth, Winchester and tomorrow Fareham.

If you would like more business, more contacts and more ‘fun’ in the mornings give me a shout and I’ll let you know more about 4N.