Using social media to get ahead

The big buzz word in business today is Social Media. Advertisers are scrambling to get onto facebook, twitter, linkedin, and many others to convince you to spend money. Luckily for us it can actually be a useful tool to help us reach our goals once we get past the ads!

Examples of how it helps us:

• Finding a job: LinkedIn is the big one here but not the only. Simply contacting friends and acquaintances via any social outlet can help you locate opportunities. Many jobs are gotten through friends and colleagues.
  
• Staying in Touch: I have friends all over the world and the USA. Facebook and the like make it easy to communicate, share pictures, etc. Staying in touch with the ones we care about is important and these sites certainly do just that.
• Discounts: This is the one upside to the advertisements. A lot of places offer coupons and discounts through these sites and can be taken advantage of. I have gotten free coffee, free hot sauce, half of dinner, and many others. Take advantage!
• Events: A lot of the sites today allow you to organize events, parties, and get-togethers via the sites. It makes it easy to track who can and cannot come and send out free invites. Saves time, money, and effort.
• Networking: This is great for everyone! As mentioned before you can land jobs through the sites but also great for finding side work, more contracts for your small business, and finding more customers.
• Finding old friends: A lot of people have reconnected after years of no or lost contact. Facebook has been particularly successful in this area.
  

Social Media sites do have their uses. They are a lot of fun to spend time on playing games and the like but also have a tangible use in real life. Be sure to use these sites to your advantage!