In order to effectively use your social network to your advantage, it’s important to be able to communicate within your network without adding additional work to your already busy day. Luckily, the social network has provided us with plenty of free tools to do this. Here’s what I use:
Free Email
Most people have figured out that there is no reason to pay for personal email service. In fact, many small business owners are finding that there’s no reason to pay for business email either. Free email services across the internet have become reliable solutions for many of us, and there’s no generational gap to be found. You don’t need very much experience to set up your own free email account. Additionally, services have emerged that allow us to share files, calendars and chat in real time. Google’s Gmail is a great example. It comes complete with document storage, integrated calendar, instant messaging and Google’s account recognition capability which allows you to link your Picasa Web Album, YouTube account and Google Analytics (along with a few others) with a single username and password. (easy)
Mozilla Thunderbird
Part of the Mozilla Foundation’s open source movement, Thunderbird is a full featured email client, complete with RSS feed reader. Thunderbird is capable of using both IMAP and POP protocols, meaning you can use it for multiple email accounts and multiple protocols. (for the non-geeks, that means you can set it up to automatically retrieve your Yahoo mail, Hotmail, Gmail AND your corporate SMTP email.) Additionally, Thunderbird’s new mail notifications are a conveneint feature. Thunderbird’s feed reader is easy to configure and allows you to stay up with any RSS feed that you wish. (Conveneint, since nearly every web service provides a news feed.)
TweetDeck & Seesmic Desktop
Twitter and Facebook have quicly been realized as a legitimate business tools. So, how do you keep up with your network without leaving your web browser up all day? There are two options (… well maybe three); TweetDeck and Seesmic Desktop. These two downloads do basically the same thing, allowing you to post messages to your Twitter & Facebook accounts from a single interface. Both TweetDeck and Seesmic Desktop run on Adobe’s AIR (Adobe Integrated Runtime) which makes updating a breeze. For me, TweetDeck is the better of the two programs, but please, don’t take my word for it. Both are offered as free downloads. So, install both, play around and uninstall the one you don’t like.
Picasa 3
For those that enjoy taking pictures, Google’s Picasa Web Albums is a good tool for the trade. While Picasa Web Albums will allow you to upload photos via a web browser (no software necessary), Picasa 3 is a download that allows you to do the same and more. Picasa 3 allows you to sort, tag, geo tag (via Google Earth), email and blog your pics. All in one interface. The email feature gives you the option of launching your default email program or sending photos with your Gmail account. The geo tag feature allows you to tag photos on Google Eearth. You can also post photos to your blogger blog with a single click. The movie maker feature allows you to craete slide shows, complete with background music, and when you’re finished, you can publish to YouTube with a single click. Another useful tool from the Google team.
Skype
Voice Over IP (VOIP) is one of the greatest descendants of the high speed internet connection. Now we can transfer data faster than ever, including video and voice. In fact, many phone services are offering VOIP as a low cost alternative to home phone (long distance) service. (the only draw back being loss of service during power outages … but we all have cell phones, don’t we??) However, if you have a PC, there’s a tool that utilizes VOIP for free. Skype, available as a free download, allows users to contact other Skype user absolutely free, and land lines for a nominal fee. Add Skype’s video chat capability, and you’ve got a business class communication tool. To set this up, you’ll need a built in mic (standard with most laptops), or a plug-n-play mic (usually comes in the box with desktop PC’s). Skypes camera recognition means that any $30 camera (the cheapest I’ve found) will do the trick. No set up, just plug it all in and Skype does the rest.
Facebook App for Blackberry
What can I say, I love my Blackberry. There’s virtually no limit to what you can accomplish with this slick mobile device. Add to the list; “Keep up with social network”. For those who’ve sync’d their email to their Blackberry, you can now do the same with Facebook. The app takes almost no time to install. However, don’t be fooled … the Facebook app for Blackberry doesn’t give you all the features of facebook. In fact, there are some important features that are missing, but there are enough features to make it worth the free download. With this app, you can post photos from your phone to your wall, write on your friends’ walls, answer friend requests and post updates to your own status. It’s a great tool for keeping up, and it helps give you something to do while you’re waiting for your next appointment. It’s a pretty cool app.
Get a blog … it’s free.
It has become clear that there’s a difference between the company website and the boss’s blog. The company tries to keep to the middle of the road, publish often, but stay conservative. The boss’s blog on the other hand can share some opinions, make assertions and most importantly, disagree with the opinions of competitors, the media and co-workers (respectfully). But the real advantage of the boss’s blog is the ability to stay in touch with reality. Yes, blogs can get you in trouble, but face it, so can talking out loud in public. But don’t go out and blog at random, make a plan. You don’t want your posts to damage your credibility. “Street-cred” is important. If your audience thinks you’re always trying to sell, sell, sell … well, they’re only going to read your posts when they want to buy, buy, buy. Make your posts informative. Sure, slip in some marketing, but be tactful and stop short of the “power close”. Remeber, a good blog should be a useful resource where people can get real useful information.
To effectively network, you don’t have to add hours to your day, you only have to add tools to your kit.
