First, I attended a webinar hosted by hubspot.com recently on social networking. They claim over 250,000 users/day have become members of a social media link since 1/07. 1/2 of these are post-college or >25…sound like a good demographic?

My take on social networking is that it is something that every retailer needs to adopt. It takes a carefully thought-out plan and discipline in execution. Seek out free seminars in your locale by joining linked in, for example, and then joining sub-groups in your city…and ask the members about social networking seminars. You may be surprised at how effective this viral networking works.

My explanation of social networking is that it’s like a new age business cocktail party. When you attend a networking gig at a local bar for some group to which you belong, you are probably pretty happy if you make 3-4 quality contacts.

How do you go about making these contacts? Well…whatever your personal secret is, apply the same principles to social networking. Most successful social networking pros will respond that they converse with new people, exchange contact information, share a little about each other’s background, and then look for the right opportunity to re-connect. Social networking is the same thing…just a newer version…that’s my KISS explanation.