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The proliferation of social media sites around the Internet can be little short of mind-numbing from an online business perspective. As hard working entrepreneurs, we’re led to believe that we should be deeply involved in these websites, and that to disregard their importance could have significant ramifications for our businesses down the line. The crux of the matter is that we barely have enough time to designate to our other obligations as it is, let alone the incredible volume of time which would be required to become active members in these social media networks.

For entrepreneurs who are on-the-fly and constantly on the go, we can recommend five “must join” social media sites for you to consider:

1. LinkedIn.

This is one of the most useful professional networking sites out there. Their slogan is “relationship matters” and this site certainly has longevity, being one of the original social media outlets. Whether you’re looking for a job, trying to link up with peers or building your company, there are a host of resources available. It is best to be interactive on a regular basis and get involved with the group feature of LinkedIn. You must list your keywords accurately and clearly establish your brand so that you’re exposed to - and aware of, the best match of potential partners, business opportunities and service providers.

If you are able to interact you will get more out of your membership and establish yourself as an expert, for example by answering questions in LinkedIn Answers. The more you interact, the more your marketing message may be seen as appropriate, in measured terms.

2. Entrepreneur Connect.

Most people will be at least somewhat familiar with the widely renowned magazine Entrepreneur. This site is an extension of their talents, and it’s also a reasonably new social media network created specifically for entrepreneurs. The idea here is simply to share ideas. The magazine’s format celebrates interaction and percolation, and the network itself follows suit.

Once you’ve created your profile and engaged with the community, you can interact with professional groups according to your niche, or even create one if need be. Work toward establishing yourself as an expert and a provider of top notch content, rather than the usual self-promoting spammer. The scope of the benefits you’ll derive will come from the degree of your attentive participation.

3. Biznik.

Some entrepreneurs believe that a network that charges for membership will usually be made up of individuals who are quite a bit more serious, and much more likely to be active members too. Biznik is quite serious about its position and brands itself as the network that “actually cares about the entrepreneur.”

Three levels of membership are available; including two paid ones, up to $24 a month for the “pro” level. Their approach – go it alone, together, and it requires you to use real data in a system which utilises a human review procedure to ensure that everyone is keeping it real. This site can be a shoulder to cry on, or a source of inspiration, but once again its benefits will come from an active involvement on your part.

4. StartupNation.

This option is rather different. It is a site created by entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs, but it is chock full of content and advice. You’ll find innumerable articles on almost every business idea that you could envisage as well as active forums. In some respects it is also like a giant “super blog” where you can pick up so much information in one place without the feeling that you are being drawn to so many different sites during your research.

The instigators of the site, Rich and Jeff Sloan, are nationally acclaimed entrepreneurs, publishers, celebrities and award winners, and the composition of this site reflects this in its details.

5. Ecademy.

Ecademy is one of the leading social networking sites in the UK. You can create your own profile and have a certain degree of flexibility in design. This allows some individuality, the lack of which is a criticism often leveled at other networking sites. A variety of membership levels are available - up to $100 a month, although certain elements of the site are available free.

Ecademy has a more open environment than structured sites such as LinkedIn, and you will need to be proactively involved in the search for potential partners, connections or other associations. As such, the site has an active classified section and good forum potential. It seems that Ecademy is becoming more involved with Business Networking International, which could further extend the reach of the website development and the networking potential for the ongoing members.

Michelle Dale is The Managing Director of Virtual Miss Friday, a state-of-the-art Executive Virtual Assistant Service which assists businesses and individuals with every aspect of their enterprising requirements. Do you want to explore these inspiring online business building success strategies? Contact VMF Now!