Utilising Online Social Networking Site



Utilising Online Social Networking Site

Introduction

With the advent of Web 2.0, business world experiences a drastic change in the way they do business. World Wide Web has supplemented the means for globalization. Today, people have developed virtual communities which connect them to people living across the borders. The second generation of World Wide Web has enabled users experiencing great level of engagement & interaction. Earlier, those static pages did not serve the purpose of engaging people. Recent web technologies allow users' interaction that facilitates global reach to ideas, knowledge, education, and other opportunities. The biggest boon of Web 2.0 is the social networking platforms. These networking platforms have introduced the concept of virtual communities, attracting a large population of internet users.

Social networking platforms like Twitter, face book, My Space, and LinkedIn serve as means of communication. While face book is a private social site, LinkedIn serves the purpose of connecting professional communities around the globe (Breithbart, 2008). This paper discusses the facilities offered by LinkedIn to business professionals. It is essential to analyse the benefits of connecting with professional communities in terms of business opportunities & professional development. Further, there are many tools that help business professionals in shaping their strategies. The write up explores the business perspective of using LinkedIn.

Discussion

LinkedIn has emerged as a social networking platform, which is specially designed for business community. The site allows professional individuals to register themselves. These professionals can establish connections with online communities of their choice. For instance, a Telecom professional can join networks of Telecom available on LinkedIn. A member developed his profile that lists down his educational background and related expertise. A member can search through different networks and join them.

LinkedIn offers basic & premium memberships. Individuals of basic membership are allowed to develop connection with people they know. For instance, one can connect to someone he has worked with or completed education with. Premium memberships allow individuals to enjoy greater access compared to basic membership (Buttow & Taylor, 2008). Large enterprises maintain their premium membership to access large connection on the LinkedIn database. The professional community was founded by Hoffman, who worked as Head of business & corporate development at a company. The online site accommodates 40 million members from over 200 countries. Around 30% of subscribers are associated with recruitment services. That is the main reason why LinkedIn is seen as an online ...