Social networking sites offer people online a gathering spot to casually share their opinions and interests with other like-minded participants. Recent events however have indicated how effective these online communities are for breaking news on a national and international level.

Although interest or opinions may vary from group to group there still remains a common interest in national or world news. Considering these social platforms connect people from all over the world on a 24/7 basis you're looking at their considerable potential as information sources.

What we're focusing on here is the ability of these social sites to gather and circulate late breaking news. Compared with the more traditional syndicated news networks it can be argued that social network sites are in fact more efficient and expedient in delivering news to the public. Take that CNN! By passing information along through word of mouth using the speed of the internet news that travels this fast is hard to beat.

Let's examine 5 reasons why a social network online can outperform the more traditional news broadcasting networks.

News Collected as it Occurs

Social platforms do not 'assign' people to gather news or information but instead are merely designed to share information or interests. Site members do however possess an insatiable and natural curiosity. Just through sheer numbers members combine to create a catch basin of global proportions. As a result they are capable of collecting information of little or great consequence anywhere in the world on a 24/7 basis.

Information Transmitted Fast

Any information picked up either through heresy or observation is usually immediately 'released' on the internet. To date there is no more efficient means with which to dispense information to the general public quicker than the net.

As is often said in basketball, 'Nothing but Net!'

Syndicated networks for the most part still have certain 'hoops' through which they must 'jump' before releasing information. This may tend to slow their process.

No 'Red Tape' or Protocol

Without the traditional 'red tape' or protocol that syndicated news networks contend with online communities hold an unfair advantage. The legalese involving fair play, accuracy, and ethics do encumber syndicated networks. The lack of such restraints however concerning online communities does 'allow' for information to be dispensed much faster to the general public.

Word Gets Out Quicker

News tends to flow from person to person and often time is simply broadcast to the masses. The net result is that information spreads virally and this word of mouth effect should not be overlook for its efficiency and speed. There is no 'formal' channel through which information is directed which means word is spread continuously, not at scheduled intervals. This process 'increases' both speed and just as importantly exposure.

No Regulated Responsibilities

Within any social network community there is no delegation of duties, responsibilities or authority. You are looking at a world-wide community with the capability of filling any role that may seem appropriate at any given time. From observing an event or translating its meaning to distributing the information this flexibility and spontaneity enables news to be collected and spread like a wild fire.

This lack of structure is built for speed but on the other hand can lead to occasional inaccuracies in reporting facts.

Social networking sites have both the channels and the manpower to deliver late breaking news at lightning speed. Using word of mouth to spread information social sites possess the ability to transmit news unencumbered by any red tape further accelerating the transfer of this information. It is not suggested that online communities replace syndicated news networks as news source but merely that they can compliment them if needed. Social network sites based upon their prominence on the internet possess the potential to be much more than they were designed for and this should not be ignored.

TJ Philpott is an author and Internet entrepreneur based out of North Carolina. For additional Money Making Tips and a free guide that demonstrates how to find both profitable markets and products visit: http://blogbrawn.com/

The Importance Of Social-Network Sites

Did you know that about 98% of the U.S. people use social networking websites?

The people, including me who use these websites use them for a large number of reasons. These websites are no longer used only for connecting with friends and family but they can also be used as a way of doing business.

When using these sites for business, the results for increase in business are high. The more people you get to follow and connect with you, the more people there are to share and talk about your business with others, and thus you create a wave of traffic to your business. One person shares to all their friends, another two people share that, then another five do, and the wave just continues to ripple.

Of course though, some people strictly use these sites for friendly networking. They use them just for personal use, to connect with friends and family. In cases like this, social websites like Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ play a big role in people's lives. These websites make it possible for people to find lost relatives, old friends, new friends or even love.

Another portion of people, use networking sites to further their business or to even help start a business. They promote their website, store, or whatever they have going on. These sites are also great for marketing, there is such a large base of people to choose from and try to sell your products to.

Facebook, for instance, has millions of 'groups' you can join. There are groups for bloggers, writers, musicians, quote pages, groups to get friends, business groups, anything you can think of; there's a group for it. These groups are also great places to find help in the online business career. You can join groups and ask questions from skilled people with like-minded ideas and life interests.

Social networking is also beneficial in the way that it helps people to express themselves. People that are generally shy to conversation or showing their true colors, find an escape of their own world to better express themselves and connect with people. People are able to share their thoughts, goals, photos, memories, view and share life with the ones that are connected to them.

Entertainment is another large use of social networking websites. When people are bored they can scroll through their news feed and read what all their friends are up to, news, funny videos, great quotes, games and just pure entertainment. Some people use these websites as if they are the newspaper, and read through the newsfeed every morning while drinking their coffee to catch up on what they missed while sleeping.

My point of this post is to not only show you what social websites can do for your business but show you why social networking sites are valued by almost the whole world. There is always a use for these websites whether it's for personal use or business use.

Alright Everyone, share away and connect with people as often as you can! Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed.

If you would like to connect with me feel free to add me on Facebook or any of the other sites I talked about in the article.

Good luck in your future endeavors! 
-Brooke Neari

If you are a motivated individual who would like to learn more about how us entrepreneurs are leveraging these social sites and using them to earn income and help others do the same feel free to visit my blog and read more about us... 
http://workwithus.internetlifestylenetwork.com/internet-lifestyle-network/

My team, the ASF Movement has a vision to create as many success stories as we can and help as many people as we can change their lives. Our marketing is focused on all Free Facebook strategies that are easy for our team to duplicate.

I'd love to connect further on Facebook. Thanks again for reading! 
-Brooke Neari
https://www.facebook.com/bneari

It seems that over the years "networking" has become somewhat of a dirty word in the business community. When someone says it, many people conjure up an image of someone handing them their business card, but not really caring or interested in whom they are or what they do, only in the possibility that you might help them get ahead in the world. While this might be the case with some of the individuals who we meet at various functions, it is not the case with someone who is good at effective networking.

When you meet someone for the first time, what makes someone think that just by giving them your business card they're going to do something for you or help you out? The trick to being an effective networker is to be interested in other, and trying to help them out. This might sound counter-productive, but the fact of the matter is that someone is more willing to go out of their way to help us if we've done so for them. This means you have to get to know people better, you have to ask what they're goals are, and see if you can help someone achieve them.

It's also important to keep in touch with those you meet and receive business cards from. Far too often in life we give away our business cards and never hear from the individual again. Effective networking means that you maintain a dialogue and relationship with someone long after the initial meeting or first few weeks or months. A good networker is constantly in touch with those in his network, and is diligent in maintaining his contact with others. Send them emails, share news articles, just keep in touch with them and keep a line of communication open.

If you're awful at keeping in touch with individuals, make sure you at least send out hand written cards annually to everyone in your network. Don't just do the standard New Year holiday card, but do something different, send out Valentine's Day cards to everyone in your network, or Halloween cards. If you send out cards when everyone sends out cards you'll be lost in the mix. However if you send out a card when most people typically don't receive cards you'll be remembered more often. Remember to personalize your cards for each individual, this might be more time consuming, but the personal touch is always received better than the standard greeting card message.

So remember the next time you're at a social function and you're handing out your business card, remember to take your time to get to know someone first, see if you can help them in some way to achieve one of their goals. Also remember to put forth an effort in maintaining a line of communication with someone after you meet them. Effective networking is not like a dine-and-dash, you have to take the time to cultivate a relationship through discourse.

Catherine E.P. Gray is the President & Founder of Inside-Out Beauty, LLC a full service image consulting company based in New York City that enables clients to achieve their personal and/or professional image goals by addressing all the interrelated aspects of one's image.

For more information on Inside-Out Beauty and how they can help you or your company achieve your goals using effective networking, please visit http://www.insideout-beauty.com

Digital Revolution Side-Effects

The digital revolution has had a disappointing side-effect - young people, the i-generation, have developed a superficial appreciation of world events, news and other important formation details, through considerable use of social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter and MySpace. The broadening of mind and spirit is extremely challenged by the euphoria of the internet and all the engagement that happens while silently and privately seated before the computer screen!

No longer do the young keep abreast of the latest happenings in the world. Their main priority for the i-generation in down time, leisure time, is to catch up mostly on social happenings past, present and future, through their internet chat rooms and social networking sites.

The news, current affairs, documentaries and family time take a back seat, if not being totally rejected as of any importance what-so-ever. Major time is spent on the internet, with the occasional viewing of television for little more than movies or sport.

If the news is not broken through internet conversations within the limited sphere of influence of engagement of each young person, then rarely would the news and other mind expanding information occur.

Twitter Revolution Challenged

The Twitter revolution of limited information, compacted into brief snap shots of what is happening to and for an individual at a particular moment in time in that person's life, becomes almost cathartic. Even when that person reports an item of interest to the world, it requires the young to firstly be following that twitter, or receive the tweet through others who may be interested, and secondly be interested in such 'news'.

Through my experience with educating the adolescent, I would propose that the i-generation would in most cases ignore such events and get back to the social news of importance to them individually - their friends' and associates' 'news'.

The Answer!

The television stations and other media outlets need to engage the young through their major forms of communication - social networking websites. They need to promote their mind enhancing stories in ways which encourage the young to look further into what really matters in this world. However, time must be given for those i-generation networking activities. To take this away would be totally detrimental to success.

Parents need to awaken the hearts and minds of their children to go well beyond the internet's social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter and MySpace and to engage in real life enhancing news, documentaries and quality family time. Many parents need to set the tone through example, which in many cases is not happening now.

The i-generation, the first generation to live totally in the i-world, need leadership and example from families, schools, government and society as a whole. If they keep growing in their current direction, our young people will be trapped in a world of simplicity and unreality, not growing to appreciate the true wonders of life and the world, not knowing what really counts and is of importance to them presently and as they mature.

Their model of operating is so limited that only the truly gifted, talented and broadminded amongst them will be able to operate in society in a successful way.

Conclusion

The present situation sees the young i-generation challenged implicitly to awaken to the real world and place their special euphoric interest in social media sites into perspective. The place of Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, and other social networking sites, needs to be exemplified by responsible parents and society, so that the young i-generation appreciates the reality of both the digital and real worlds.

Does your Church, parish or school need great valued, easy to read, marketing strategies and examples? The latest strategies and examples are found in specifically targeted marketing e-books. Visit specialized websites for schools, churches and parishes at http://churchparishmarketing.com and http://marketschools.com. You will also find numerous blog posts, hints and tips, etc, at these sites. The 20 years experience of Bryan Foster in marketing within the Church and schools, only using the most successful contemporary and traditional methods and strategies, will help with the marketing of your Church and school.