For obvious reasons, people use social media especially  Facebook to stay in touch with friends or share events or milestones in their lives. Very rarely do we use it for professional life.

Facebook with over 2 billion monthly active users, has represented a huge potential market for social media efforts, although admittedly, it is increasingly difficult to stand out from the crowd. However, there are still tons of opportunities for professionals to network beyond just sharing pictures, venting-out emotions or poking up friends.

Facebook has become an  essential addition to the online work toolbox because you can make it into whatever you want and it can be precisely what you want to make of it. It is believed to  ultimately help increase the ROI of businesses and leads them to marketing success.

They key here is that you want to present yourself as a professional when promoting your business.  Posting every single emotions you feel should best be left private. Stop wasting your friends’ and followers’ time posting purely uninteresting and self-centered information. Leave something which your friends or followers can speculate about by not posting all your best and worst moments. The little mystery you have yet to unveil will give room for something which you and your friends can talk about when you see them in person.

What are other simple ways to enhance business through social networking?

Devote time to post on your page at least every other day. People will always check new content so make sure it’s updated. Spend at least 15 to 20 minutes on your newsfeed and interact with your community. Configure the privacy settings of your page to let everyone see what you post. It is important not to over-post too. Only hit like when you actually like the post or  it is fit to your target market. Be genuine and honest. Separate your business from your personal account especially when you are promoting your business. You don’t want to bore your friends with sales talk. Finally, dress up your post by adding pictures or videos.

The ultimate rule for networking on social media is actually very simple. Listen more than talk, extend help as much you can and engage with people to answer questions and promote your business.

Need other social media networking tips? Stay tuned to the next live feed video from The Social Man himself, Michael Brandt.