In the last few weeks I have observed and participated in a series of interesting discussions about social networks for business. The conversations have centered around the usefulness (or lack thereof depending on one's perspective) of Facebook fan pages and private and/or personal social networks like those offered by Ning. The discussions have ranged from how to use them properly to whether or not they were hurting an organization's existing web presence.
One of the more interesting debates was the Facebook verses Ning verses company website debate. For now, I'm not going to talk about whether or not social networks compete with a corporate web presence, but I want to address and underlying question. The question is this: are all social networks the same? Some people think they are. Some people think they aren't. I agree with the latter, and here's why.
Making A Choice: Facebook vs. Ning
When choosing the social network that is right for your business, you have to consider who you're trying to reach and where they are currently engaging people in the social network space. I'm actually less concerned about whether Facebook is better than Ning (or vice versa) and more interested in knowing I choose the right social networking platform to reach the right people.
Facebook and Ning have strategically different purposes. The one you choose is more a matter of strategy and purpose rather than "this one is better than that one."
Generally speaking, Facebook is open and Ning is closed. Facebook makes it easy for people to become fans, so you can boost your numbers rather quickly. The down side to this is that people may be fans but never really connect with you. If that happens, Facebook isn't the problem, you are....but that's a topic for another day. Ning makes it more difficult for people to join than Facebook fan pages, yet the people who are there are more likely to be truly engaged. Facebook gives you exposure to people you don't know as new fans tell other people within Facebook, which broadens exposure and awareness, but Ning will be the place where you get the cream of the crop. You just have to be patient enough to wait on the cream to rise.
Why I Start With Facebook
When it comes to choosing a social networking for my clients, I'm finding that I lean toward Facebook first and work with the client to use it well and engage people there. I like the broader exposure it can provide when done really well. I see the opportunities with Ning and have seen people like Dan Miller and LifeWay's VBS team do a great job with them. In both of those cases, they knew who they were trying to reach and saw that a separate social network made sense for them.
Whether you choose Facebook or Ning, make your choice because you're convinced it's the right strategic decision. Don't just choose something because it's getting a lot of buzz.