Many people use social networking to keep up with friends and colleagues and to create new contacts. It is a great way to keep others informed of what you are doing, share news and media, and in some cases they are even being used as recruiting tools. Another way people are using social networks is to connect with others in online communities focused on environmental responsibility and healthy living. Some examples of green focused social networks are Naturalpath.com, The Daily Green, Lime.com, and Care2.com.
Environmental responsibility is a hot topic, and many companies are offering products and services for people who are “living green.” If your company is one of those going green, there are many ways you can use these social networks to help market your products and/or services.
- news/articles/blog posts - Most social networks allow you to share news and information, either by submitting news articles or by allowing you to create blog posts within the network. Starting up green conversations is a great way to establish yourself as a credible source. Also be sure to comment on other people’s posts and be an active member in your social network community.
- Groups - Some social networks also have groups within the network. Becoming a member of a group or creating a group based on similar interests is a great way to connect with your audience. Care2.com for example, has over 10,000 groups organized by category.
- Directory Listing - If the site offers a directory listing of green products/services, be sure to get yours added to the list.
- Advertising - many green social networks offer advertising programs for site sponsorship, banner advertising, text advertising and more. This would be a great opportunity to create brand awareness and reach out to a target audience focused on a green lifestyle.
- Reputation Management - With the Internet being so accessible, and more people going online to voice their opinions and distribute information, reputation management has become essential. Consumers have access to a plethora of information and are researching green products and services to avoid any that use greenwashing techniques. Social networking allows you to see what people are saying about your company and allows you the opportunity to provide information and answer questions about your products.
Adding green social networking to your current online marketing strategy is a great way to reach your target audience and keep them informed. I will be writing a post with more information regarding the above mentioned green social networks, so stay tuned for more!
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Tags: care2 • going green • green • lime.com • living green • naturalpath • social networking
Copyright © 2008 by IdeaStar. All rights reserved.
October 15th, 2008 at 8:16 am
Bravo, bravissimo,
Well said..another issue here is to compare social networking among the Green folk, with the book, ‘Cultural Creatives’ by Paul Ray. And, you are all invited to bring your Pc into the Green community through our link.
October 20th, 2008 at 4:31 am
[...] I mentioned some green social networks, and gave a few examples for companies to use these social networks in their green marketing campaigns. I mentioned four green social networks, and initially planned on writing one article featuring [...]
February 2nd, 2009 at 7:53 am
Rebecca, I think in the future social network sites will be grow very fast just like blog couple past years.
List of Social Networking
February 2nd, 2009 at 10:21 am
Thanks Andra,
The growth of social networking is an exciting thing to watch and participate in.