Which social networking site is right for your organisation?

Each social networking site has its own specific flavour and group of devotees. It is important to consider your target audience when choosing a social networking site, or even if a social networking site is a useful avenue to interact with you particular target group.

If your aim is to get your message out to as many people as possible however, there is no reason why you cannot maintain a presence on multiple sites. If you would like to concentrate your resources on one profile then here are some suggestions for the New Zealand target audience:

• Bebo is youth orientated. It is most associated with the tween and teen market. This is probably the most popular site for teenagers in NZ.
• MySpace has a broad audience however it is most associated with teens to young adults. MySpace is great if your organisation relates to music or video as it is very easy to create a ‘Music’ profile that will enable others to listen to your songs and add them to their profile. MySpace is arguably the most ‘creative’ of the main social networking sites.
• Facebook is currently the most rapidly growing social networking site used by teens and adults alike. This is great for capturing a university age + audience and it is a very relevant site to join right now.

Remember that anyone can read what is written on your page, so make sure all your comments are inoffensive and only express the views of your organization. Make sure that your ‘skin’ (background) is appropriate to your organization. Remember your social networking page will affect your digital footprint - click here to read more about your digital footprint.

Sometimes people may post harassing or innapropiate comments on your page. To learn how to delete comments and block people from leaving comments or pictures on your page, click here.

Further resources:

Think about your privacy when choosing a social networking site

Privacy issues should also be considered when choosing a site- is it as safe as it can be? (PDF document)
http://www.ipc.on.ca/images/Resources/up-2006_10_12_facebook.pdf

Determining your social network needs

Great article to get you thinking about what you want to get out of social networking.
http://www.techsoup.org/learningcenter/internet/page8054.cfm

Side by side comparison of social networking sites

Very user-friendly grid comparison of the features of different social networking sites.
http://social-networking-websites-review.toptenreviews.com