Online Networking Tips for the Black Professional

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Today, the Orlando Sentinel has an article talking about the rise of more networking organizations for African American professionals. Gone are the days where you needed to join a Fraternity or Sorority in hopes of success in the future.

The article focuses on Black networking in Orlando, but the theme can be applied anywhere in the country (better yet, the world).

Enter, the internet.

As I mentioned before, nowadays it is not a requirement to join a Frat or Sorority, alumni organization, or a broad organization targeting your field. African Americans are creating their own networks via the internet and are becoming very successful at it.

Here are three sites that I maintain networks on:

MySpace - This is the site that “started it all”. It made social networking a way of life. My profile is on track to have 17,000 friends by the end of the month.

BlackPlanet - Though the site was around before MySpace, it did not effectively use the social networking aspect of the business. As of a year ago, they have finally jumped on the bandwagon. As a result, I went back to the site. My page is not complete because I mainly utilize the News section of the site. I will explain more later.

Meetup - Meetup is a great site that shot to prominence during Howard Dean’s run for the White House. The site allows users to create their own Meetup group’s centered around whatever subject they choose. I created the Black in the City group as a means to provide social networking for Black Professionals at events that are different from the usual night of clubbing: happy hours, seminars, singles events, workshops, community work, and much more. Make sure you join this group!

So, how do you use these sites to their full potential?

Some online networkings tips:

• Communicate - Make sure you are active in forums, comment on blogs, and respond to your messages. This will increase your recognition and the possibility that you become an “influencer”. People will come to you seeking advice and possibly business.
• Add as many QUALITY friends as possible - This definitely goes for MySpace. The site does not only target African Americans, so be picky. I target primarily African Americans for obvious reasons. Adding friends on MySpace is very tedious. My suggestion is to purchase the Friend Blaster Pro friend adding tool. It automates the friend adding process on Myspace so that you do not have to over exercise your mouse clicking finger. Note: I would not send out more than 300 friend requests in a 24-hour period. You do not want MySpace thinking you are a spammer.
• Contribute to the BlackPlanet community - BlackPlanet has a news section where people submit articles and discuss them in a forum like setting. Definitely do this because when you submit an article, it is able to be viewed by EVERYONE on the site, not just your friends (this is how the bulletin function works on MySpace and BlackPlanet).
• Write your own blog - I suggest that you get your own domain name as opposed to just focusing on your blog in MySpace, Blogger, BlackPlanet, etc. There are a couple reasons for this:
  • It is yours
  • If marketed correctly, you can reach a larger audience than you would by just communicating with the networks you create on the above mentioned sites.
  • More flexibility - You can customize your blog much better with your own installation of Wordpress.
• Write quality content - In whatever field you specialize in, cement your expertise by writing quailty articles for your blog. This will increase your readership, thus, your network.

In this article I focused on just a FEW tips that African American professionals can use to further their career and increase success using the internet. However, I would urge you to check out Success Runs in Our Race: The Complete Guide to Effective Networking in the Black Community.

Do you have any tips you would like to add in regards to online networking?

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