6 Ways Social Media Helps Home-Based Businesses

As most of us have already learned, home-based business owners, with only some time and creativity, can use social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter as new branding, marketing, and networking tools to grow their businesses at no cost.  For those in network marketing, here are the top 3 ways that social media can help:

1 – Flexible Networking.  You can work in short spurts from home or on the go, and only with your specifically targeted audience.

2 – Camaraderie and Community.  You can interact with other business owners, share ideas, learn tips, and build relationships.

3 – Inexpensive Branding.  Share your brand identity across a large audience cheaply and quickly.

Always remember, it is social media, or social networking.  The key term is social.  Those who attempt to use it strictly as an advertising platform will be missing out on most of the benefits.  You can read the entire article here: http://financialedge.investopedia.com/financial-edge/0611/6-Ways-Social-Media-Helps-Home-Based-Businesses.aspx

100 Largest Network Marketing Companies

Direct Selling News has just released its DSN Global 100 list of largest network marketing companies.  The revenue of the largest company was $11 billion in 2010.  Even the smallest company did $70 million.  Many hundreds of smaller companies have also experienced tremendous growth.  See the complete top 100 list here: http://www.directsellingnews.com/index.php/site/entries_archive_display/dsn_global_100_2010_ranking/

Social-Network Marketing at Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley will let its financial advisers share ideas and market themselves to their clients through social networking sites like Twitter and LinkedIn.  600 reps will begin the experiment in late June.  If that goes well, it will be rolled out the the company's 17,800 reps by the end of the year.  The network marketing industry has been one of the pioneers of using social media for business.  Financial advising is another industry built upon relationships, so we'll see what can be learned from this new shift.  More here: http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/05/25/uk-morganstanley-socialmedia-idUSLNE74O07I20110525