MySpace: A Viable Marketing Tool?

MySpace is not only for teenagers and musicians. MySpace is also making a buzz among Internet marketers. At the invitation of Internet marketing guru Marlon Sanders, I set up a profile to see what the buzz is all about.

Marlon calls it "...a 'secret' networking method the people on the inside are using."

Being the active experimenter that I am, once I got started, I couldn't stay away from MySpace, setting up my profile, posting on my blog, adding events to the public calendar. As I poked around, I thought about how this networking space could work for professionals as a business tool.

It's pretty easy to set up a profile and it's free. If you're using it as a business tool, be professional about the information you reveal. Remember MySpace is ultimately a SOCIAL tool and many people use it to hook up for dates and relationships. If that's not your intent, keep your content business-oriented.

What I noticed in looking at random profiles is that most are sloppy and incomplete. A lot have no information about the person and no photo. What's the point? My sense is that a lot of profiles get set up and then abandoned, much like blogs.

So can you use it as a marketing tool for your business?

My guess is yes, if you're very strategic about how you go about it.

Use your "About Me" section to talk about your business, products and services. Make sure you have active hyperlinks that lead to your primary website, blog and products. It's a good idea to have a basic knowledge of HTML so you can add images and clickable links.

Use the blog module to write about your business and events.

Send "bulletins" through the MySpace system to all your "friends" about your product launches, press releases, events, etc.

Join MySpace groups that represent your target audience. Participate in discussions and send bulletins to everyone in the group. No spamming!

Post your events on the public calendar

As you add new friends, welcome them and you'll be on your way to building a community.

A way to approach this from a business angle is to think of your "friends" as possible joint venture partners and potential business opportunities. And, as we like to say, it's another line in the fishing pond for attracting prospects, building your list and your network.

So, is it worth trying out? That's only for you to know. If you like trying new things, if you like testing new systems, then give it try.