Jay LeonardName one relatively new social media platform besides (Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn) that you will invest in this year and why.
The following answers are provided by the Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC), an invite-only nonprofit organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. The YEC promotes entrepreneurship as a solution to unemployment and underemployment and provides entrepreneurs with access to tools, mentorship, and resources that support each stage of their business’s development and growth.
1. Pinterest
Pinterest is a new social platform that allows you to “pin” content from around the web to curate beautiful and interesting boards that you can share with followers. It has seen huge user growth since it launched, it’s a fun and creative way for a brand to engage with followers, and it’s a more visual tool perfect for design-oriented companies. –Doreen Bloch, Poshly Inc.
2. 9GAG
9GAG is a social network that “lets you create your fun collection effortlessly.” What I know is that this site is absolutely exploding: it received over 165 million page views last month and gained over 200,000 Facebook fans in the past month! It’s still too early to know if there are marketing opportunities, but it’s well worth it to watch! –Ben Lang, MySchoolHelp
3. Tout
Life’s moments in 15 seconds. Tout is a great tool to use for any business to share “behind the scenes” of a typical day with employees in the office or simply to share a tip. It’s been great to share quick moments of new interviews and products we love. People can see our faces rather than just a tweet. –Ashley Bodi, Business Beware
4. Seva Call
I was the angel for a company called Seva Call. It is a search tool that incorporates call back; if you are searching for a service, it will allow vendors to immediately call your phone with their price quotes. The revenue model will be on a PPC (pay per call), and I love the direct business to consumer aspect. –Andrew Bachman, Scambook.com
5. Path
Path is amazing in that it helps me keep in touch and up to speed on what my closest friends are up to. With the constant flurry of information we try to keep up with on a given day, Path only allows you to build a network of 150 relationships—based off of Dunbar’s Number Theory—which tend to be those closest to you. This helps me keep closest to those most important in my life. –Jeff Slobotski, Silicon Prairie News
6. Slideshare
Slideshare is one of the most underrated social networks. I’ve even said it could very well be the sleeping giant of social media. It’s a great place to repurpose existing content into a different format. Good design can drive a significant amount of awareness of your brand. –Srinivas Rao, BlogcastFM
7. Google+
Now that Google+ integrates with Google Search, we are all forced to get savvy with the social network. Google is prioritizing Google+ profiles and content, so if you’re not active, then you will miss the boat and your competitors will have the advantage. –Dan Schawbel, Millennial Branding
9. Quora
I’m investing time in Quora for multiple reasons. The demographics of the platform match my customer base closely, making a clear connection. It also provides clear insights on trends that people are concerned about. It’s already helped me get ahead of the game a few times. –Thursday Bram, Hyper Modern Consulting
10. AddThis
AddThis aggregates all sorts of social sharing tools. We’ll be embedding this all over our site, to allow each customer and community member to share in the way that works best for them. –Aaron Schwartz, Modify Watches
11. Spotify
If you want to be productive, you might need some good music to keep you sane. Find out what your friends are listening to and play it from your computer for free. Using Spotify also combats SOPA because it encourages your friends to get their music legally. –Matt Wilson, Under30CEO.com
12. Gentlemint
While it’s still in early beta, think of it as Pinterest for dudes. Pinterest is already on its way to being huge; however, it’s primarily oriented towards women. There’s room for a similar concept to work when aimed at a different demographic, and I think Gentlemint is going to be the site to do it. –Sean Ogle, Location 180, LLC
13. Mightybell
Powerhouse entrepreneur Gina Bianchini (Ning.com’s co-Founder and former CEO) is back with a new startup calledMightybell. I’ve spent some time in their Palo Alto office and played with the visionary platform they’re creating to revolutionize communities and enable people to “learn and do together.” If you’re a community builder, you’ll want to check it out! –Natalie MacNeil, She Takes on the World
14. Instagram
Our story is a very visual one; our brand represents the expression of entrepreneurship. Therefore, we will be usingInstagram’s numerous image filters to make our designs and models even more sexy than how they appear in real life. The beautiful images get a great response from the photo-loving fan base. –Benjamin Leis, Sweat EquiTees
15. Badgeville
I run a niche social network, and my team strongly believes in the value of building incentive-based award for engagement. Badgeville is an amazing social platform startup that allows any website to ‘gamify’ its community via badges, loyalty points, and rewards. We’re convinced that this platform will supercharge our community’s engagement levels. –Eric Bahn, Beat The GMAT
This article was written for Business 2 Community by Jay Leonard.
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Looks like some duplicate copy for numbers 4, 6 and 11. Am I reading this wrong?
Hi Anita, yes, my answer was supposed to be about Spotify. I am not an investor in the company in question 11.
Smart Media and its Home Page Pays system. Bringing the free member, the paid representative and the advertiser together. This is where my investment dollar has gone.
Damian http://www.damoc.smartmediatechnologies.com
Thank you for this article! I joined Mightybell and have already received helpful information for my business.
Cheers,
Erin
https://exploreb2b.com/
Im a social media fan but sadly im a one man band as well so sometimes its hard to juggle the seo, social media and the sales/admin. any tips?
After our interview with Gentlemint’s Co-Founder, Glen Stansberry, we can definitely agree with number 12. Like Glen suggests, Gentlemint picks up where Pinterest leaves off with men: http://manpacks.com/blog/2012/02/pinterest-gentlemint-interview-glen-stansberry/
I agree 100% about Pinterest it is completely addicting. I think that any place you spend your energy and effort will pay off if they have your target market. You can’t go wrong. You have a better chance of getting business in a niche area. You are not wasting your time and you aren’t competing with the masses. I your niche is focused enough you can make a splash at any small niche site. I know we have a hand full of experts who work my niche site and they get all the business.
If you take to and excel in the area of questions or pictures or slides it will pay off for you because of your commitment focus and love for what you do. That would attract me if I was looking to do business with someone.
I love Pinterest, and now that I’ve finally been invited to Gentlemint, I’m hooked on that, too!
https://bryannagy.wordpress.com/2012/02/23/gentlemint-the-pinterest-for-men/
Where’s #8….?