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Social networking strategies for professionals.

Article Excerpt
Library professionals have always engaged with associations and communities to share experiences and information. Going back through the earliest times of the profession, librarians have interacted through conference meetings, professional publications, and a variety of other venues. These in-person and print-based interactions continue as important avenues of professional development but have been supplemented by social networking media. Social networking brings a new dimension to the professional lives of those involved with libraries, collapsing the latency of information exchange from months or years to almost instantaneous impact.

I would not like to imagine a day when library professionals no longer gather for in-person meetings and conferences. I continue to find great value in the ALA annual and midwinter conferences, Computers in Libraries, Internet Librarian, and the many other local, regional, or national meetings. Yet it's also hard to imagine keeping up with current trends and technologies without the continual infusion of up-to-the-second information possible through social networking sites.

Although interest in any given social networking facility may rise or fall over time, the concept will almost surely endure. The success of any web-based venture defies prediction, especially given the tenuousness of sustainable business models. While I wouldn't want to become too invested in any given commercial destination, social networks provide great opportunities for collaboration once they achieve a certain critical mass among the library community.

Focus on Facebook

Back in September 2007, my column focused on Facebook as the most promising social networking tool for libraries. While Facebook continues to gain an ever wider and more diffuse audience, I see quite a diminishment in the professional content exchanged in this medium. While huge numbers of library professionals participate in Facebook, it's evolved to focus on much more recreational activities.

LinkedIn for Career Building

LinkedIn stands as another worthwhile social networking destination for library professionals. It fulfills its own specialized role as a career-building network. It's great for establishing contacts within your area of specialization. Through a network of your current professional associations and introductions made by your online colleagues, you can continually expand your network of professional contacts. LinkedIn finds its most valuable return during a job search. The...

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