VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

[Chrissy]

I've been following this topic and I'm curious as to what people feel they gain from being part of Nextcat etc. There is talk of needing to network. I gather these sites are both social and for business networking purposes. How are the sites helpful for business networking?

This board is the only site I've ever belonged to. I know I've gained a wealth of knowlege about setting up a home studio, equipment evaluation and the support and encouragement have been wonderful.

Chrissy

[Rognog]

I joined Nextcat in February and I haven't gotten any work or even leads from it. I don't regret joining it or any other networking site because it's a numbers game. You have to put yourself out there as much as you can and present yourself as professionally & positively as possible.

Yes, maintaining & checking in with multpile profiles online is a pain in the rump but in this day & age it's where you need to be. There and making cold calls, mailing demos, attending conferences, posting your blog, etc. As one clever fellow said on this forum, it's all part of a balanced breakfast.

There is a chance someone on Nextact may call to book me for a national spot. But if I'm not on Nexcat, there is a 100% chance that someone won't.
_________________
Tom Dheere - The "H" is Silent, but I'm Not!
www.tomdheere.com

[mcm]

Chrissy, I admit I have no idea what those sites are good for. I mean, Nextcat has the potential to connect you with people in the production biz, and I did connect with somebody there who "almost" hired me for something (and it was actually somebody I had contacted by other means 2 years earlier). In that sense, it's just one more seed to plant and it could grow. Some of the other ones, I just don't get. For example, I'm in LinkedIn. I don't even remember how that happened. Every so often I get a request to link with somebody I already know. Often those are people I've contacted myself via email or phone as potential clients, so one purpose it serves is to show me that those people want to stay in touch with me even though they've never hired me.

But the other day I tried to link with somebody via LinkedIn - somebody I didn't know but wanted to. I couldn't find a website for their company, couldn't find an email address or phone number, but they turned up on LinkedIn. But a rule of that site is YOU HAVE TO KNOW THE PERSON ALREADY in order to link with them. If you can't connect with people you don't already know, I really don't see the point.

So far, it seems to me like another way to waste precious time for questionable returns.