We all know that using sites like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn can be an easy way to put off work on a big project.
But these sites can also be useful. Personally, I’ve gotten a substantial amount of business through LinkedIn and Facebook–from both past contacts and brand-new clients.
And I barely scratched the surface, as I realized when I wrote a recent article for Crain’s New York Business called Make Money from Your Social-Media Efforts. It looks at how solo professionals and entrepreneurs are using a wide range of social media to build their businesses. They ranged from a successful comedian, Dan Nainan–who has found that posting his videos on YouTube attracts new clients–to the owner of a corporate team-building company who met a business partner through Twitter and now runs successful events with him.
These are just a couple of examples that reminded me that social-media isn’t about brand building alone: It can also pave the way to valuable new business relationships and, ultimately, projects.
Have you found a great way to use social-media to build your freelance business? Please let us know. Perhaps we’ll be able to interview you.