Over half of all Americans use social networking sites. As a business owner, how could you not want to tap into that market? Wikipedia includes almost 200 sites in its List of social networking websites but I want to focus on three of the biggest: Facebook (750 million users, over 150 million Americans), LinkedIn (100 million users), and Twitter (106 million users). If you own or run a business, these social networks provide a golden opportunity for you to talk with, instead of to, your customers.

When you buy traditional advertising, you send a message out to your customers. You have some control over where the message is “broadcast” by making choices such as newspapers vs. billboards vs. radio vs. TV. Some media let you fine tune your target audience by time of day, neighborhood, or distribution venue. Ultimately, though, all of these constitute one-way communication and it can be challenging to gauge a campaign’s effectiveness. At best, you can measure sales or the quantity of responses from people who contact you, perhaps with a coupon code or an ad-specific phone number.

Social networks let you open a true dialog with your customers. You can listen, as well as talk, and we all know that listening is, by far, the most important part of communication. You can hear, first hand, how your messages are being received. Much as you might chat with several people at a chamber of commerce event or at a trade show, you can chat with people via your computer. Sites such as Facebook, LinedIn, and Twitter let your customers say things to you, ask questions of you, and even converse amongst themselves. Just as with a face-to-face meeting, you can listen attentively, answer questions, and express your opinions as the situation warrants. Done with respect for the other people in the conversation, your reputation will soar.

How do you choose between Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter? In a nutshell, go to where your customers are.

If your business is B2C then Facebook is probably the place for you. You can build a “business page” on Facebook and invite customers to “Like” it. You can then use the Facebook page to interact with your customers, tell them about special offers, etc.

If your business is B2B then you may find your customers on LinkedIn. This is a much more professional network than the informal, personal Facebook. You will be able to connect multiple employees to your business presence. You can also use LinkedIn to promote your products and services, including posting reviews from other LinkedIn users on your business, product and services pages.

If you have frequent announcements to make, Twitter may be exactly the venue for you. It can be a perfect way to tell your customers about new products, unique applications of your services, or burgeoning new deals. Twitter can also be an excellent venue for providing customer service since many people prefer it to the telephone or email.

There are a couple of pitfalls to avoid, regardless of which social network(s) you choose to dive into. First, make a plan for what you want to accomplish and then execute the plan. Without the plan, any social network can suck up inordinate amounts of time to little benefit. Second, keep in mind that participating in social networks will provide long term more nebulous benefits than traditional advertising. It can be tough to calculate an ROI. Think of it as a long term investment, like joining your local chamber of commerce. Third, keep your social networking presence fresh. A stale Facebook page, which has not been updated for months, looks much worse than no page at all. If you experiment with a social network and decide that it is not for you, close the account. Do not leave skeletal public profiles for customers to find.

Finally, and this is by far the most important point, give social networking a try. The cost can be minimal. The prospective up-side is huge. And you will probably have a lot of fun!