Tweet

Make The Most Of Your Online Time

Written by: Clare Evans

Article Overview: I know a lot of people spend time networking online in the many networking sites like Ecademy, Ryze and Xing (was OpenBC). Perhaps you'd like to spend less time or just be more organised in the way that you do it. Manage your time online in the same way that you manage any other area of your business or social life.

Make The Most Of Your Online Time

I know a lot of people spend time networking online in the many networking sites like Ecademy, Ryze and Xing. Perhaps you'd like to spend less time or just be more organised in the way that you do it.

Manage your time online in the same way that you manage any other area of your business or social life.

What is your reason for networking online? Limit the amount of time you spend there. I know it can be hard and it's easy to get distracted but it's the only way to avoid wasting too much time.

Think about why you use online networking. Set yourself goals for your time online. Post xx blogs, connect with xx new members, connect with xx people in my network etc.

Clubs/Networks
How much contribution do you make of the Clubs you are a member of? Some you might check every day, some you may only need to check once/twice a week.

If possible, change the Club Notification Settings to a level appropriate for each club, Daily, Digest, Immediate or None (Admin only). For the Clubs you're more interested in, set the notification to 'immediate', then create an email filter to an Ecademy folder where it's easier to check in one go. For those clubs you contribute less to, set them to Daily.

Check the list of Clubs you're a member of regularly and leave those you no longer use or that have become less active.

Notification Settings
Set your Email Notification Settings to notify you for Private Messages (PM) so that you can quickly see new PMs. You can also get options to notify you of Newsletters, Comments, Testimonials etc. Again, think about how much added email you need/want.

Limit yourself to 15-30 minutes on each site to read and comment on blogs, to connect with people, posting and reading. Spread the time over the week and set aside your 15-30 minute chunks once a day. Allocate set times to do any regular club postings - once a week. Once or twice a month, take time to connect with new members - particularly those in your area - geographically or for business.

Handling Posts
I often spend time at the beginning of the day reading and responding to emails. Responding to personal messages is a priority, responding to blogs is a lower priority and only gets done when I have time. I then get on with the important stuff and might come back to it later in the day - often in the evening when I have free time to read, respond and connect. I also set aside time during the week to post articles

Reuse/Recycle
This is an efficient way to avoid repetitive work. Create a template of standard paragraphs you might use over and over again, e.g. to welcome new members, or contact members in your local area. Save time by cutting and pasting but don't over do this and make sure you personalise the message by referencing something you've read in their profile or a comment they've made. Cookie cutter messages that are obvious, standard and impersonal don't go down well.

Take A Break
There's nothing wrong with taking a break from your other work to check what's going on in the blogs in your online network. For those that work from home, it can be the equivalent of the 'water-cooler' conversation.

How important is online networking to your business? What else 'should' you be doing when you're spending time online? Just make sure when you get to the end of the day you've achieved what you set out to do and didn't while away your time online.

Copyright 2006: Clare Evans

Related Articles
  Being an Online Entrepreneur the Right Way
  Is an Online Degree Good, Bad, or an Ugly Duckling
  Is Online Advertising Cost Effective?
  Timeless Internet Advice
  Basic Steps to Start Making Money Online

Article Tags:



Related Forum Posts
Re: UPDATES: New Campaign! New Layout! New Ideas! - We've also expanded the list for Contest and All-Time Leaders. It's great to now see David and Yinka on the All Time list and recognize the contributions they've made to the forums!
Re: Quote of the Day - "The only people witho - Thanks for sharing this Evan, there are some very powerful quotes in there, I particularly like this one:- You are now at a crossroads. This is your opportunity to make the most important decision you will ever make. Forget your past. Who are you now? Who have you decided you really are now? Don't think about who you have been. Who are you now? Who have you decided to become? Make this decision consciously. Make it carefully. Make it powerfully. regards, Mal.
No B.S. Time Management - A great book I read on Time Management is No B.S. Time Management for Entrepreneurs by Dan Kennedy.
Re: What is your Business? - We are running a Online Marketing Firm and we have some good clients to which we are offering a complete Digital Marketing strategy like Search, Mobile Marketing, Branding and Design. I think in Online Marketing company online presence can be a wining factor for the success of the company.
List of a few legitimate online business - Well My main methods to make money so far are adsense,affiliate marketing and freelancing and I think these are some more sites that can help me to make some more money.Your reviews are welcome: ::linkworth dot com>This site is awesome and offer lots of ways to make money. ::mturk dot com>complete simple mini task and get paid ::microworkers dot com>complete simple mini task and get paid ::shorttask dot com>complete simple mini task and get paid ::istockphoto dot com>sell stock photos ::eHow dot com>Make money writing ::Bukisa>Make money writing ::Associate Content>Make money writing ::Triond>Make money writing ::fiverr dot com>$5 freelancing job ::cpalead dot com>make money by completing offer ::peerfly>make money by completing offer


Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.

Leave a comment below or share on the left and you'll help support entrepreneurs in Africa through our partnership with Kiva. Over $50,000 raised and counting - Please keep sharing! Learn more.

Tweet

Newsletter

Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!

Name:
Email:

Popular Articles

Angel Investors Where Are You?

Living on The Edge of Chaos...

Resistance to Change and How to Deal With It

Suggestions

Email us your ideas on how to make our
website more valuable! Thank you Sharon
from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for
your suggestions to make the newsletter
look like the website and profile younger
entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez.