Solutions for Social Networking Overload

So, you’re a busy real estate agent. You have a great web site with IDX search capabilities. You start a blog and post some great local content. You create a Facebook page for your growing business, and keep your clients in the loop about hot new listings with frequent Tweets. And collaborate with business associates using LinkedIn. How in the world are you going to manage all of this great social networking?

Presenting Tweetdeck

Tweetdeck is a desktop application that runs on Windows, MAC OSX, Linux and the Apple iPhone. It acts like a “switchboard”, collecting and presenting you with social networking feeds from some of the most popular sites, including:

• wall and news posts from your Facebook account
• Tweets from everyone you are following
• LinkedIn updates and profiles

Of course, from within Tweetdeck, you can send posts and status updates to any or all of the networks that Tweetdeck supports, simultaneously, without having to login to each one separately. A HUGE time saver for the business professional.

Organizing your Social Information

Tweetdeck presents you with all of your social networking information in convenient “columns”. You can have a column just for Facebook wall posts, another for Tweets, and yet another for your LinkedIn updates. All in a well thought-out graphical interface. You can also choose to have Tweetdeck pop-up a window on your screen whenever it detects a new post on one of your columns.

And, best of all, it’s FREE!

A new player on the block

Another application worth looking at is Inbox2. They take a slightly different approach, giving you an interface that looks more like, well, your email inbox. And of course, it also supports email, which is something Tweetdeck currently does not. So in addition to presenting you with all of your social networking streams, you can also read your email from Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, Microsoft Exchange, or any POP3/IMAP email account you have. According to Inbox2, it “collects  all your messages, documents, links and contacts from these accounts in one convenient place and allows you to read, reply, search and be productive without having to login to multiple accounts”. Their desktop version is free, while their premium edition which syncs all of your information streams across your desktop and mobile, is available for a monthly fee.

So if you are feeling the pressure of information overload, and are having trouble keeping up with your social networking responsibilities, give one of these applications a try. It might just help you close a deal!