Social networking is all the buzz in recruiter circles; but many recruiters get frustrated after the "benefits" of social networking fail to materialize after posting their LinkedIn profile or sending a few tweets.  What's important to understand about social networking is that it requires that recruiters Engage, Network and Share valuable information and all of that takes time, energy and most importantly a good strategy.  Let's take a closer look:

Engaging others on social networks such as LinkIn, Facebook or Twitter, requires research into the demographic you are targeting.  Also, recruiters must create and implement a steady, consistent, long-term strategy to make their audience aware of their presence on various social networking sites. But to grasp a significant share of the social networking community, recruiters must engage in a little networking themselves.

Networking with others who have access to and the trust of your demographic is one of the easiest and most effective ways to build your social networking community. This could be as simple as posting valuable information on other recruiter's blogs or writing an article for newsletters that target your demographic while inviting them to join your social networking community. While gaining an audience may take some effort and time, keeping them is will take an ongoing effort of offering information that will benefit your community.

Sharing valuable information such as, articles, job postings and industry specific news with your social networking community will help you lay the groundwork to build a loyal following that will eventually pay major dividends in the future.