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Last week, I put together a simple quiz you can take to figure out which social networking platform is the place for you. If you want to see the quiz plus the explanation AROUND the quiz (yes, there is a reason other than the entertainment value — it not only helps you use each social networking platform more successfully, but it also helps you structure your time better, so you get the results you’re looking for), you’ll want to check out part 1 right here: http://bit.ly/1jakn6t

Let’s jump right in.

If you’re a 3: LinkedIn.

You prefer small intimate cocktail parties or dinner parties where you can engage in deep conversations with a few close friends.

You’ve got to hand it to LinkedIn. They were one of the first social networking sites, and unlike a lot of their peers (can you say MySpace?) they’re STILL considered one of THE top social networking sites.

In my experience, pretty much every entrepreneur I’ve run into is either in the Facebook camp or LinkedIn camp. They may have accounts set up on both, but they very clearly prefer one over the other (which means the one they don’t prefer usually gets the shaft).

And while I haven’t personally experienced it (since I tend to prefer the less button-down nature of Facebook), I know plenty of folks who have gotten leads and clients from LinkedIn. So it too seems to be a hot place to showcase your business. Plus, LinkedIn does do a decent job of sending you blog traffic.

In addition, the other thing LinkedIn has going for it is “staying ability.” Who knows if Facebook really will weather the storm of kids thinking it’s “not cool?” But LinkedIn has managed to carve out its own unique category that (at this moment) appears to have some serious staying power.

One of the things I want to do this year is learn how to use my LinkedIn account more effectively. And if this is something you too are interested in then stay tuned — I’m planning to interview a LinkedIn expert on PW Unplugged in the near future!

If you’re a 4: Pinterest.

You’re an artist at heart and love hanging out with your other creative friends, drinking coffee or taking art classes at the local community college.

Pinterest is really a different sort of animal. On one hand, of all the social networking platforms out there, the posts seem to have the most staying power. (Pins last forever apparently.) But in terms of really engaging people and getting to know them, not as much.

I’m still testing and playing around with Pinterest myself because I’ve heard it’s a pretty good place for blog traffic (who knew?). And if you sell an actual product — like jewelry or art — I think Pinterest would be hot. Food would be hot too — like if you are selling a cookbook, pictures of the food would go a long way. Plus it works well with Facebook — if you go through the trouble of creating a graphic for Facebook, you might as well pin it on Pinterest too.

I’m intrigued by the whole blog traffic thing so if I test it and it works, I may very well invite a Pinterest expert to PW Unplugged. Let me know if that intrigues you too!

If you’re a 5: YouTube.

You’re the life of the party — doesn’t matter how big or small the party is. You love nothing better than being the center of attention as you entertain all your friends.

Ahh, even if you never wanted to be a movie star (and you really aren’t the life of the party) incorporating video into your marketing mix is really a smart move. The best part of uploading your videos into YouTube is how versatile it is. People can search directly in YouTube, plus your videos will show up in Google search results AND in your Google+ account. You can also incorporate the YouTube link in your Facebook page, in LinkedIn, on your blog, and probably in whatever the next hot new social networking platform is going to be.

YouTube is not much for actual connecting and networking, but as a way to send traffic to your site, there are few things that are as hot as video.

The problem with video is it’s not as easy as sending a quick tweet or posting a pic on Facebook. But it’s definitely worth the extra effort. And if you are thinking about using video, I would encourage you to batch your videos in one shoot — set aside a couple hours or an afternoon and blast through as many as you can possibly stand. That way, you only have to get all dolled up once in a while (not to mention all the work hiring a video crew or getting your own studio set up).

If you’re a 6: Google+.

You’re the one having a party as you wait in line for the latest high tech product. You definitely consider yourself one of the early adopters and having a party with other early adopters is definitely the way to go!

Google+ is so massive, it’s really hard to get a handle on it. Google Hangouts, the whole +1 thing, profiles, pages, communities, circles, videos…

It feels like at the end of the day, G+ wants to have it all. You have the search engine capabilities with the +1 and everything that’s posted in G+ gets indexed in Google. You have videos and Google Hangouts that automatically show up on your profile plus get uploaded into YouTube. You have the communities and the networking, and maybe because G+ IS more complicated than some of the other social networking platforms, the people you DO find on G+ tend to be smart, sophisticated and passionate.

G+ is another one I’m playing around with more because I think there are some possibilities here, especially for traffic and SEO. I’m not sure about the leads yet — you have to be very careful about promoting yourself on this network, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing because getting to know people is the first step to actually having them become your clients. But without being able to openly promote (and really no advertising options like you have on LinkedIn and Facebook — plus Twitter looking like they’re getting into the game too) this definitely falls into a long-term biz building strategy instead of “get clients now” strategy.

Facebook, Twitter, Linked In, Google+ — oh my! If all the different social networking platforms are making your head spin, this quick quiz should help you get a handle on which social networking platform is right for you.

Now while the quiz itself (including the personality types in the answers) are all in jest, there IS a method to my madness. Mainly, know that social networking platforms DO start to take on their own personality as they mature and become more popular. And this is important because it leads to some interesting results:

• There is a definite bias around the social networking platforms each person prefers — and personality types do seem to play into those preferences.

* BUT what’s also interesting is how people will also adjust their personalities depending on which platform they’re on. Just like in real life, we show a different side of us depending on if we’re at work, at a family function, out with friends, etc. We also show a different side depending on which social networking platform we’re currently on.

* AND because each social networking platform attracts a different personality type, what each type is EXPECTING from each platform is different. And why does that matter? Because depending on what YOU want to see happen as a result of your social networking activities, different platforms may make more sense for you to focus on. (I.e. some platforms are better for blog traffic, some are better for networking, and some platforms need you to tweak how you use it if you want to see more blog traffic and/or networking.)

Make sense? Great – now on to the questions!

1. You’re a professional athlete/celebrity/politician who is feeling a bit bored in your life and you want to spice things up a bit with some sort of scandal.

2. You’re over 25 and you love the idea of multi-tasking — a.k.a. keeping an eye on your kid’s social networking activities while promoting your biz.

3. You’re uncomfortable letting it “all hang out” when you’re marketing your biz (and you privately feel like sharing too much personal stuff is just plain wrong). You prefer your social networking platform to be as professional as you are.

4. You love letting your creative side come out and play — and the more visual the better!

5. Ever since you were a child, you knew you were destined to be a movie star, or at least have your own television show. You love nothing better than to ham it up in front of the camera.

6. You love being on the cutting edge of the next “hot” social media platform, because once it catches on, you’ll reap that many more benefits as one of the first to use it.

So today, we’re going to talk about the best social networking platforms for 1-2 above, and next week we’ll discuss the matches for 3-6.

On to the answers!

If you’re a 1: Twitter.

You love being in the middle of it all! On your bucket list is to be in Times Square when the ball drops on New Year’s Eve and, if you haven’t already, you’re definitely going to be a part of flash mob one of these days.

You know, Twitter is sort of the online equivalent of a flash mob. Something happens and everyone jumps to provide their feedback/commentary/opinion – and that leads to topic trending (or Twitter exploding).

And maybe THAT is why it’s also the sole social networking platform people use to get themselves in trouble! There is a flash mob mentality to Twitter; something rises up out of nowhere, and disappears almost as fast. You never hear about controversial quotes from something posted on Facebook or Linked In. But random tweets (or, worse yet, pictures of tweeted unmentionables) are always making the news. And it’s not like it’s any less work to post a tweet versus a post in any other social networking platform.

Alas, you’d think by now people would have figured out that tweets (especially tweets you have no business tweeting) last forever.

Anyway, on to Twitter and your business. My personal experience with Twitter is while it does work, it’s not as good as some of the other social networking platforms out there. Maybe because people aren’t really looking to click on a link to leave Twitter; they’re there to be a part of the action! But even the clicks I do get from Twitter seem to be weaker (i.e. less likely to opt in or take action) than clicks from other social networking platforms.

However, there’s no question it does add to your promotional efforts, so I wonder if it’s a bit of a multiplier – if people see enough of your tweets and start to get comfortable with you, when they do finally click on a link (either in Twitter or a different social networking platform) they may be ready to take action.

The really nice thing about Twitter is it’s the easiest to add automation to in order to augment anything else you’re doing, so it really doesn’t take a lot of time to have it be a part of your promotions.

But if YOU have a different experience — like Twitter is THE place for you to get leads, I’d love to hear your story. Just comment on my blog LINK and let me know (especially if you think I’m just totally off base here).

If you’re a 2: Facebook.

You love a good party — not too big mind you (it at least needs to fit inside a house) but there’s nothing better than hanging out with 200 of your closest friends playing all the fun 80’s tunes you grew up with.

Yes indeed, Facebook has now become “your grandfather’s social networking platform.” That’s right, if Facebook is where you love to hang out, you are now officially old and square. (Oh wait, am I sounding even more dated now?? Does “so last year” work or is that just so “not cool” too?) Kids today between 16 and 25 prefer Twitter and think Facebook is for communicating with their mothers and any of their older friends who aren’t hip enough to be on Twitter. (I guess when your mom sends you a Facebook friend request, it dampens your enthusiasm.)

Of course what’s so ironic is Facebook started as a place for college kids to hook up! Ah, how times have changed.

Anyway, for the moment (and who knows how long THAT will last since the kids aren’t crazy about it) Facebook appears to be THE place to find clients and prospects via socializing and networking(unless of course your ideal clients are the 16-25 year olds – then you should definitely be tweeting up a storm).

Now, while there is no question you can get some decent blog traffic posting your blogs on Facebook, the real gold is the networking. (In fact, if you can fold your blog posting into your networking activities, that seems to work the best.) Facebook truly is the “party” social networking platform, so by augmenting anything you’re doing in Facebook with some personal connection and networking, you’ll definitely see better results.

And stay tuned for next week where I’ll talk about the best social networking platforms for you 3-6ers.