Think of social networking sites as free advertising, and as a Producer, YOU are the brand! Sites such as Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter offer you the ability to not only post silly messages and pictures, but to network and interact with thousands of people in the film and television industry. Plus, the manner in which these sites constantly update and notify entire groups at once, allow you to stay in the loop with a minimum of effort. So, to help you find your way through the plethora of social networking sites out there, we have gathered some information and attempted to explain a few of the intricacies for you here:

LinkedIn allows registered users to maintain a list of contact details of people they know and trust in business. The people in the list are called Connections. Users can invite anyone (whether a site user or not) to become a connection. This list of connections can then be used in a number of ways: A contact network is built consisting of direct connections, the connections of each of their connections (termed second-degree connections) and also the connections of second-degree connections (termed third-degree connections). This can be used to gain an introduction to someone you wish to know through a mutual, trusted contact. It can then be used to find jobs, people and business opportunities recommended by someone in one's contact network. Employers can list jobs and search for potential candidates. Job seekers can review the profile of hiring managers and discover which of their existing contacts can introduce them. Check out this video explanation from Youtube:

Click the above picture for a short video about LinkedIn. If the video doesn't appear in a new window, click this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IzT3JVUGUzM

Facebook is a free-access social networking website that is operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. Users can join networks organized by city, workplace, school, and region to connect and interact with other people. People can also add friends and send them messages, and update their personal profiles to notify friends about themselves.

Click the above picture for a short video about Social networking. If the video doesn't appear in a new window, click this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6a_KF7TYKVc

Twitter is a free social networking and micro-blogging service that enables its users to send and read each others' updates, known as tweets. Tweets are text-based posts of up to 140 characters, displayed on the author's profile page and delivered to other users - known as followers - who have subscribed to them. Senders can restrict delivery to those in their circle of friends or, by default, allow open access. Users can send and receive tweets via the Twitter website, Short Message Service (SMS) or external applications. The service is free over the Internet, but using SMS may incur phone service provider fees.
Check out "Twitter in Plain English":

Click the above picture for a short video about Twitter. If the video doesn't appear in a new window, click this link:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ddO9idmax0o