Best Social Networking Sites - How To Find The Best Social Networking Sites That Would Work For You

When we speak of the best social networking sites, the first things that come to mind are MySpace and Facebook. These two are often compared with each other as they both focus on a general audience, and both belong to the top five sites with the most number of users. MySpace soars high with its more than 110 million active users while Facebook boasts its more than 60 million active users.

But, what criteria should you consider when looking for the best social networking sites that would definitely work for you?

You may prefer to join in social networking sites that are focused on a general audience as they have more users, but you may also opt to use those sites that focus on a specific interest. Flickr, for instance, allows you to store your photos and your network of friends as well as other users can see them. So, if you are into photography or just simply fond of taking pictures, then Flickr could work for you.

Other sites that has specific focus include:

• Flixster: movies

• imeem: music, video, photos

• LinkedIn: business

• Shelfari: books

• WAYN: travel and lifestyle

• Sportsvite: sports

• GuildCafe: online gaming

Other than catering your interests, choose user-friendly sites. You may ask your friends for some pieces of advice based on their social networking experience. Or, you may join in the site that your friends are already using so that creating your network of friends would be easier for you. You can look into your friends' contacts and you can invite them to become a part of your network of friends.

Besides adding friends and sending out messages to them, you would also want to belong to a site that would allow you to upload photos, songs, and videos to show a different side of your personality. You should also be able to create or join in a groups whose members share your interests.

A good social networking site would give you the option whether to make your profile public or limited to your network of friends for security reasons. The site's security settings should also be visible and easy to navigate. As you might have heard, identity theft is one of the setbacks of social networking.

Plenty of reports would tell you what the best social networking sites are, but at the end of the day, it is you who is going to decide which sites would work for you. Be sure that the choice that you make is an informed one, though.