How I Use Facebook - Neil Patel

Neil Patel Is A Social Media Mastermind

At 26, I get told every day that I am “doing well for my age.” Sure it is flattering and yes I am proud of my accomplishments to date, but it is guys like Neil Patel, at just 22 years old who really inspire me. You see, less than a year ago, no one knew who Neil Patel was. Today, he is make a six-figure income, is the CTO at ACS, is a speaker at various conferences and is thought of as one of the thought leaders in the social media space - thanks in part to his use of social media and social networking. That is why I thought Neil would be a great subject to learn from.

I recently had a chance to speak with Neil about his use of Facebook and where he sees the platform going in the near future.

Neil, tell everyone who you are and what you do?

My name is Neil Patel and I am a 22 year old college student. Other then going to college I work at ACS where I help companies leverage the social web.

Tell everyone a little bit about your Facebook strategy?

My Facebook strategy is quite simple. First I try to leverage groups and second I try and create popular applications.

Sure, it is a simple approach, but surely there has to be more to it?

In most cases you have to do something unique or special to gain traction on Facebook. If you want to create a popular group you may want to run contests or if you want a popular application you may want to advertise on RockYou.

Interesting,Neil. Is Facebook your preferred social network?

Yes, Facebook is my preferred social network because there is a lot less spam on it compared to MySpace. Plus all my friends are on Facebook, which is why I use it.

That makes sense, how long have you been using Facebook?

I have only been using Facebook for a year or two. I first started using Facebook when they were testing out their platform with corporations.

That makes you an “old man” when it comes to Facebook. How much do you use Facebook?

Less than 10 minutes (per day).

Well, 10 minutes per day is not that long, what do you use Facebook for?

Other than helping clients leverage the site, I network with other individuals. You can meet thousands of new people through Facebook and if you want to succeed in life I highly recommend using it to network.

Name your top five favorite applications

1. Zombies
2. Flixster
3. Superwall
4. iLike
5. Shelfari

What do you like the most about Facebook?

The best part for me is that it is a great platform for networking.

What don’t you like about Facebook?

The site is not as usable as it could be. When I first started using Facebook it was hard to figure out where things were located.

What do you see next in the social media space?

Digg is probably going to be the next Facebook, but just not as popular. They are trying to integrate more social features into Digg which will increase the popularity of the website.

Thanks Neil!

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