It has always been my belief that as an Entrepreneur it is very important to be ahead of the curve.  In Social Media being ahead of the curve also means being an early adapter to new technologies and building a presence on new sites that could potentially benefit your business.

A new site that I recommend to all Entrepreneurs is Sprouter, which is something like the Twitter for Entrepreneurs.

Where Twitter asks the question, “What are you doing?” – Sprouter asks entrepreneurs the question “What are you working on?”  Sprouter enables collaboration and networking between Entrepreneurs globally in a real-time format.  It also allows you to expand networks, discover events, start discussions, and follow topics relevant to your business.

While many may argue the need for a site like this that is so similar to twitter, I argue if you get in early, the benefits could be endless.

Benefits of Sprouter

1.  Grow your network before it is over-populated and market yourself as an expert before the next wave of users come in.
In an untapped network, making yourself an expert in your industry is easier as there is less competiton and less noise. Having a presence on a site before it blows up gives you “street cred” and the opportunity to be heard before the noise and spam sets in.

2.  Own Your Own Hashtag

By owning your own hashtag, you are given the authority in that subject.  Although the limit is 12 hashtags per account, owning the keywords that are important to your business will give you influence and will result in a larger following or network.

For exmple, I own the #smo (Social Media Optimization) hashtag on Sprouter.

3.  Follow Topics and Conversations in an Organized Manner
Sprouter is extremely easy to navigate and all content is presented in an organized and clean way.  I particularly like the way replies are set up as it allows you to follow the conversation and see the conversation as it is happening.

4.  Get the User Name You Want
Get in before your username is taken.  As I have mentioned before – owning your search is crucial.

Connect with me on Sprouter – http://www.sprouter.com/frasco

Other Experts & Early Adapters to follow:
Jason Clegg, Web Entrepreneur
Brett Petersel, Events Director at Mashable
Janine Just, PR Entrepreneur
Sarah Prevette, Founder, Sprouter
Erin Bury, Community Manager, Sprouter
Paul Farkas, Socialpreneur
Bill Murphy, Startup Financier
Todd Levy, Emerging Leader

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