A business directory

Bhubaneswar, April 2: Using social networking sites for killing time, finding a date or chatting with friends are a thing of the past. Today, it is the playground of the entrepreneurs, who are bubbling with new ideas.

The city, too, has joined the bandwagon where small establishments with shoestring budgets are relying heavily on websites such as Facebook to reach out to customers.

With a multitude of youngsters accessing websites on a regular basis, these portals provide for a big audience to interact with. Much like the half-year old restaurant Yummyies, located near Ram Mandir Square that asks its customers to pose for their Facebook page, many are following the fad. The city-based food joints have put up their menu and combo offers on the pages. The photography pages by amateur and professional shutterbugs keep posting their creatively clicked pictures to get clients. “People, who are not even on my friend list, can visit my page. This is helping me a lot till my website is completely in shape. The page has assisted me in getting assignments. Recently, a couple from Chennai saw clips of wedding photography and contacted me. I went there for their pre-wedding shoot,” said Boon Patnaik, a 23-year-old lensman.

Many tattoo makers, wedding planners, fashion designers and event management companies, too, are blowing their own trumpet on such sites. An array of outlets informs about latest offers through their pages.

Though most young entrepreneurs use the social networking sites for free by just making a profile on the site of their venture, for aggressive marketing, many opt for the paid facilities offered by the site.

Sanjay Mohanty runs Mayihelpyou.info, an Internet-based yellow pages business directory, aiming to generate real-time and genuine database of all business levels and helping information seekers. “Unlike huge billboards, a sponsored advertisement on Facebook can be as low as Rs 100 per day. In a short time, many across the globe would get to know about your venture,” said Sanjay, whose page enjoys more than 5,000 followers.

Not only business ventures, but also youngsters are using such pages to promote their cause. “Through my page, I have come in contact with people, who share common interests and passions. They have helped me a lot in organising social awareness events,” said Soumyaranjan Biswal, a young social worker.

“Though many individuals and major establishments have such pages for promotion, they are least bothered about updating them. On the contrary, upcoming ventures such as ours keep uploading interesting stuff on such pages to keep the viewers interested and draw more attention,” said Ajaya Behera, a member of Dhobiwaale, a laundry unit.