Most of you know the major social networking sites (Facebook®, LinkedIN®.) Well, there are a few out there you may not know about that are starting to emerge as viable networking places (membership, hits, growth, etc.) even though they may not be what you would think as a social network. If you aren't on or visiting these, you should check them out and get on at least a couple. By the way, I am not compensated in any way by listing these sites, these are unbiased opinions I am rendering. I have put a short description and rated them on certain criteria important to me on a scale of 1-5 (1 being the worst, 5 being the best.) These are in no particular order.

1. Plaxo. Has been around a while. Started out as a web based contact management site but has morphed into more of a true networking one. Value of "free feature" vs. having to pay for account upgrades: 4 Ease of setting up a an account: 4 Ease of Navigation/accuracy of searches: 4
   Depth of contacts: 4
   Value Groups feature on site: 3
   Spam factor (do you get a lot of spam from company to upgrade, etc.): 5
   Overall Job Seeker value: 4
2. Spoke. They market more to the B2B crowd, but for the job seeker truly using networking, it is a powerful resource to get directly to your potential boss. Value of "free feature" vs. having to pay for account upgrades: 3 Ease of setting up a an account: 4 Ease of Navigation/accuracy of searches:4
   Depth of contacts: 4
   Value Groups feature on site: 3
   Spam factor (do you get a lot of spam from company to upgrade, etc.): 5
   Overall Job Seeker value:3
3. Jigsaw OK, so Jigsaw doesn't fit in the classical definition of social networking site (if there is such a thing), but it meets my criteria in that you put your info up there and find info on others. It is a definite business lead generation site more than a job seeker one, but like Spoke, it has its value to savvy job seeking networkers. It's like an old fashioned business card swap. You actually earn points (and thus access) to other peoples' direct contact info (phone number email, etc.) if you contribute to the site's database of contacts. The bad news is that the "free" component is pretty limiting, which isn't great for people out of work. Value of "free feature" vs. having to pay for account upgrades: 1 Ease of setting up a an account: 4 Ease of Navigation/accuracy of searches:4
   Depth of contacts: 5
   Value Groups feature on site: 1
   Spam factor (do you get a lot of spam from company to upgrade, etc.): 3
   Overall Job Seeker value:3
4. GoBig Network I personally love GoBig. Again, not a classic social networking site. They were built with the start-up entrepreneur in mind and that's what the site is geared to (start-ups seeking funding and funders seeking investments), but they list jobs with these companies that pay in money and promises (equity). If you like the start-up environment and are not risk averse, this could be a treasure trove. Value of "free feature" vs. having to pay for account upgrades: 5 Ease of setting up a an account: 5 Ease of Navigation/accuracy of searches:5
   Depth of contacts: 4
   Value Groups feature on site: 3
   Spam factor (do you get a lot of spam from company to upgrade, etc.): 5
   Overall Job Seeker value: 4
5. You tell me! Is there one that you feel is great from a job seeking, networking perspective that you want to share?I know there are ones I don't know about, maybe they are for a certain industry and that's OK. Send me the website and I will review. I will post the ones I like in the near future.

Bill Meirs is the Managing Principal with the Church & Palfrey Group, a search firm specializing in Technology and Sales Searches. Bill has 11+ years experience in corporate and agency environments. He frequently consults companies and individuals in the areas of talent acquisition, recruitment process improvement, recruitment advertising and branding, resume writing, and salary negotiation.