Imagine yourself in a meeting with another client from states as far away from each other as California and Ohio, or New York. The two of you are discussing an important contract negotiation and you have never even met them in person, but the two of you are considering a very lucrative partnership that could very well make you both millionaires. And, the funny thing is that you're discussing business in your pajamas and you met this strategic partner online.

How? Is it magic? No, it is through the power of social networking, that's how. You see, all around the globe, people are meeting and communicating through the power of social networking websites. These sites have been solely dedicated to developing business networks for their members, and there are already quite a few of them providing these services including LinkedIn and Tribe.net. It is most certain that many more will follow suit in the near future.

The way these websites work is pretty similar to the way the other social networking websites function. First of all, you will need an invite from someone to join in. You'll then sign up and will have to provide a few details about your career, like your industry, experience, types of positions you've previously had, etc. You'll also be asked to furnish a few details about your personal likes and dislikes. Then you can find business friends that you can interact with. As the number of members in these websites grows, so will your social network.

The cool thing is that you can also search for members using keywords like their industry or profession. You'll then have a pool of parties that you can communicate with. For instance, let's say that you're an agent and you want to meet more contacts. You can put in 'publishing' and come up with numerous networking partners.

In addition, some websites also offer an add-on features that allow you to publish your own blog to keep your friends and acquaintances regularly posted about your activities. Also, some allow you to join community discussion groups where you can meet individuals who share your interests to talk about specific issues together. For instance, LinkedIn comes with a value added feature which allows you to upload an exported file from your contact manager and find out how many of them are actually a part of the network. This great feature saves you time and hassle.

One important point worth mentioning is that most online business networking sites allow you to try out their service for free. However, most of these free services are likely using the 'hook and bait switch' and will likely change to a fee based model soon. In any case, if you are going to be a member of an offline business network, you will have to pay a sizeable amount for the membership. The service you get can hardly be compared to what one can expect from an online business network.

So, the next time you decide to hold a business meeting, you might be able to do it online with your social networking group using a web-based communication tool. This tool would enable you to actually see and hear someone live over the Internet. With great service like this, you'll be able to communicate with your virtual business partner and seal the deal-real time!