300 million Facebook users…..35.1million Twitter users – online networking has become a way of life and hospitality workers can’t afford not to have an online presence, according to a recent hospitality industry survey.

More than 600 hospitality industry executives took part in the Hospitality Industry Online Professional Networking Survey which was organised in partnership with the Institute of Hospitality, the British Hospitality Association and William Murray Communications during September 2009, which highlighted that 21% have done business with someone they have met online and 74% agree that online networking will improve professional mobility in networking.

The new findings from global professional networking expert Viadeo, working in conjunction with The Hospitality Hub, heralded as the hospitality industry’s own Facebook, suggest you have to work hard to get noticed online.

Wayne Gibbins, Viadeo Marketing Director explained,

“These results prove that you need to give as much consideration to how you present yourself online as you would in attending important face-to-face meetings. Just posting a few basic details on a site won’t be enough to attract new friends, professionally-speaking.’

The results showed that when deciding whether or not to connect with someone online in a business sense, 60% believed the quality of the CV and profile was of ‘above average’ importance, while more than two-thirds looked for clear evidence of knowledge and expertise, through postings and recommendations.

Wayne Gibbins continued, “More and more people are enhancing their career prospects by joining online professional networks, with the Hospitality Hub being the most advanced hospitality industry-specific site. But, if you don’t flesh out your profile, it’s the equivalent of hardly saying a word during a job interview. The panel will move on to other, more interesting candidates.”

Ideas for improving your chances of being noticed include posting awards and achievements as they happen; linking with a variety of other people and asking for them to provide a quote about you for your page, and including problem-solving ideas for issues that affect the broader industry constituency.

New members signing up to The Hospitality Hub will be able to download the survey results and follow a step-by-step guide to optimise their online networking potential.