Five Websites Every Entrepreneur Should Use

1. LinkedIn - http://www.linkedin.com
   LinkedIn helps local businesses become global. LinkedIn is the largest professional networking site on the Internet. It's a place to connect with colleagues from around the world. You can share what you do, promote yourself and find work. LinkedIn gives a small business in Nebraska the power to have a major client in New York.
   
   Digging and follow-up are the keys to success on LinkedIn. Ask all of your associates and colleagues if they are on LinkedIn. If they are, add them to your contact list and use LinkedIn to message them. Make LinkedIn a part of your networking routine. On LinkedIn, look at your friends contact lists for interesting people and ask for introductions. Read and answer user questions to build your reputation. Actively ask colleagues and clients for LinkedIn recommendations.
    
2. Biznik - http://www.biznik.com
   Biznik combines local and national networking. It's a community dedicated to the idea of bootstrappers and entrepreneurs helping each other. On Biznik, people share their expertise, engage in discussions, refer each other to potential new clients schedule local networking events.
   
   A key part of Biznik's success are the local networking events that bring members together. It's like the chamber of commerce meetings on steroids. Where Biznik really shines is when members use their own business networks to help other members. There is a real "we can all rise together" camaraderie here.
    
3. Yelp - http://www.yelp.com
   Yelp is best known for its restaurant reviews, but you can find everything from automotive services to real estate on this popular website. More and more people use Yelp to find services. Is your business listed?
   
   In addition to finding good resources, Yelp is a solid tool for reflection. Set aside time each month to read some reviews. Look at the good things people write about businesses and ask yourself what it will take to get your customers to say and write the same type of things about your business.
    
4. iGoogle - http://www.iGoogle.com
   iGoogle is your personal dashboard on Google. It requires a Google account. On it you can add all sorts of gadgets (news, weather, stocks, bookmarks, etc.) and organize them so they are easy to find.
   
   iGoogle is my web browser home page. It's my control center. I make extensive use of Google Bookmarks and separate my bookmarks into categories. On iGoogle I have a different bookmark gadget window devoted to each category. This way I can instantly see the websites and tools I use most and easily get to them. Two of my bookmark windows are clients and research tools. I also have a window for my e-mail and feed reader.
    
5. Posterous - http://posterous.com/
   Posterous is a social media hub. It's a place where you can post content and have it syndicated to different social media accounts like Facebook and Twitter. Social media has become an important part of many industries and it changes rapidly. I could have easily listed Twitter or Facebook as #5, but I want you to think of social media as something bigger.
   
   Today, many businesses are getting large portions of their website traffic from social media sites. It's one thing to bring an audience you already have over to your Twitter account, but the true test is to create growth. The most successful are the ones that network and engage in conversation rather than use their accounts like bullhorns to make announcements.

What websites do you use for your business?