Alignable: Is It Worth It?
Alignable is a new B2B social media network that promises to reinvent the small business economy. It claims to have millions of business owners within its web, all of whom collaborate to increase their customer base.
Networking with other businesses or industry professionals is key to small business success. It leads to quality referrals and makes you a trusted voice within your industry. That’s why we were excited about the prospect of using Alignable. A social media network designed specifically to boost local small business communities? Yes, please!
Then we did our research. Reviews of Alignable have made us skeptical of its benefits. The criticisms, in fact, sound pretty serious:
- Sending invites to your contacts without permission
- Spamming your contact list
- Inaccessible support
- Inability to deactivate your account
- Privacy and email notification settings don’t work
- Messages within a company are seen by all
After reading user reviews, we don’t think Alignable sounds like an organic way of networking with local businesses. Email spam is a surefire way of alienating our contacts. Randomized networking requests also feel inauthentic and are no indication that a business is established or trustworthy.
In theory, Alignable is an exciting new way to network outside of Facebook or LinkedIn. In practice, it sounds like the website is a more concerned with making its own network larger-than-life, instead of focusing on real, personal, high-quality connections between small business owners.
Additionally, small business owners can still use popular social media platforms like Facebook and LinkedIn to network and connect with potential clients and referral partners. At DCA Virtual Business Support, we offer social media services that can help you make those connections. Contact us today for a free consultation!
