Global professional social network Viadeo has passed 35 million members and is now growing at approximately one million members a month.
The network is seeing significant growth in emerging countries such as China, India, Brazil and Mexico and now operates across 226 countries covering 322 separate industries.
“There are huge opportunities for professionals in all countries to establish business partnerships and generate new business opportunities both locally and internationally,” said Dan Serfaty, CEO Viadeo. “There will be 500 million professionals on social networks by 2015 and Viadeo is well placed to take advantage of the huge growth expected in developing economies such as China and India. We are providing a platform for local business development but also for engaging in cross-border partnerships and trade and that is a valuable proposition.”
In 2011, Viadeo is already planning to boost its staff by 200 and open up its network platform for third party app development. It will continue its “multi-local” strategy, pushing into new territories and increasing the value to users in existing locations with improved local features and content.
“Apps will have a huge role to play in our growth too,” added Serfaty. “A large number of our well-established partners have expressed a willingness to develop apps for the site which will see members getting access to a wide range of professional tools. An open platform is essential for the future of professional social networking. It needs to be adaptable to various bandwidths, devices, needs and cultures. Members want a business platform on which they can socialise, share content and integrate their contacts with a wide variety of business tools and that is what we are doing.”
www.Viadeo.com