What do you get when you combine social networking and talent search?

If you said LinkedIn, you’re close. But I’m talking about Vawch.com. Founded in Singapore, Vawch is an online recruitment marketplace that combines the concepts of employee referral programs and social networks to help companies source for talent.

The premise is simple. Sign up as a referrer, and you can refer up to three of your friends for each job posting on Vawch by providing their names and email addresses. If a person you refer gets the job, you get a referral fee when that person completes three months into the job. Recruiters can post jobs on the site for free, and pay only upon a successful placement. There’s also a credibility rating for users to ensure the quality of their referrals.

“By offering financial incentives to individuals to vouch for their friends, companies can leverage social networks to take their referral programs externally and fill positions with qualified candidates that they might not have otherwise found,” said Benety Liew, co-founder and director of Vawch. “If there is match, it is a win-win for everyone, the employer finds the right candidate, the referrer gets rewarded and the candidate gets a new job.”

Liew acknowledged that Vawch‘s challenge – and the key to its future success – is to quickly expand its user base. “(The) more referrers, the stronger the value proposition we have to employers since it becomes more likely we’ll be able to fill their positions. From there it’s a positively reinforcing loop,” Liew said.

Since Vawch‘s referral process is non-invasive – there’s no need for users to provide confidential information other than the industry they’re currently working in – there’s a good chance for Vawch to grow. However, Vawch will somehow need to ensure that it gets quality leads from its user base. Users, on the other hand, do have to consider the possibility of a backlash if they over-commoditize the relationships they have with their personal networks.

While the above social networking sites  are great for connecting with friends, business-minded LinkedIn works a bit differently – it targets adults with are interested in building their professional networks. In fact it’s a great site to meet a future employer!

For entrepreneurs, sthe professional networking site can serve as an invaluable resource for networking with potential partners, sales prospects and even employees. Julie Chiang, owner and director of local boutique public relations firm Asia PR Werkz, recently created a profile on LinkedIn to explore how sites such as these can help drive business growth. “It will be interesting to see how a digital networking platform can value-add to business owners”, she mused.

Wired has a great post on how to work LinkedIn for job opportunities, but most of the advice also make sense for those trying to promote their businesses online.

Here are two of my thoughts on this:

1. Your Profile

Just as how jobseekers post up their most updated resumes for the purview of potential employers, business owners should provide the most up-to-date information on their business – such as the products or services you provide, for example. You don’t have to put up pricing, but make it easy for people to find out key business details.

2. Build and Maintain Your Network

In the real (business) world you need to grow and cultivate your network – it applies here as well. Continue to engage them in conversation on a regular basis. LinkedIn allows you to write recommendations for others – do so! Be genuinely nice, and people will reciprocate.

Marketing guru Guy Kawasaki suggests ten ways you can use LinkedIn. Small Business Trends also has a great read on why entrepreneurs should have both FaceBook ad LinkedIn.