So much self serving "social media"

[DavidTheMavin]

I see an awful lot of of it around these days. People who's #1 contribution to the community is to push their latest and greatest product or service. Everywhere from linkedin to twitter and even here.

I just wonder if this works to make people actual money? I've always been the kind of person to not promote myself, products or services ENOUGH and have probably ended up missing out on some opportunities, but at least I've stayed true to how I believe an online community and its members should function.

[stsnelson]

To be honest, I thought social networking was about providing value and helping others. In turn you can become known as the "go-to-person" because of the quality of your contributions.

I recently joined Linkedin and was pleasantly surprise by the "pitch-fest" that goes on. However, I am happy because once I start to provide my input and help people I will stand out from the rest.

[bombdiggity]

It's all in how you look at it. For you, some of the stuff you see on these social sites (and on the Warrior Forum) may look like blatant self promotion, but to others, maybe that was the exact product or service that they needed, and at the right time?

I always get a little suspicious when I hear things like "how members of a community SHOULD function". Besides the rules of whatever community we're talking about, and general social mores, everyone should function to their own accord.

[DavidTheMavin]

Very good way of looking at it Shawn!

Props for that type of positive and realistic way of viewing it :-)

[aseltz]

Anything that's self-serving won't last long. Social media makes it easier to see who actually provides value and who just wants something from you.

Shawn's right on target. If you do nothing more than focus on other people, you'll stand out from the pack.

[wbnetwork]

I believe if people like the content your giving, they will click on your link to see what kind of business you are involved in. That is the way to market with social media, not spamming your business.

[stsnelson]

Thanks everyone for your comments. I am living my words everyday.

I help a lot of people to market online and I don't ask for anything. Yet, many of them tend to find my products or services and order them. Who would have thunk?

It's simple for me...

...if I was to meet you for the first time I would not try to sell you. I would want to get to know you better. During that process we will eventually talk about what we do for a living. If I have something you need you would ask more questions about it. If not, it's okay as I would still talk to you!

Sometimes I wonder if people forget to develop a relationship and just focus on product promotions. I mean, "How long will people purchase from you if they can't trust you?"

One can easily position their products in their signature or wherever they can to get some interest. But to blatantly say, "Hey! Look at me" on a consistent basis tells me one may not have a well thought-out marketing plan.

Or maybe I'm the one that's lost.

[DavidTheMavin]

The thing that many people don't understand is that "Sales" is totally different from "Marketing" and the sales technique is just not what social networks and social media are about imho (but maybe I'm wrong? who knows).

I guess I'm just lucky that I was a marketer for about 7 years before I was put into a "sales" position (at my last job).

[Dana_W]

I use social media to give away a ton of free information about writing press releases, but my motives are largely self-serving. If I show people that I know what I am talking about and an expert in my field, they very often order my products or refer people to me.

But I very rarely directly sell things via Twitter, and if I do it's always my own products, and maybe one out of ten or twenty tweets is directed to selling.

It's easy to add a lot of value, be very helpful, give a lot away - and do it in a way that benefits your readers/followers/Facebook friends - AND you.