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How to Really Screw up Your Business With Social Networking

By Christian

As spamming continues to grow on Twitter and other social networks (I’ve been noticing it a lot this past few weeks more than ever), I’m compelled to mention again how easy it is to do more damage to your brand than good when using social networking tools.

Twitter and Facebook are great networking tools, but they’re being treated more and more like get rich quick platforms…as if such a thing really existed. I’m seeing a lot of ads for programs on “How to Use Twitter to Make $10k a month Starting NOW”…and other B.S. like this.

Does anyone actually subscribe to this mentality? I’m taking care not to mention any users or companies specifically. You’re not going to catch me bad mouthing anyone, but you and I both have seen this activity. Here’s the thing:

I think most of these users are more concerned with making money than anything else. They’re not worried about damaging their brand, because they’re not even trying to build a brand. They’re not even TRYING to build a business. They just want to make a few bucks.

I think this kind of shortsightedness is a shame. But the more I see this kind of activity, the more I think this is true. I hope the readers of this blog can see further down the road. Building a real business is NOT that big a deal! Anyone can do it. I hope you can see the truth…spamming out affiliate links and offering no value to your contacts is not a way to build a business. And ironically, it’s also not a good way to even make a few bucks!

When was the last time YOU clicked on a blind link in a piece of spam email you received? When was the last time YOU bought a product through an affiliate link that someone blasted out through an auto-DM on Twitter?

Sensible people don’t buy things this way. It’s just not how it works. If you’re building a real business that you want to be profitable and sustainable, this is the absolute last type of activity you should be involved with.

If people would stop looking for fast money and start actually getting to work, there would be a lot less crap out there. That’s for sure. And they would also learn that making REAL money is not all that difficult.

Have you seen this spamming activity or is it just me?

Do you subscribe to the idea that simply blasting out affiliate links is a way to make money?

How to Use Social Networking Sites for Business

By Christian

I like to keep it simple. Simple is good. Know why? Because it works. Social networking for business is not rocket science, but for some strange reason, many of us WANT it to be! Perhaps it’s human nature. Perhaps if we think it’s complicated, then we will be able to figure it out…and after we figure it out, it will be easy. And our lives will then be easy. And money will fall into our laps without us ever having to lift a finger, because we’ve figured it out. We know the secret!

Perhaps that’s just too much of me running my mouth about this issue! But there’s something real here…something that most of us do not want to admit. We WANT there to be a secret to success in most cases. We WANT there to be some hidden key buried somewhere, and if only we could find it, dig it up, or somehow otherwise discover the key…then all our troubles would be over. We would finally get it, and financial freedom would then be ours. We would arrive. We would be successful.

Here’s the TRUTH:

Success is hard work. Social networking for business is not a get rich quick tool. Social networking has many powerful tools that can greatly enhance your business, but they are not magic. You have to work them if you want results.

Isn’t it just so refreshing when someone takes the time to NOT B.S. you about this stuff? Anyway, you absolutely can make huge gains in your business and sales through using social networking, but you can also waste a lot of time if you do it wrong. So in the name of keeping it simple, here are a few pointers on how to use social networking sites for business.

How to Use Social Networking Sites for Business

Be social. Duh?
Don’t force your growth. It takes time to build a quality network. Do you really want thousands of “friends” who literally don’t know who you are? It just takes time. If you have ONE real, quality, targeted and engaged contact on Facebook, that’s WAY better than 10,000 who are not even cognizant of who you are. Let it take time. Quality, not quantity.
Don’t expect immediate results. When you meet someone at a party, do you expect them to sign a contract with you, hire you or in any other way buy something from you that very night? No, not unless you’re a real sleaze. That’s not the way it works in real life, and it’s not the way it works in social networking.
Don’t hard sell. This is killer. You can do more damage to your brand than anything else. If you’re on Facebook solely to market yourself, shut your account down now. It’s a social site. Branding and selling happens all day long there, but it’s a byproduct, not the primary concern. Allow it to remain a byproduct of you being there, and you will do fine. Once selling and promotion becomes your priority, you will start losing ground immediately.
If you’re using auto-DM on Twitter, turn it off. Seriously. If you think you’re using it tactfully, you’re wrong. If you don’t know what this is, don’t even look into it. You’re better off not even worrying your pretty little head over it. Again, seriously.
Linking out to your site is cool, but don’t do it constantly, and it shouldn’t be the ONLY thing you’re doing. C’mon, who likes a guy or girl who just constantly talks about themselves all day?

Short list, I know. Like I said…it’s simple. If you want to know how to use social networking sites for business, this is as far as you need to take it. Sure, you can get way more complex than this, but why? You don’t over think it when you go to a networking function in real life…guess what, in social networking you ARE networking with real people. It is real life.

You can reach massive numbers of people this way, and social networking is free. What more could you ask for? Let it be simple, let it take time, and go out and rock it!

Do you have any to add to this list? Let me know what you think!

Why Automated Businesses are B.S.

By Christian

This is something I’ve been seeing so much lately, I just wanted to comment on it. Automated businesses. Are you buying into this? I hope you’re not. I’ve been on Twitter a lot, and that’s where I’m seeing it mostly. It seems that Twitter has a growing number of spammers, and I fear it’s only going to get worse.

It’s human nature I suppose. We always want to find the path of least resistance. I believe in using tools to help you streamline your work and save you time, but if you believe any of these are a good idea, you’ve got your head in the wrong place: “Make $250k a Year Working 2 Hours a Day”, “Get 10,000 Twitter Followers in the Next 30 Days…Automatically!”, “100,000 Visitors to Your Website for $39”. Just a few examples.

You will do yourself and your customers a great service by simply putting your head down and getting to work. Instead of looking for a shortcut that can be had for $39 (of which none exist of course), create your OWN success, one piece at a time. And guess what…THAT kind of success is REAL and FREE! But the more time you spend on this automated business B.S. the further you’re pushing back the day that you’ll ACTUALLY be successful! Hard work won’t kill you, but it WILL make you successful! It’s just not fair, I know 😉