How To Blow It When Social Networking For Business

When social networking for business it is ALWAYS important to not put the cart before the horse!
When working these sites your first priority is to gain social acceptance and not launch into the use of various marketing tactics.
Read more to see 5 different behaviors you must avoid if marketing success is to be yours on these sites!

When social networking for business it is ALWAYS important to not put the cart before the horse! When you work these sites your first priority is to gain social acceptance and not launch into the use of various marketing tactics. This will be much like engaging in a closed quarters conversation when in need of your favorite mouthwash! Your first step is to build relationships with other members that are casual and not displaying any of your business intentions. Remember people on these sites want to be friends and not be sold! However after gaining their social acceptance it will then be easier to apply some of those marketing tactics you no doubt have been itching to use!

Besides forgetting to use mouthwash here are 5 other ways to repel people on any social sites that will sabotage any of your planned promotional efforts!

Not Listening

Taking part in conversations is huge in terms of gaining social acceptance and becoming more recognizable to others! On the other hand it is nearly impossible to involve yourself in any ongoing discussions when you are not paying attention to what is being said! Many people tend not to listen but rather simply wait till there is a pause so they can speak. Believe me this will be easily and quickly identified by others and will not help you build a large 'fan' base! You are striving for acceptance here and not domination!

Changing the Subject

Waltzing in and trying to change the subject is rude and will quickly give you a reputation you do not want to have. Building relationships is much like jumping into a river stream, once you hit the water you pretty much have to let it take you in the direction it is going! This is the best way to make others more comfortable with you and to show them what they say is important or of interest to you!

Promotional Spamming

Blitzing people with various marketing tactics will only serve to get you ignored or even thrown out of many communities! Remember once again these sites were created to be social gatherings and not to be transformed into promotional carnivals!

Insulting Others

Treating others in an abusive manner is completely uncalled for and quite frankly the WORST possible thing you can do if you are trying to build relationships! On the other hand this is a very effective approach to use if your goal is to fail miserably at trying to build your business on one of theses sites or  lengthen the list of your enemies!

Tooting Your Horn

You may think this will help increase your credibility but in most cases this will backfire on you. Your actions will be taken as being those of a braggart and nobody wants to associate with over inflamed egos! If credibility is what you are trying to establish, be helpful, courteous and display your knowledge but do not 'force' it on others!

Social networking for business is a combination of tact and finesse but is wholly dependent upon your efforts to first build relationships! You can not expect to enter into one of these communities and successfully implement any marketing tactics until you first gain some sort of social acceptance. Having said that it is therefore safe to assume this strategy will require a bit of patience as you first build relationships upon which you can build your business. The 5 examples discussed above are approaches that will NOT help you gain the social acceptance you will need for your marketing purposes. Displaying behavior like the examples above will only reflect insincerity and rudeness to others and should therefore be avoided!

Article Tags: Social Networking, These Sites, Social Acceptance, Marketing Tactics

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