Facebook. You know that little social network? As many of you know, I’m quite active there. My pages? Yes, they are "Public"; all are welcome to read, learn, laugh and reflect upon what I share there. My personal profile is another matter entirely. I’m fussy about who gets to see my posts and the majority of my posts are for "Friends". Whatever I post there is meant to be enjoyed, whether it be a something scenic, silly, or members of my family. So what am I leading up to here? Let me take just one example. On Valentine’s Day, I received flowers. Took a photo of them on my dining room table and posted the picture to my Friends on Facebook. Didn’t post this picture anywhere else; not on Twitter, Google+, Pinterest, Tumblr, nor Instagram. A friend (one I know “in real life”) liked the photo and shared it on his wall. Publicly. And mentioned me by my first and last name. Here’s the impact this share has. What my dining room looks like and the gift of flowers I received is now exposed to the eyes of over one billion people: ALL of the users of Facebook! This is NOT something I wanted! As luck has it, I spotted the share about three minutes after it happened and was able to contact my friend. I told him it was okay to share my photo if it was to his Friends (only). He wrote back saying that the post was a positive one. That wasn’t the point! The point was that aspects of my personal life were now visible to the masses. End result? He took the post down rather than changing it to Friends. When I post on Facebook here’s the options I get:
My default is Friends Only. There’s also a symbol for “Friends of Friends” (your friends and their friends) that looks like this:
Simple rule of thumb: “When sharing a post, either share it at the same “level” of privacy that the post is set at or take it a notch lower.“ Look at that symbol on a post! It tells a lot. Your Facebook friends who prefer to keep their lives a bit more underground will appreciate it! Now, depending on the friend, it may also be wise to ask their permission to share first; that is up to you to gauge whether or not you need to ask. For once I can't think of a suitable song to post here. If you know of one, please let me know. The door is open to ModlandUSA; please visit ourwebsite, or stop by on Twitter, Facebook, or Google+.
My jaw dropped. Why? I recently read an article, shared by a Facebook friend, about a form of scamming that you probably didn’t even know about. I admit I hadn’t a clue! The article neatly describes the simple viral content that is created, shared, and ultimately generates a huge amount of likes on a brand new Facebook page in a relatively short amount of time. Then the page is sold (cash deal) for $200 to a business that wants a built-in fan base. Just change the name of the page; easy to do nowadays (though impossible in the past), and add your own cover art that demonstrates your brand identity and start posting your company’s content on the page. Who’s going to notice? Most of us have “liked” hundreds of pages anyway! The posts made by the scammers during build up are the kind that encourage people to share and, according to the article, tend to be on the trashier side.
Now, who’s to say that they aren’t adding a generous dose of more legitimate looking posts that people can’t resist; inspiration quotes, cute cats doing funny things, stomping out cancer inspiration or perhaps something sassy with the word ass in it? In addition, maybe the words “share this” are on the post in the text or perhaps as suggestive directions on a photo. Maybe there’s a question. At any rate, there’s something enticingly engaging about it. So, the post is shared. And a few friends share it and so the virus grows. Think about it: How many times do you see the same post on your wall that everybody seems to be sharing? Nothing wrong with that, right? Some of those folks are going to fan the page and just one post could bring in thousands of people almost overnight. That happened to my Groovy Reflections page when one post was ultimately seen by 3.3 million people and shared by 187,000 folks; for a short period of time the incoming new fans at one point “liked” the page at a rate of 3 to 5 a minute! However, there’s a BIG difference here: The Groovy Reflections Facebook page is legit. It is real and it actually grows slowly and organically, with highly engaged fans. And this brings up a very alarming point. I’m a small business owner, with two businesses. And chances are some of those businesses that are buying their built in fan base many compete with me in some way. Not fair to us who play by the rules with honesty, integrity, and good old fashioned ethics. Is there a way to shut down this practice? Facebook, are you listening? One suggestion: If it's a page that you fanned a long time ago, chances are it is legit. Be leary of the newer ones! Listen people at Facebook! Herman's Hermits sang a song about gaining attention long long ago; we're hoping that you will listen and spread the word about this sleezy practice and bring these scammers down! Oh and do stop by and say hello to this organically grown small business owner's our website, or on Twitter, Facebook, or Google+.
Last night, I wrote an entire blog and it was ready to load it up into blogger. Nothing unusual. Then, Windows, which admittedly DID warn me several times, decided to restart and download “important” updates. And what was the only thing I lost? My blog. Wait, make that TWO blogs. Sigh. So here’s the scoop. I thought I’d try something new that will likely happen on Fridays. I’ll gather up some of my thoughts, mainly on marketing and perhaps a few notes that add a personal touch to those musings to share with all of you. A hodgepodge if you will. An experiment. Here we go...
Roadblock! It’s been a really rough week for writing! No new ideas have popped out; there is one nostalgia piece about candy nearly completed, and there was an entire blog dedicated to a nifty social media tool, about 99% done. That’s the other one that was lost in the Windows update debacle. Grrr. On the subject of roadblocks, or roads, I had the pleasure to attend press days at the LA Auto Show. Stay tuned as I share some of the more unusual findings from my time spent there in a separate post.
Chairs! Windows 8 seems to be getting lots of flack. They certainly have a lot of TV spots. One in particular caught my attention because of the use of the song “Express Yourself” (alas a cover version and not the original). What really caught my eye during the commercial as I looked up from my laptop was a womb chair. I happen to own a reproduction of that stylish 1946 design by Eero Saarinen who is also responsible for the Tulip and Grasshopper chairs. And, did you know that under Saarinen’s direction his architectural firm designed the main terminal at Dulles Airport? Rant! So many posts on Facebook with causes and/or beliefs! And then there’s the killer statement along the lines of “I know only 2% of you will repost this” or “if you are strong you will share”. Does that make you feel guilty? Here’s an idea: Personally, I LOVE hearing from my Facebook friends and getting to know them better. Why not create an original post, with your own words, about something you support? Tug at our heartstrings with your own prose that speaks of honesty, and belief. We’ll all benefit greatly by it! And how was your week? Almost felt like flying away after losing my writings! The Motors sang about flying her away back in 1978. And hey; why not jet over to my website, or stop by on Twitter, at Facebook, or Google+?
Facebook. You know that little social network? As many of you know, I’m quite active there. My pages? Yes, they are "Public"; all are welcome to read, learn, laugh and reflect upon what I share there.
