Let me pose some questions: as the percentage of posts that are strictly commercial increase, what could happen to other participation - or even visits? What kind of feedback might people exchange about the network? Why do you think people go to networks?
People generally do not come to networks to be marketed to, or to listen to sales pitches. They come to give and receive help, and occasionally a good contact.
What alternatives are there for someone who wishes to promote a product or service on Ryze?
There are classified ads that rotate through on various pages throughout the network. However, the general approach to networking is not to "promote a product or service" -- that increasingly doesn't work -- but rather, to draw people into your sphere of influence. Those who are interested, i.e., qualified, will ask for more information. And why would you even want to pitch your product/service to people who aren't qualified? That's the mistake I think most people make -- they focus on numbers instead of focusing on focus.
Did you know, for example, that there is a separate network purely for promotional messages? In fact, "Promote It! - Post your opportunities here!" is the network with the 6th most message traffic, compared to our mid-teens traffic.
Let's be perfectly clear about what those numbers mean -- it means that a whole bunch of people want to sell, not that a whole bunch of people want to read those ads and buy. I'm not saying they don't -- I'm just saying don't mis-read or mis-represent what those numbers DO mean.
That's only one alternative. Can you come up with others? What do you see as the pros and cons of them? I've already marketed my services here by at least 4 different ways - and that doesn't count the press release I'm going to issue if we ever break the top 10 message traffic barrier.
My recommendation is to use Ryze as a place to build your credibility, increase your reach, demonstrate that you care about results for other people, and meet potential strategic or joint venture partners. I think sales pitches and overt marketing efforts on here have consistently proven themselves ineffective.
I'd like to hear from others, but I think I'd like to keep advertising to direct contact via PM, or by limited messages either in connection with the topic, or in your signature line. Unless I hear a groundswell of objections otherwise, I think I'm going to leave it at that - although I might be open to a "promotional day" once our membership gets larger (we're 38 now - maybe at 100, when the "cost" of marketing 1-to-1 may inhibit people from building their business, which really is the point, isn't it? I'd agree -- you've got my support. Scott Allen About.com Entrepreneurs Guide Online Business Networking Blog Co-author, Make Your Business Click: How to Value and Grow Your Business Relationships Online Private Reply to Scott Allen (new win) |