Using Forums in Viral Marketing
Recently, forum marketing has been touted as a kind of free, organic, viral marketing. But because so many marketers go into forums purely with the intention of marketing products or services, their actions and attitude unwittingly causes the exact opposite of the desired effect.
Forums arent marketplaces but when used as such, the marketers actions become offensive and will only inspire the wrath of fellow members and marketers, not to mention moderators who can ban them from the site with the click of their mouse.
In order to be effective, this kind of marketing carries a certain degree of commitment, responsibility and respect. The first requirement is to take a personal interest in the main topic of the forum. Not only does that mean visiting it regularly, but it also means developing a good relationship with both other members and the moderators, as well as taking an active interest in helping others. Of course, it also means abiding by and all rules that exist. By doing this, one can develop a reputation and, since it is human nature to work with a trusted colleague, business will naturally develop from this.
This type of marketing has already suffered some abuse and because of this, many forums have recently developed stringent rules designed to protect their members from abusive or overly-aggressive marketing tactics. One forum grants .sig files only after a member has created one hundred valid posts and another has disallowed ads in sig files altogether.
Marketers must respect that the purpose of a forum is to be a platform to exchange ideas on a given topic. It is not there to advertise products and services. By focusing on the topic and posting questions and answers, a marketers reputation will grow and this creates the potential for sales naturally.
The Benefits of Saying ‘No’
Heres a big productivity-killer: All the daily demands from your friends, family and colleagues.
Your spouse wants to go to dinner tonight. Your child wants you to drop what youre doing and help her build a tree house right now. Your friend wants you to run for the city council. And your colleagues are always looking for help on something.
Youre a good person you like to help out. So you often say yes to these sorts of requests.
The problem is, pretty soon everyone elses projects are eating into your time. I mean you dont mind helping others out but when it gets to the point that you cant get your to do lists done, then it becomes a problem.
Heres how to start reclaiming your time
* Start saying no. Just because you start saying no doesnt mean you need to say no to everything. It just means that you realize some things are more important than others and that you simply cannot do it all.
* Prioritize requests. The demands on your time are going to come in fast and furiously (as usual). So you need to start deciding which requests you want to accommodate and which ones youll need to politely decline.
For example, you may not want to break your childs heart when she asks you to build a tree house, so family requests will be given high priority. But perhaps requests from colleagues (especially those requests that are favors that are rarely returned) can be given low priority.
* Delegate whenever possible. Sometimes you dont want to say no but you have to because youre simply too pressed for time. In that case, consider freeing up your time by delegating some of your other tasks.
* Stop feeling guilty. This is an important step you need to stop feeling guilty when you say no.
It wont always be easy. Sometimes friends, family and colleagues will deliberately give you a guilt trip when you say no. They may even be keeping score, so they can point out that they helped you last time or they might even point out that you helped someone else, so why not them?
If someone is trying to make you feel guilty, thats just another reason to say no. After all, who wants to do a favor for a bully?
Saying no takes practice especially when youre saying it to the people youre close to. Just tell them that no doesnt mean no to every request forever. It just means no to this particular request and tomorrow is another day.
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