Promoters and Marketers – Avoid Poisoning Your Marketing Channels

An acquaintance of mine recently came across a list of over 10,000 emails from a nightclub he used to work for.  He was looking to sell the list to any buyer.  Never a good sign.

You might be able to guess what happened next. He ended up selling the list to another nightclub.  By now, who knows how many people have this list.  Let me tell you what happens when you start to send emails to purchased lists:  YOU GET BANNED.  As a result, your e-mail service provider will detect a large number of complaints and unsubscribe e-mail addresses and will refuse to send the e-mails.

As a result, whoever purchased this list will be unable to send out any e-mail marketing. The moral: Don’t poison the well by using bad marketing practices.

This type of well poisoning now happens with social media channels like Facebook. As marketing on these channels becomes more tempting, it’s important to begin a discussion on exactly how we safely and effectively market to these channels.

I recently unfriended many of my club promoter friends, people I’m otherwise perfectly friendly with. Why? These folks never provide personal information in their updates and use the channel to promote events ALL DAY. On email, I wouldn’t mind it. But on Facebook, it’s as if I invited someone into my house and they tried to sell me Tupperware.

On the other hand, some of my Facebook “friends” provide references to interesting articles they’ve read. I find this valuable, even though it’s business related.

Hopefully we can at least begin the dialogue and raise awareness of the issues, if not necessarily come up with answers.

From my viewpoint, shared by many marketing professionals with whom I’ve had this discussion, each social network has its own role in our working lives. For many, LinkedIn and Twitter are the de facto “business-to-business” networking networks, while Facebook is for personal contacts and, at best, “business-to-consumer” marketing efforts. The vast majority of my Facebook “friends” are also industry colleagues, which adds an interesting conundrum: how much do you want your industry contacts to know about what you’re doing and your personal life?

Add to this that many people use Twitter to automatically update their Facebook and you have a scenario where worlds are colliding.

Some people keep two Facebook accounts: one for friends and the other for business associates. I’m beginning to lean toward the idea that this is the wrong approach.

Facebook requires a personal touch. As an example, my Facebook friends include nightlife marketers I admire. Most of these marketers use the channel strictly to promote their events.

However, one marketer, Richard Barrenechea, uses the Facebook channel effectively. One of the best nightclub online marketers on scene today, he announces his events on Facebook, and also lets you know what he’s thinking — how he feels that day, that he’s stuck moving furniture, his thoughts on friendships. He’s not just updating his fans — he’s turning them into friends.

Isn’t that what social media is all about?

I look forward to your comments.

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