If you're not on Twitter yet, you will be within the next 3 days. Maybe even less. It's that fast.
Now because of this, Twitter really is a great indicator of where we (Network Marketing) are as an industry. Where else can you get a real time cross section of what's on the minds of thousands of MLM'ers the world over? It's like hearing what they're all thinking RIGHT NOW.
So here's my assessment of the state of things: I'm not sure
I've dedicated an entire column in my TweetDeck to all the Network Marketers I'm following on Twitter (again, if you don't know what this means, you will very soon). There are times when the feed is abuzz with relevant discourse and valuable information and resources. But there are also times when it reads like the biz op section of the classifieds in a community's weekly periodical.
Ergo, I'm not sure
Though my initial reaction is to rail against the one line copies that some MLM'ers are trying to pass off as Tweets, I can't help but ask myself, "Is it working for them? Because otherwise why would they continue doing it?" At the same time, I don't think I want to be associated with a class of pitchy salespeople selling their stuff in social networks to nobody but each other.
Actually, the truth is I am sure how I feel about marketing on social networks and I believe there's a right way to do it and a wrong way to do it. What I'm not sure of anymore is whether or not it's my place to tell you. After all, who am I to tell you what not to do especially if it's working for you? Hell, it's your business.
But, here's what I'll leave you with: John David Mann has given us a great litmus test. To see whether or not a specific strategy is good or bad, you must examine, really examine how the profession as a whole will be perceived because of it. As Mann suggests, if a strategy leaves a prospect with a better impression of Network Marketing regardless of whether or not they join your opportunity, then it's a good strategy because it "makes the world a safer place for networkers."* If not, then you must ask yourself whether it's worth tarnishing the name of the very industry you supposedly rely on as your source of income to make a few quick bucks.
I know what my answer is. Do you?
What do you think? Is my point clear or am I waaayyyy off? How do you feel about where we are as a profession especially in the realm of Web 2.0 and Social Media? Comment below and let the world know your thoughts. :)
*Mann, John David. "First, Do No Harm." The Zen of MLM. 2007.
