Case Study: The Dangers Of Not Being Transparent
October 17, 2008 – 10:52 am | by Daryl TaySometimes you (aka the social media manager, PR person, whatever) may stumble upon a blog or forum that’s perfect for you to… “seed” your product or service (I really hate that term. Seed.). For example, you have this list-keeping tool that seems perfect for, oh, a productivity blog. The tendency may be to “casually” reply to a blog post about lists and mention “oh I use this app” in an attempt to make it sound credible. Maybe it might look a little like this (click for larger image):
Not Being Transparent
At first glance, it does sound like a productivity/GTD/insert-your-vertical-here enthusiast talking about his favourite app or service. Here’s the thing: if you don’t mention at the very beginning that you’re intimately associated with the product, this is what happens (click for larger image):
Getting Caught
Needless to say, this “outing” has serious implications for your credibility and you’ve probably just lost any chance of “seeding” at this blog again. (No, changing names or using an anonymous name is not the solution).
Have you had experiences like this before? What do you think someone like this could do to earn back some trust? Air your views!
Tags: Blogs, dangers of not being transparent, gtd, productivity, seeding bloggers, social media, transparency online
3 Responses to “Case Study: The Dangers Of Not Being Transparent”
By brian on Oct 17, 2008 | Reply
i think one of the key factors is transparency.
if he had disclaimed that he was plugging his own product, he wouldn’t have been ‘caught out’.
it probably would have been a relevant post, it’s like if i were mulling in the middle of a cafe and exclaimed.. I WISH I HAD BETTER INSURANCE, if an agent came up to me, told me who he was and recommended some stuff to me, i wouldn’t be as offended.
it is okay to plug your wares if you’re transparent and the thread is relevant right?
By Su Yuen on Oct 19, 2008 | Reply
Usually when people plug their products into my blog comments, I don’t mind if the product is good and relevant to the post. This is because it would benefit my other readers. However, if the product is CLEARLY lousy I get really angry and actually delete the comment and never approve the person’s comments again.
I guess one way to regain my trust would be for the person to SINCERELY leave future comments on other posts that contribute to the discussion (without anymore product plugging).
By Daryl Tay on Oct 20, 2008 | Reply
@Brian: Definitely. If he said “I don’t agree because I’m using this product I’m working on”, that would’ve worked much better. As you said there are two parts. He got the relevant part right, but not the transparent one.
@Su Yuen: Great to hear from a blogger! I agree with you on that. Moving the discussion forward without blatantly pimping your item can be a good way to really get involved. That way you’re involved because you want to, not because you’re just trying to “seed” your product.