There are some things in life and business that don't need a long introduction or fancy brand story before cutting to the chase. This blog post is one of them.
This week I received an email from a self proclaimed “social media expert.” Â I've been subscribed to her email list for quite some time. To be honest I am not sure why I haven't unsubscribed before now. I think it is because she always bugs me when I am at dinner and I forget about it until the next spam mail pops in my inbox.
On with the story… I opened the email and my eyeballs literally almost fell out of socket!
It was one of the worst emails I have seen from anyone in marketing, ever. No joke!
A social media smoking success gun?
This email promised a “smoking gun” to the fast track for social media success!
I couldn't help but send her a reply and call her out on her scammin,' Â dishonest ways. Read on to hear her response which is almost worse than the email itself.
I have copied a few screen captures below highlighting the wild social cowgirl tactics. Â Enjoy and be careful. There are liars out there!
It's important to note that this particular social media consultant has received local media attention in her geographical area. She positions herself as a social media expert who cares about and helps small businesses.
Worst Social Media Spam eMail this Side of Texas:
Note: I removed all content that will identify this wild social cowgirl. She can remain in hiding from all of you.
Just for fun, let's dig a bit deeper into a few of her claims.
False Claims:
- Twitter Followers are equivalent to a stamp of approval from any credible source? Seriously? False, sorry!
- Conversion rate will dramatically be increased by a large Twitter following? Wow, does this mean we can just simply get a ton of Twitter followers and not have to worry about content? We can put an opt-in form on our website with a big graphic broadcasting how many Twitter followers we have and people are going to convert faster than we can tweet 140 characters? False – think again.Â
- Give website visitors a perceived sense of trust. She states “just take a look at how use on our site.”  Hmmm… as if the use of the word “perceived” isn't bad enough she didn't include a link to her site? False.
- You will start ranking on the hundreds of Twitter related websites? What websites? What are these going to do for me and my business?
- Increased traffic to your blog in the tens of thousands of visitors? Hmmm… well I have 72k+ Twitter followers and can tell you it has taken a lot more than a good tweet schedule to get my website traffic in the tens of thousands. False.Â
- She promotes ability to direct mail followers to promote your business. This is the only truthful statement made in the entire email. However, even though you can SPAM all of your Twitter followers with direct messages, I highly encourage you not to. Many people will automatically unfollow you if you do. I for one do not read spam DMs and would NEVER click on a link in such message.
- Wow, what a deal! Purchase 5,000 Twitter followers for only $149.
- You can also get 50% off of social media coaching and training until Friday. Purchase and listen to such advice at your own risk! Don't say I didn't warn ya'!
Pam Contacts the Wild Social Media Consultant
I am not one to reply to bad, scammy, lying and annoying emails. I usually just delete & unsubscribe. Â However, I couldn't hold my fast typing iPhone fingers back.
I sent her a message blatantly calling her out for her scammy ways.
Her response? “I did it for one of my clients.”
Lessons for the Wise Social Cowboys & Cowgirls:Â
- There is no magic pill, magic ticket or free ride to success in social media and business.
- You will not pass go, collect $200 or see the positive side of the ROI equation for any business metric based on tactics such as these.
- Focus on building long term relationships. What happens to the business leaders who fall for her tactics one time? Do you think they'll be back for a second time? Think they'll tell their friends about her great services? My guess is NO.
- Do you research. Trust your gut. If it seems to good to be true, chances are it is!
- Don't waste time looking for or learning tips and tricks sold as a smoking gun. Take the same time to build and execute a plan that will inspire and connect you with your audiences and help them meet their objectives. If you focus on the objectives of your audience and community, your objectives will be met by default.
- Social media consultants, do not sell your social business soul to any partner, client or colleague for a few bucks. Your reputation, credibility and trust factor is everything. Without it you have, well, nothing!
 What You Say?Â
Have you ever ran into or been taken advantage by wild folks like this? What did you do when you found out? What would you do if a client asked you to promote a product for them that was unethical or took advantage of unknowing business owners and leaders?
Thanks for the great post Pam. What you just disclosed is the sad state of reality when it comes to the social media ‘consulting’ industry. We have seen over-night self-proclaimed ‘experts’ emerge from nowhere and calling themselves social media ‘consultants’.
In reality, when I dig into the background of these ‘experts’, they have never spent any employment time in a real Big C (consulting) firm such as Accenture, Deloitte, PwC, Boston, McKinsey, etc, or have never been employed at other mid-tier consulting organizations; they lack all forms of methodologies, approaches, work products, and best practices; and when it comes to IP (intellectual property) or iCap (intellectual capital), they present something that anyone can get off the internet.
What the industry is currently exposed to is similar to someone who implements QuickBooks for a client and is now calling themselves a CPA or professional accountant.
Unfortunately in an ungoverned, self-ruled, and rapiding evolving industry such as social media ‘consulting’, there will be the types that you just disclosed and they will continue to emerge leaving a trail of victims behind them.
Word to the wise, ask your self-proclaimed consultant for his/her professional credentials, where have they bulit up their consulting expertise and discipline, what methodologies/best practices/work products will they bring to the engagement, and what IP/iCap will they leverage during the project.
As the saying goes “If it sounds too good to be true…”, well you know the rest.
@edwardbase22 Yes, you hit the nail on the head Edward. It’s the difference between knowing how to drive a bike and car. I like your analogy with the CPA or attorney. There are too many social media “gurus” helping biz’s integrate social into business who little to NO business experience. I think we are a way off from standards. However, as with any new technology they will eventually come. I truly feel sorry for the business folks who honestly have no idea they are being sold a bag of social rocks.
Thanks so much for taking the time to leave such a detailed comment. Appreciate and value your insight.
@AskAaronLee @PamMktgNut KUDO’s on the article. Must be read / said.
@therealkazia Yikes! I had to stop reading half way through. #Snakeoil http://t.co/uKq2UomZ via @PamMktgNut
@johnflurry It is painful to read. @PamMktgNut
@therealkazia Yikes! I had to stop reading half way through. #Snakeoil http://t.co/uKq2UomZ via @PamMktgNut
@therealkazia Yikes! I had to stop reading half way through. #Snakeoil http://t.co/uKq2UomZ via @PamMktgNut
@therealkazia Yikes! I had to stop reading half way through. #Snakeoil http://t.co/uKq2UomZ via @PamMktgNut
Oh Pam you are so right. There are so many people out there scamming people with “how-to’s” and “get-rich-schemes” on Twitter, Facebook, Google+ and I’m sure Pinterest will be next.
Many of them even sound credible at first until you get slammed in the face by their “offer.” It’s unfortunate that the innocent people who are out there trying to figure out how to make a living get sucked into these scams.
I wish more people like you in this business would call these people out so more people are aware.
I guess it happens in every industry but now anyone can put up a website or jump page and claim to be an expert. We need more standards and more fraud reporting. Thanks for the post Pam!
@Sue Reddel Thanks Sue. You know me… I try to keep my posts as positive as possible. However, sometimes ya’ just got to let the cat out of the bag! This one was one of the worst I had seen. It’s terrible that she also knows it. It’s one thing to be completely clueless and think your methods work but it’s a whole other level to purposely be pushing something that is a complete scam to make a few bucks. I agree on the standards and reporting. I am sure in due time there will eventually be standards and process which we will all create. We have an open book policy with our clients. We show them everything and have very little behind the black curtain. There is no magic bullets and no reason to hide anything. The more both the agency/consultant and the client can put on the table the better results all will see!
Thx so much for stopping by and taking time out of your Saturday to comment.
Oh my goodness. This is so disappointing to see – especially considering the fact that you just know that some poor small business owner out there will believe her because she’s “an expert”.
Good for you for calling her out. I’d have done the same thing. For those of us who are excited about how using social media *properly* can help small businesses, this is simply unfathomable. :(
@tab_b I agree with you. I just think of the poor small biz’s who get out their credit card truly believing they may be able to save their business thanks to some greedy consultant who told them they could. Wow, they’d be better off working on a blog and content that connects with them than a set of paid for Twitter followers. Glad there are honest people out there like you keeping it real. Those will be the ones who will win in the end, for sure!
Must Read => Social Media Consultant Gone Bad… Real Bad! http://t.co/k5VK5MsQ by @PamMktgNut
via @markwschaefer
great Post Pam.. Sadly I am seeing more and more of these get rich quick, buy twitter followers, facebook likes etc.. all in my opinion a total waste of time and money.. Followers are ok.. but its listeners that you really want…. You only get those by listening, replying, engaging, adding value, sharing and adding context to all that content you pump out….
Like most things in life.. there is no get rich quick,no magic pill or potion,.. What there is are the 4 B’s…. Be commmited, Be consistent with your approach, Be interesting, and Be Interested…
cheers
Mark Shaw
markshaw
@markshawmarkshaw Amen Mark! there is a big difference between listeners and followers. We want engagement, we want action. We want people who care what we write. We do NOT want folks who just follow us so we will follow them. Love your 4 B’s! I think the last is the most important…. “Be Interested!” Care about your audience. They are more than a “like” or follower. They are your bread and butter for life and biz. thanks for your great insight Mark! :)
these are desperate measures to make money and they have not done their home work at all… If we look at these sought of issues in detail we understand social media threats are very high at this volatile state not just such gimmicks even the content, stats doesn’t make sense. We need a lot of education and perhaps certifying methods/agencies.. what say
@ShashankHosa I agree with you. I think the scams are probably not even at the highest yet as there are still so many new consultants joining the social world. I saw a post the other day of a guy who had been an accountant for 15 years. He started a blog about social media and within one week he was teaching a class at his local Chamber of Commerce “as an expert” were his own words. Yikes, that’s when it gets scary. Be careful who your experts are that guide your business and investments.
@PamMktgNut @ShashankHosa I can’t imagine that, I am a complete newbee only at this a month and have very little in the over all social media world. I have just enough information as they say to be dangerous, thank God only a danger to myself.
@[email protected] There is a difference to being a newbie with honesty though. We were all newbies at one time. I can remember learning to retweet, comment on a blog etc. The key is being real with who you are, what you are and what you can do for others in life and biz. I say celebrate the newbie status and make it happen!
@993thefox G’morning! TYVM 4 r/t – Have a •*¨*•.¸¸#SuperSaturday!!¸¸.•*¨*•
Thanks, Pam. Great post! This is exactly why I don’t call myself an “expert.” I think when it comes to social media, it changes so rapidly, it’s a constant learning experience. Sure, I can share my knowledge with small business owners, but never will oversell my services. Those so called “experts” are akin to the old fashioned, fast-talkin’, snake oil salesmen from back in the day. Makes me shudder! Thanks again!
@GetSusanMktg Very true Susan! The entire social ecosystem is evolving faster than any of us can catch up. I eat, sleep and breathe this stuff, literally and I learn something new every day. I feel that even I fall behind on some days and weeks and we have an entire team backing me up, helping with research on new tech and trends. For me it is part of the fun to always be learning. We are always honest with our clients on what we know and what we don’t know. We never guarantee results and ensure everything we do is mapped straight back to their business goals and objectives. Yup, there are some crazy snake oil lovin’ types out there for sure. Glad you’re not one of them! Appreciate your comment and stopping by! Happy Saturday to you!
Wow! That is really sad. That type of hype and lying will come back to bite that “cowgirl” in the butt, for sure. The only question is how many people will be scammed and ripped off on her way down. I strongly dislike liars in any circumstance, but I especially don’t like it when they are casting doubt on my profession by providing poor service that makes everyone look bad.
@SocialSavvyGeek Ha, that’s for sure. Yes, the sad part is definitely the casualties on the way down. The hope is that folks will start to be more bold about calling these folks out. I think it is our responsibility to ensure biz’s of all size understand that just because someone knows how to Facebook and tweet doesn’t mean they should be helping you prioritize where you invest time in social, how you integrate into business and what you should consider credibility, stamp of approval. Hope your weekend is kicking off great!
@pammktgnut nice one Pam… cheers..
@pammktgnut nice one Pam… cheers..
@richmeyer @zite Although she’s correct about it being a scam I think her responses were a little unprofessional.
Pam Moore @PamMktgNut~thanks for writing this post & calling this type of behavior out. I tell small business owners if ANYONE in social media/marketing promises you a silver bullet, walk away. As much as we crave the magic pill that will drive more business, traffic, leads, etc…every business still has to put in the hard work work to BUILD it. I refer to this as the “unsexy secret” of marketing:-) Keep it up, girlfriend! You are a great example of how to do this stuff “right”! Got your back!
nice post Pam these kind of people drive me crazy
nice post! lot of scammers out there for sure
Unbelievable. Does she actually think she’ll get repeat business? Maybe there’s enough gullible people out there right now but at some point, all will see the sham.
Love sharing your posts! With hopes for good manners and best practices for all!!
@SH1FTG34R G’morning! TYVM 4 r/t :-) Have a •*¨*•.¸¸#SuperSaturday!!¸¸.•*¨*•
@PamMktgNut Great Post and while shocked at the claims, I am not surprised by them. I see a few like those in my inbox everyday and a few get tweeted at me. In my discussions with Small Business owners, I know there are many out there pushing those approaches since it is easier to get the numbers versus the real engagement. I prefer to earn my followers versus buying them.
@SteveCassady Amen Steve! Blessed our tweet & life paths crossed. You are rockin’ it in all the right ways!
Pam, what I’m seeing here is a poorly crafted email. I don’t know this girl, but I’m curious to see what all her other emails have looked like. Is this an “off” email, where all the others are decent? Of course, there are many false statements in the messaging.
Here’s my take:
Twitter Followers are equivalent to a stamp of approval from any credible source. – I’ve never heard anything about this before. News to me.
Conversion rate will dramatically be increased by a large Twitter following? – I disagree with this statement. As much as we hate to admit it, social proof does exist and having a larger following can contribute as social proof in FIRST IMPRESSION situations ONLY. But there is a BIG difference between real proof and social proof. Social proof is not actual fact, so it should never be portrayed in the manner she has. The thing she failed to mention is that once social proof is seen and curiosity is peaked, we typically take the next step in qualifying them: (Ex: how engaged they are, quality of tweets or presence, and what kind of followers they have, what other presences do they have, credentials, etc). If there is no real substance behind social proof, then it can actually hurt more than it can help.
You will start ranking on the hundreds of Twitter related websites. – I wonder if what she meant here was when searching for a Twitter name in Google (for example, search davergallant), you show up in numerous sites because those sites are aggregating from Twitter? Still doesn’t make that much sense to me.
Increased traffic to your blog in the tens of thousands of visitors? – Totally inaccurate. Many followers doesn’t equate to high traffic.
She promotes ability to direct mail followers to promote your business. – This one really bothers me. Don’t encourage others to DM you with your products or services. This isn’t a numbers game like cold calling.
Glad you posted this Pam!
@DaveGallant Nope, most of her emails are spammy. However, this was the worst I had seen. It’s interesting though as her website has some good points, she has a book etc. However, she has some pretty spammy landing pages and emails of the same caliber of the one highlighted in this post. I agree w/you on all points made in your comment. Agree that all social proof does not equal real proof. This opened my eyes big time to the though of playing up “social proof” to a “perceived” value. I am so focused on helping our clients build real social proof and business proof I never thought of using it in such an unethical way. However, now that I know it makes sense. As far as the Twitter sites she seems to be specifically pointing out Twitter profile and other topical ranking sites. There were some categories mentioned but I didn’t want to risk her or anyone else mentioned in the email being identified. My point wasn’t to bash her personally but to use her spammy ways as a lesson to all. Thanks for taking time to comment Dave! You rock! Have a great rest of your Sunday!!
@PamMktgNut – Glad I could contribute Pam. I also respect you decision not to call out this individual.
@PegFitzpatrick thanks Pegster!!!
@PamMktgNut My pleasure Pam!! Happy Saturday!
@JohnNosta Thanks John!
Unfortuaately it seems social media “experts” have taken over from the SEO ones! And sadly there are many businesses out there who aren’t clued up and will decide $149 for 5,000 fans is money well spent. And I totally agree @PamMktgNut with your comments about DMs – if anyone sends me a DM that blatantly promotes their product, service, website etc. then it’s instantly deleted and yes, very likely they’ll be unfollowed.
Unfortunately it seems social media “experts” have taken over from the SEO ones! And sadly there are many businesses out there who aren’t clued up and will decide $149 for 5,000 fans is money well spent. And @PamMktgNut I totally agree with your comments about DMs – if anyone sends me a DM that blatantly promotes their product, service, website etc. then it’s instantly deleted and yes, very likely they’ll be unfollowed.
@BridiesTyping Yes Auto DMs are my pet peeve. I rarely see or read them. If I see a total spam one I unfollow asap!!
@BridiesTyping @PamMktgNut I agree, seems that many of our “SEO Experts” are taking the path of least resistance and are no “Social Media Experts”. Wonder if your crazy cowgirl sells links on the side as well.
@[email protected] I find the ULTIMATE form of disrespect is when you follow someone and they send you an auto dm saying thank you. Then you go to reply back and they aren’t even following you, so you can’t respond.
It doesn’t bother me that they don’t follow back, but please don’t send me a bogus thank you dm.
@DaveGallant YES – I hate that too! Usually results in a quick unfollow from me…
@DanCristo @BridiesTyping My guess would be yes on the links! ;)
Ah, I can see why she has managed to sell her services to some of her ‘clients’ as she sounds pretty legit for those that has no knowledge on social media at all. She used one of the most appealing angle – numbers. Looks like these experts are getting more and more aggressive these days..
@janwong Yes, they are. Also very hard for the common social media newbie man or women to identify. When they can fool folks working WITHIN the industry, it’s no wonder they can fool those new to it.
Thanks @Phil Lauterjung! Good point on the unemployment rate. There are many desparate people. However, I still don’t think that is an excuse. My husband and i were both 100% unemployed when I left corporate. We had just moved into a huge new house and were in debt up to our eyeballs. However, I didn’t stoop to unethical work. Instead I worked my butt off the last two years and it is finally starting to pay off. However, that didn’t come with a cost. There were more prospective clients we had to turn down versus serve. Too many small and medium biz’s (and even large for that matter) want a fast fix. If a biz isn’t willing to take time to plan, set goals and do it right then we don’t work with them, period. Some of our self proclaimed local competition swoops them up thinking they have won. However, in reality many of them come back to us a year later begging us to now work with them. What’s disheartening is to think of what we could have done with them had they worked with them the first year. Then they’ are frustrated as now they feel like they are starting over. We usually look them in the eye and say “yup, we’re starting at square 1… we need to know who your target audience is, what your objectives are, what you can do to help them meet their biz objectives etc.” It’s a tough market and the social ecosystem is still in it’s infancy. We are beefing up our small biz services to help solve this particular problem. We’ll soon have more services in the form of guided self made social media plans, message & brand platforms as wekk as affordable yet high performing digital marketing platforms to social social media for biz. However, at the end of the day the biz must invest. Although some want to pretend and sell you on the fact social is free, all you need are twitter followers to make it, they are wrong. The sooner biz leaders can learn such the sooner they can get on the right path that will bring real results, not just paid for social numbers that mean nothing! Thanks for your comment. Made me think too and get more off my chest ;)
@PamMktgNut @Phil Glad I could help a little bit :) Seriously, thanks for sharing part of your story. It’s actually very encouraging to me personally. I’m old enough to have gone a through a few of these business cycles and learn that integrity with hard work will win out. I applaud you for sticking to your principles and glad to hear it’s starting to bear fruit. It’s also clear from the other comments that you have built a following who appreciate what you’re doing. I hope you and your community will allow me to visit and comment from time to time. I enjoy sharing and learning from like-minded people. Keep the faith.
Pam, the tragedy is that this situation will only persist until people have the courage to out the snake oil salesmen. I attempted this in 2009 in a Business Week article: http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/09_50/b4159048693735.htm and continue to every day. Honestly, I’d have preferred it if you outed her :) this way all of us and many others could avoid making the mistake of working with her. Just like there’s and Angie’s List for great companies, we need a list for the companies and consultants that are plain bad. I’d love to collaborate with you a post and program around that concept.
@adamkmiec I tend to agree with you Adam. Would love to work with you on such a project. This post has seemed to open a can of worms. I have received a ton of comments, DMs, emails of folks stating they wish more would come out and say the same. Most who have replied have said they know similar scammers who are doing the same thing. At some point there has to be a zero tolerance to it within the industry. If we keep ignoring it, it won’t go away.
Aboslutely hilarious! TUT TUT RT @akronsound @intranetfuture: Social Media Consultant Gone Bad… Real Bad! | The Marketing Nut
It’s hard to work in the SEO industry, and not turn to Google to help reveal the identify of this wild, spam-cowgirl. Turns out the verbiage used in the email is, well… not unique. It’s actually part of a marketing system some clown users to scam businesses.
Their About page it reads, “The founder of the company has created five multimillion dollar companies in the following industries: search engine marketing, email marketing, direct sales, social media marketing, and website design. His expertise has been passed on to every single employee of (company name). This allows you to always have an expert with vast knowledge of internet marketing working on all of your social media marketing campaigns.”
So it’s not like this wild social cowgirl is running solo, coming up with her own spammy marketing material. She’s a pawn at slimy company who no doubt has already ruined SEO/SEM for many, and is now making its way into Social.
Kind of sad actually.
@DanCristo Yup, it’s an identified entire network of spammers and scammers. Had no idea the can of worms I had stepped into. Yowza! I thought it was one gal ripping folks off. Nope… but go figure. However, eventually the truth will come out. It always does. Their best option is to go back to their snake cave and build a new biz plan and model ;)
Wow… I know it’s been said in some, way, shape, or form already… but’s it’s this type of thing that makes it harder on those of us who might know a little bit about what we’re doing! As if it’s not challenging enough to help business owners understand the importance and HOW it should be used effectively for their particular type of business or organization… we also have these types of speed bumps to drive over…
@WilliamWellsIII True. However, I don’t even see it as a bump in the road. Just focus on your value, being honest and real in all you do. These fakers will eventually self destruct. I think over the next 1-2 yrs we’ll see them eventually begin to fade as more are called out for their nonsense. It’s been long enough now that some of their tricks are starting to show no result and people are starting to voice those opinions. I think those cases will start to grow by the numbers. This will in turn bring good light to those doing it right, like you!
@ozdj it’s #SMEG war. Who will win the self confirmed expert or the bullshit add no new value comentators? Nothing to see here. Move along
Ross, I was just preparing to say something similar. There is some truth to it, and I’m exposed to it regularly. People that are aware of social media buy not particularly engaged see followers as success. In fact, @jeffbullas posted a case recently of an individual that credits his follow numbers, not their engagement or opinion of him, but purely the numbers, for some of his success.
@PamMktgNut Overall, I agree with your view here, where I disagree, I’m saddened by it. The fact that worthless gaming the system purely for the sake of follower numbers can make you more successful with some people is one of the things that is wrong with social media today and continues to create an opportunity for the consultant you profiled here.
Hopefully it changes soon. Hopefully the number of followers is ignored. But unfortunately I don’t think it will be until we have an alternative to replace it with. Size is used as a metric in every publishing business, and people looking to quickly grow an audience to blast promotions have the mindset of low value publishers, and people like this are playing directly to that mindset.
Alight, I’m ducking into the corner now with Ross. :-)
Wow I am pretty new to social media and even I know that most of the “facts” or “advise” she was giving is a load of rubbish!. Love her come back to your email, does she thing that 1 size fits all?
Jokers, great read.
nataliejayw
it’s amazing how much garbage is actually online! Because of people like this, the legitimate social media consultants get a bad wrap as well.. If she truly knew anything about the social business, she would know that conversion comes from providing your community with valuable content, content that inspires and changes lives for the better. Engagement is very important as well, and that takes time, it doesn’t happen over night.
Thanks for warning so many about creepers like this Pam, unfortunately, I’m sure some have fallen victims to her schemes!
RMSorg
WallStreetBranding
@RmSorg Amen! It is sad people believe that a certain number of Twitter followers brings credibility in business, particularly when purchased. It’s even worse when people sell them the line of garbage. I didn’t know the can of worms I was walking into when I wrote this post. I honestly thought it was one gal sending bad emails and scamming. However, after recvg a couple troll comments we’ve dug further and it appears to be a whole network of scammers. I’m shocked at the number of websites & profiles associated w/just a few people. Just happy we have a rockstar attorney who knows this stuff and takes a zero tolerance rule to nonsense and hiding behind fake avatars. The sad thing is the worse people play the more truth that usually comes out of their real intentions and inner being. Quite sad really.
@PamMktgNut Well, the truth has a way of always coming out to “light” and I as well as others are certainly glad you exposed them for what they truly are. Glad you have amazing support & backup, these people need to be unveiled!
Wish you the best!
it’s amazing how much garbage is actually online! Because of people like this, the legitimate social media consultants get a bad wrap as well.. If she truly knew anything about the social business, she would know that conversion comes from providing your community with valuable content, content that inspires and changes lives for the better. Engagement is very important as well, and that takes time, it doesn’t happen over night.
Thanks for warning so many about creepers like this Pam, unfortunately, I’m sure some have fallen victims to her schemes!
RMSorg
WallStreetBranding
it’s amazing how much garbage is actually online! Because of people like this, the legitimate social media consultants get a bad wrap as well.. If she truly knew anything about the social business, she would know that conversion comes from providing your community with valuable content, content that inspires and changes lives for the better. Engagement is very important as well, and that takes time, it doesn’t happen over night.
Thanks for warning so many about creepers like this Pam, unfortunately, I’m sure some have fallen victims to her schemes!
RMSorg
WallStreetBranding
it’s amazing how much garbage is actually online! Because of people like this, the legitimate social media consultants get a bad wrap as well.. If she truly knew anything about the social business, she would know that conversion comes from providing your community with valuable content, content that inspires and changes lives for the better. Engagement is very important as well, and that takes time, it doesn’t happen over night.
Thanks for warning so many about creepers like this Pam, unfortunately, I’m sure some have fallen victims to her schemes!
RMSorg
WallStreetBranding
it’s amazing how much garbage is actually online! Because of people like this, the legitimate social media consultants get a bad wrap as well.. If she truly knew anything about the social business, she would know that conversion comes from providing your community with valuable content, content that inspires and changes lives for the better. Engagement is very important as well, and that takes time, it doesn’t happen over night.
Thanks for warning so many about creepers like this Pam, unfortunately, I’m sure some have fallen victims to her schemes!
RMSorg
WallStreetBranding
Her excuse shows she is one of the dime a dozen “hang my shingle” people since no real consultant of ANY kind would let a client dictate to them to be unethical and untruthful. If the client did, then firing them (the client) should be at the top of the to do list. Lets just face the fact she is just full of crap.
@delwilliams Very true Del. Since then I’ve done a bit more research on her and it’s worse than I thought. Shows that even I was fooled to some degree by the website and email. I never knew how bad some of these scammers are and what the hoops they jump thru to make a buck. Unbelievable. I’ve since also had a few troll comments that all are circling back to her & her pals. Not a surprise. People are so funny as anyone that works in internet marketing should know these things can always be traced, particularly with a good attorney & IT team.
@LinkedInExpert @PamMktgNut. That was a good article. Imagine buying followers. More like buying other spammers.
@delwilliams @PamMktgNut I know – I just turned my personal profile into a fan page and now I actually know all my friends on Facebook :))
@erikj lmbo right?!?
@bryancarguy Thanx bro!
H there…… Just doing a little brand management and letting everyone know this email was not from me, the TheSocialMediaCowgirl.com”. This is a great lesson in choosing your name wisely!!
Thanks,
Debbie Frank
@Debbie Frank Ha! Yes, not connected to you Debbie. Fun name you chose though.
@PamMktgNut I cannot believe that email! Shocking to think that people fall for it.
Unbelievable! But as the saying goes, “There is sucker born every second.” I am sure she will get a few clients now but I would like to see where she is in 2-3 years. My guess is out of a job! Thank you Pam for doing what many people have always WANTED to do!
Chad Knasinski
synergyspeaks
@chadknasinski synergyspeaks Ha thanks. It’s funny as now I think I have her and a group of her pals trolling around these parts. Go figure ;)
Pam, you are one brave marketing lady! And you’re my hero. I’m wondering if you could contact someone who calls herself the “marketing nut” and tweets inanities every five minutes. Her website contains chipper platitudes in the guise of expert marketing advice. These posts usually begin with “11 Ways to . . .,” 10 Tips for . . .,” or “Top 10 Myths of . . .” It’s so bogus! Please let her know what a fraud she is. Her website is https://www.pammarketingnut.com. Thanks, Pam!
@Tomeka Thanks for the info. Good thing we have such trustworthy commenters as you with no avatar, real name or url to help us. Come back with a real identity and we’ll be glad to take to heart what you have to say. ;)
Pam, make sure and call her out for the shameless self promotion and bragging about the “huge house” she and her husband just moved into. Seriously, what kind of person who also brags about being a Christian also brags about that? Very bad marketing, I’d say.
@Tomeka Hi Tomeka (or is it Fern?) same IP addresses. Thanks for your comments, however, your facts are wrong. Actually I moved into a smaller house. If i mentioned a house it was a house I moved to make sacrifices to build a business and life of freedom. Maybe one day you can come back and talk like a big boy or girl with a real profile? Until then, my attorney @Jerry_Cohen will have fun working with LiveFyre to easily nail down your true identity and figuring out how we’ll move fwd if your laughable nonsense continues.
Thanks for sharing. I run the Twitter account for the company I work for, and my boss, not knowing any better, once suggested the idea of using one of those scams that lets you buy Twitter followers.
The thing is, these services generally buy you followers who are across the globe or not interested in the slightest in what you have to tweet about.
It may be slow, but I’m a firm believer in building followers organically, one day at a time.
@LouFuszToyota Good for you Lou! I have never understood why people would want to buy Twitter followers or fans of any sort. It defeats the entire purpose. Who cares how many people like your page. If they’re not real people or only did so via a robot automated system what good will the ever do your business? The answer is zero! We have had clients ask us if we can help them buy fans and we always say no. We simply won’t do it. It’s easy to tell when you visit their Facebook pages as they usually have a few thousand fans minimum yet they are the only ones talking and liking their own content. The numbers just don’t make sense for the engagement that is clearly lacking on their pages. Building relationships take time. There is no magic bullet in life or business. Good for you for staying real!
 @PamMktgNut I agree with you. But unfortunately, it can be very hard sometimes to get clients to see the light on that. Some of them just want to see a ton of twitter followers or facebook likes and don’t really care what it means.Â
@PamMktgNut Pam have a nice weekend and chill out :)Bill
Hi @PamMktgNut , I heard about this a couple of days ago and was curious if the author of the email would back down and say “I should have been more careful.” Perhaps even blame it on outsourcing: I have seen people who outsource all their content writing an that gets them into trouble. Any repentance?
@TaraHusband Nope, this one knew clearly what she was doing. After some further research we realize we fell into a can of worms. It’s part of a much bigger network of scammers making a buck off of social newbies who don’t know the difference. Ya get what ya’ pay for. There is no magic bullet in building relationships, period.
@TaraHusband Nope, this one knew clearly what she was doing. After some further research we realize we fell into a can of worms. It’s part of a much bigger network of scammers making a buck off of social newbies who don’t know the difference. Ya get what ya’ pay for. There is no magic bullet in building relationships, period.
@PamMktgNut # http://t.co/0uCOtaIQ #
http://t.co/GSHnDdPb #
http://t.co/RL4VACPh
@samramuslim thank you!! Happy weekend to you!
[…] a quality business ranking. Â Yowza! No, I am not joking. You can read more here “Social Media Consultant Gone Bad… Real Bad“. Â My point is that you better be able to walk the walk, not just talk the talk. Make the […]
@PamMktgNut Blimey Pam let it go :)Bill
Spam/spam won’t keep social media marketeers together/think of PamMktgNut whenever/some silly spammer comes along/scamming and spamming all along… ;)
Amen Pamela Muldoon! Kathi Kruse not sure but my wild guess is she won’t from many of them! lol ;)
Thanks Gloria Fellows!!
Brett Smith – I simply love you buddy! xoxoxo LOVE and miss your songs so much! Sing it brotha!!!
Great post Pam. You are absolutely correct. Relationship are key. Twitter counts are meaningless with relationships.Â
Great post Pam. You are absolutely correct. Relationships are key. Twitter counts are meaningless without relationships.Â
@PamMktgNut Scary to see…. but great piece.
RT @TweetSmarter Twitter Consultant Gone Bad—REAL Bad! http://t.co/HMgshDam r/t
Now That’s a Quality Page…
With So Much Junk Out There These Days, When We Stumble Across a Quality Article or Website, We Like to Honor it by Linking to it from Our Blog…
[…] a quality business ranking. Â Yowza! No, I am not joking. You can read more here “Social Media Consultant Gone Bad… Real Bad“. Â My point is that you better be able to walk the walk, not just talk the talk. Make the […]
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