Comments on: Don’t Be Boring

By: Surviving A Recession

Surviving A Recession — Sat, 10 Jan 2009 18:43:57 +0000

I have gotten several linkedin and facebook invitations recently. They were all the default. And you are right I was not even close to being motivated to accept the invitations.

By: SEO Tips South Africa

SEO Tips South Africa — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 11:10:48 +0000

I am in total agreement with you John. That extra bit is what makes your offering memorable. One has to strive to rise above the standard fare being dished out, let’s face it, this is about building and cementing relationships….

By: pays to live green

pays to live green — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 22:32:04 +0000

I agree with you John that it is very bad to only leave the default message when adding a professional friend. This is extra critical if you were to add a boss. This is a similar idea to making sure to write emails that are well thought out. Many people forget that emails are just another form of a letter and spoken language should not be used in them.

By: Aaron Mangal

Aaron Mangal — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 16:07:53 +0000

Thanks John!

To be honest I think this is just a typical case of cyber-complacency. It’s REALLY easy to be lazy about small details like that…and I’m sure many people don’t realize the depth of their “boring” impact.

What you’ve done for me is reframe that “small detail” as an essential piece to building a business and brand.

By: John Jantsch

John Jantsch — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 15:50:23 +0000

I guess the real point of this post is simply to address a marketing 101 principle. In my case most of the invitations are from people I don’t know so this is my first impression of them. The question is this – when you are trying to make a positive first impression, do you send generic or something that gets attention? That’s the only point I’m making here – in the end it all comes down to your objectives.

By: Daria Steigman

Daria Steigman — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 15:28:36 +0000

Hi John,

I agree completely, and I’ve never understood why people can’t take 1-2 minutes to personalize an e-mail.

For those of you who disagree, think about it this way: 1) social media is about engagement, and that means you have to be authentic; and 2) It’s not about me, it’s about how I perceive you.

By: JudyAnn Lorenz

JudyAnn Lorenz — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 15:18:31 +0000

I’m going to wade in here once more to defend the practice. Social media networking for me is ‘all about me’. When I follow someone, it is because I have looked at them and perceive I can learn or gain from the connection. When I ask someone to connect on LinkedIn or be a friend on FaceBook who is not family or longtime friends…the biz network, I choose them because I want you guys to all just get bug eyed that I know this other person. I write them a little note that says I would be so pleased to connect with them and add small info that lets them relate to me, such as “I learned about you from —, who always speaks well of you.” My goal is to be the red leaf blowing around among the many brown ones among their connections. They will most likely never see me in person. Maybe never have much more connection with me, but when my update goes by, I hope that early note, helps them to remember me. So, there, now you know the ugly, manipulative truth.

By: Frances Leyland

Frances Leyland — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 15:08:25 +0000

I’m with Hilary Topper. I really dont care whether people alter the boilerplate friend requests. Most custome written requests I get seem to be of of the spammy kind anyway.

Is it because there are no tried and tested rules for socializing on the internet that everyone seems to get so hot and bothered about the ‘right’ way to do things?