Part 2: How To Network Efficiently On Forums
- Yeah, go network a bit now!
Here comes the second and last part of “How To Network Efficiently On Forums”:
I’ll continue with the bullet list:
- “Show them what you got” – Focus on a few skills you’re good at
Whenever you are talking to someone, make sure they know what you are good at, and which services you provide. You might even tell them directly, so they realize they can use you any time. This makes you one of the first persons to consider, when they need what you offer.
- Make people know what they might need you for
This is almost the same as the one above. But this goes for using your network as well. So if you tell them you know a great webdesigner, a good article writer etc., they will ask you for help, and you will be able to help them. This is beneficial both to the one they need, and the one needing help, since they get new customers, and might even become friends. – So your network becomesmore “glued up”, meaning your friends are friends with each other as well, which is good for bigger projects.
- Tell them why to use you. ( not 100% direct though)
Tell the people you are talking with, why they should use YOU instead of anyone else. It’s imprtant not to be too forward on this one. You could for example say “Well, contrary to other article writers that charge $8 per article, I also do keyword research and I’m an expert at SEO, so my articles always rank high. That is why it takes a bit more time to write articles, and I have a few ones coming up, so I won’t be able to accept any new tasks before Tuesday.” This is an example for an article writer to discretly tell people why they are better than others.
Not really a great example, but I hope you get the point. In this context, it could be when someone asks for a trade of services, like linkbuilding for article writing etc. Note! Keep in mind that you should always be honest to the ones you do this with. Donæt make things up.
- Answer as quickly as possible
By answering PM’s and questions quickly, you show people that you are easy to contact, and they are more likely to provide you with tasks of importance to them. This is really important for most Im services, as marketers like to get things done fast and effective. And it’s always good to be accesible, in case they need adjustments at anything fast.
- Give people links to websites they might need – Ups your usefullnes and credibility
Kind of self explanatory, but I’ll explain anyways =)
Simply give people links to websites you think they might need. Affiliate links lowers credibility, and regular links builds it.
However, very few people mind it if you give them affiliate links after you have given them great advice, as long as it is affiliate links to products/services you sencerely think they should get. And if you also give them your affiliate link and tell them it’s your affiliate link, along with a direct non-affiliate link, they will click your affiliate link 99% of the time =) I mean, what’s more credible than doing that?!?
- Always be honest. – Tricking people into believing that you are and awesome copywriter or graphics designer will quickly show
I can’t stress this enough. Honesty when networking pays you back in tenfolds.
If anyone asks you to write their salesletter, and you have never done it before – Tell them! Just say you have read a bit about it, but never have made one (if it’s true of course), but that you are willing to try. Then they won’t have as high expectations, and anything you do will be better than expected.
- Have fate in people. – Paying before you get a service is not smart, getting paid before doing a service is not smart either
By showing that you trust someone, they will trust you back.
So my tip here, is to not pay before you get a service, unless it’s from a famous service provider. – And they usually have 50% now and 50% later.
So paying after you get a service done for you, is what I recommend for smaller businesses, as there are dishonest people out there, as well as bad services.
But getting paid before you have done something for others is not a good idea either, at it puts a lot more pressure on you, as well as you can always protect your work anyways. – Like putting up a “sample” text on graphics in the jpeg etc. before you give it to your customer.
- Give people reason to trust you
For example in this blog, I slaughtered “the top secret magic code” which is something very few people do, because it converts so well and they’re greedy. The fact that I’m telling you about how I increase my credibility is another credibility factor as well! – Honesty all the way!
So give people a good reason to trust you, and they will.
- Ask good questions, follow the forum rules, and search before you ask. – People might get mad if you don’t.
Simple guidelines to have success in forums.
Never brake the rules, never spam, post in the right section, and search before you ask simple questions.
This is really important, as there are a lot of people who will go mad if you don’t, and you might get banned, or get other disadvantages.
- NEVER make enemies – They could easily ruin your reputation or do bad things for you.
To ruin someone’s reputation online isn’t really that hard if you have a reason for it. Especially if you have some authority on a forum.
So whenever you “almost” get into a fight with someone on a forum, stop it. It will do none of you any good. And if they happen to be extremely stubborn, just apologize. That’s “the easy way out”, and you avoid any problems.
Now, I’m not telling you to not tell people about your own opinions, but stop it if it evolves to a fight.
That’s it for networking on forums!
I hope you enjoyed it and learned something!
Check out part one here: Networking On Forums Part 1
Anything you want to add, or anything you want to know more about?
- Preben
December 10th, 2008 at 10:21 pm
Totally agree Preben.
Over the years I have met a lot of nice people on forums, helped a lot of people out, and have found a great amount of information as well.
I have also made a nice amount of income from people clicking to my offer in my signature link on there, as well as people sending private messages asking for help when they realize you know what you are talking about.
Networking on forums is gold, no two ways about it.
Cheers
Tim
Tim Buchalka’s last blog post..The Ten Essential Wordpress Plugins For Internet Marketers
December 12th, 2008 at 6:49 pm
Awesome, thanks for this Preben. Would you be interested in writing a guest post for Flabble based upon using forums?
- Tom
December 12th, 2008 at 7:45 pm
Sure =)
I can’t say I’m an “expert” in forums in general, but I know a bit about mostly everything. Just tell me a topic, and I’ll do it ;o)
– Preben
December 14th, 2008 at 7:15 pm
Nice article I picked up a few useful tips. Keep up the great work. Maybe I missed it but people should make sure their signature’s are updated and they are branding themselves.
Paul’s last blog post..The Secret To Beating Your Competition
January 9th, 2009 at 12:52 am
Networking on forums is a great way to show people that you are a good resource for your specific field and that they can turn to you for great information. It is a great way to promote your business without really spending any money.
January 28th, 2009 at 4:45 pm
What I think,
the good thing is to remain honnest and tell its own opinion. Then you might create discussions and people will believe in you!
I have been posting a lot, and from my experience i know what i am saying, people are not stupid and immediately notice it!
anyway, your posts about it are good and it is nice reading this blog, thanks!!!!
February 13th, 2009 at 12:49 pm
The problem with all those forum is that they are mainly used by people wililng to promote something. Therefore, the information is not really reliable, I think!
Olivia
February 13th, 2009 at 5:20 pm
Yes, that’s really important as well. But your sig won’t do you much good if all you do is spam and harass people, so this post is mainly about how you should behave on forums for networking.
Of course, If you want JV’s, It’s important to have a compelling signature =)
– Preben
February 13th, 2009 at 5:21 pm
Exactly my point!
It’s free, and it really pays off in the long run. Especially if you can find forums without nofollow…
February 13th, 2009 at 5:23 pm
Thank you for the kind words =)
You are totally right about being honest, but I would not recommend to always say what you mean if you know most people will be against you. But as long as you stay honest and don’t end up arguing, it will all suit you well in the end.
February 13th, 2009 at 5:25 pm
Well that might be for some. But the warriorforum for example is a great resource.
Almost everyone are trying to sell you something, but most people over there understands the importance of credibility, and are most likely to help you, and brand themselves.
There is also a way of telling whether people are nice or not, by looking at how many “thanks” they have. Of course, they can be credible without it, but you can be certain they are if many people are thanking them. – This means they are often helping people with problems as well.
– Preben
February 23rd, 2009 at 9:53 pm
Nice post, those are some great ideas in order to network more efficiently to build your reputation. thanks for the awesome tips.
March 4th, 2009 at 12:03 pm
Intersting post indeed. But I agree to Olivia – you cannot be sure if the person offering content in a forum is a spammer or somebody just using the forum for commercial reasons. That really makes the information unreliable.
March 4th, 2009 at 5:04 pm
Well, if people tend to agree (people who have more than 30 posts), and if what they say makes sense, it shouldn’t be a problem.
Many people are using forums for commercial reasons, but that doesn’t mean they are spamming or lying.
I think most people will agree that you are more likely to buy from someone who helps yourself and other people, instead of people spamming.
And if they are spamming, people wil most likely report them anyways.
Thank you for all comments folks! I’m glad you appreciate my posts =)
– Preben
March 12th, 2009 at 7:13 pm
Finally something new for me to learn and I am already subscribed. You can contact me if you need to.
June 29th, 2009 at 11:46 am
Thank you for this post!
It was really helpful. Now, I hope to network properly on forums and blogs. People should post interesting informations that help other people to learn sth new or maybe to improve their knowledge in other areas.
Cheers
August 5th, 2009 at 12:44 pm
Nice post, thank you. I think the last point “NEVER make enemies – They could easily ruin your reputation or do bad things for you” is the most importatant one.
August 5th, 2009 at 3:16 pm
[...] Networking on Forums – Probably One of The Most Essential Skills in Internet Marketing – Part 2 [...]
August 6th, 2009 at 2:22 pm
Don’t make enemies – one of the importantest rules anyway. In the time of web 2.0 only one enemy can destroy your whole idea.
October 14th, 2009 at 5:31 am
Excellent tips!
I will add some more views of my own on couple of points you made.
Tell them why to use you. ( not 100% direct though):
Your example was good but just make sure your facial expressions are right as well and you don’t sound too desperate or really the one who’s trying to impress or asking for work. It may work and it may not and can really put off your potential buyer. So have to be a bit careful on this one.
Have fate in people. – Paying before you get a service is not smart, getting paid before doing a service is not smart either:
I will go on with paying upon the % of work done. Like paying 10% upfront for the person to start work, then keep paying him/her whenever he reaches next 10% mark of the project. It’ll make sure that both get benefit, neither the employer runs away after completion of project nor your employee will be lazy in working.
Overall, it’s a very good article buddy. Thank you
October 19th, 2009 at 11:47 pm
Lol, when networking on forums, you don’t need to show them your facial expressions unless it’s a video conference – Which is extremely rare. It’s a valid point for when you actually DO meet them face to face though ;o)
Your suggestion about the 10% is pretty good. Especially for bigger projects. But for a bit smaller ones, I think it’s more normal with 50% up-front, then 50% after. At least if you’re working with other companies. It’s actually a great benefit, as they will consider you a more serious company.
But yeah, 10% for bigger loads of work is great =)
Thanks for your comment!
October 23rd, 2009 at 7:12 pm
Thank you for the excellent tips. I am sure novice guys like me who are striving hard to socialize and market their business will be reap huge benefits from your blog post. I am going to share it with my feed reader so that my friends can also have a glimpse of your post and get enlightened. Thanks again for your effort.
Girish@Car Rental Auckland´s last blog ..Rugby World Cup Car Rentals
October 25th, 2009 at 11:54 am
I like the last part, NEVER MAKE ENEMIES! LOL One newbie in the forum asked for my service. It’s actually a very uncommon work, so the tendency on my part is to ask lots of questions (these are not actually questions that can irritate him, but more on verification of the work flow). These questions can really help me to do my job based on his expectation plus the fact that it’s my first time to do that kind of job. Then I don’t know, maybe on some part of that list of verification questions, I misunderstood his instruction. He just gave me a reply answering in a very rude manner. As if he’s scolding me if we are facing each other. Of course, I won’t tolerate that action, so I made a reply, and it go like this “That’s why I’m asking you to clarify things to avoid any problem in the future. I’m not interested anymore!” He never replied back again.
The lesson here is that, never be too rude to other people. Not because you’re buying their service, you can be disrespectful to them anytime you want.
Paul Jean´s last blog ..Toned Abs: Debunking the Myths that Hold you Back
October 27th, 2009 at 4:39 pm
Yeah, if someone is rude to me in a forum, I usually just ignore them. Or, I might stand up for myself if I know I’m right and readers of the thread does the same.
Unreasonable rudeness in forums should be hit hard! And in that case,it won’t really matter that much to make that person “an enemy”, as they can’t really mess up that much for you if no-one is listening to them in the first place ;o)
– Preben
November 16th, 2009 at 3:26 pm
“Always be HONEST!” Not all people working online could be very honest to their clients or to their providers. Some tend to take advantage, while some maintain to be honest. This is precisely the main reason why it’s very hard to trust people whom you work online.
“Never make enemies.” This point isn’t only applicable online, but also in our everyday lives. Making enemies without any justifiable reason is very much unhealthy to everybody. Learn how to communicate with others politely.
January 14th, 2010 at 11:31 am
*Answer as quickly as possible
- Update your client once in a while. Tell them that you’ll be on delay or not. Then from there, set an expected time when he/she will receive your report. Otherwise, ask for an apology if you didn’t make it possible (take note: only if you have valid reason why you are on delay).
*Give people links to websites
- I’ve created a free blog that contains all my previous works from my previous clients.
*Always be honest
- Pretending to be smart will automatically come out once you start working. Most people I’m dealing with the forums have this problem.
*Have fate in people
- Learn how to gamble. Avoid being paranoid. The only precaution you can do is to deal with people who have good reputation. Find ways to know their credibility.
Harrison Stuart´s last blog ..Spying on Your Spouse’s PC- Right or Wrong?
January 18th, 2010 at 5:43 pm
You can’t beat good behaviour and etiquette! This applies to the internet, too!
January 22nd, 2010 at 2:11 pm
i thinkj it is a great way to promote the business without really spending any money.