Honesty is Still the Best Policy, Even on the Internet
Everyone who has dabbled in blogging, website creation, social media or freelance knows that presence is power on the web. And presence means influence and money. Twitter is perhaps a prime example of this principle. It is made up of people trying to get their voices heard, people trying to create an online presence so they can use that presence to their advantage. This may sound negative, but it’s not meant to be. If you want to be successful on the internet, you need presence. It’s what gets you clicks on your links, google ranking, and clients for your business. But the ways people go about creating that presence are sometimes tasteless, fishy, or just plain aggravating. At the end of the day, the best way to gain influence online is by being honest.
I don’t follow a ton of blogs, but the ones I do follow all have something in common: I have confidence in the author. Felicia at No Job For Mom is probably my favorite blogger (this isn’t shameless flattery). She inspires confidence in her readership. If Felicia says something, I believe it, and so do many many other people on the web. She is personable (she responds quickly and helpfully to emails and comments) and knowledgeable. This is most certainly one of the reasons she is successful. Her readers believe in and confide in her because she has spent time building her online presence by being honest, forthcoming, and hard-working. She, and many other bloggers of her kind, will always have my confidence over someone who spams me on Twitter about how this or that method worked for him.
I guess what I’m trying to say is, don’t fall prey to the fast and easy method of gaining presence on the internet. When it’s all said and done, taking the time to do things right is what leads to influence and following.
