Don't Fake It Till You Make It

In High School the most popular kids were considered to be the ones with the most friends.  The introvert dungeons and dragon lover didn't even stand a chance.  The digital revolution has presented a whole new popularity contest to be won, online.  Social Media networks like Facebook conveniently show exactly how many "friends" someone has,  or in a businesses case, "fans."  But don't worry just yet, similar to most things in life, you can "fake it till you make it."

"I want YOU, to follow ME"

Facebook has stated that it believes, "there are now more than 83 million illegitimate accounts on the social network." This encompasses duplicate, pet (yes, my cat has one), and fake accounts used for spamming etc. From the seedy depths of the Social Media underbelly has emerged a new type of company that offers users Facebook and Twitter  followers all for mere dollars per thousand.  Celebrities, businesses and public figures have been outed for using such services to gain insta-popularity.  Mitt Romney is one of the recently accused whose Twitter account suspiciously grew overnight.  Information arose that claimed 1 in 4 of every new Romney followers had never even sent a Tweet.

This brings us back to one of the most important lessons we preach to our clients.  It's not about how many people "like" you,  it's about how many people "care" about you.  What's the point of having hundreds or thousands of un-engaged followers?  It's better to have 100 followers that interact, like, and care about your business than 1,000 that don't.

For more reading material on either of these subjects check out these great articles:

- Facebook & Illegitimate Accounts - BBC News
- Buying Twitter Followers - Fast Company

Written by: Jenna, Marketing Manager