Drives Me crazy.

Many marketers today do NOT let people really know what their true intentions are.

Case in point: I get a call from someone asking me to possibly help them with their social media strategies. I have a particular consulting focus and it was within that focus and I said that we should discuss it.

Well…about 3 minutes into it, they start pitching me on a PPC
program that I know is not that good. And they pitched…and pitched..and
pitched. Finally, I said, “Why didn’t you from the beginning just try and sell me this versus wasting my time with a bait and switch?”

THAT would be refreshing.

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On the other hand, I received an email recently about a service that
actually gave a couple of things about it that may not be what I need
and was upfront about it. It did not put the product down, but simply
said that these features may not be necessary for you. I thought that
was refreshing. And the person also said that they were an affiliate
with the company with full disclosure. They would make a profit from it
and wanted me to know. Wow! Now THAT was Rocking Hot! I bought the
service and like it very much. And the reason I purchased it?

The person was transparent and REAL.

People are looking for REAL people today in New Marketing. They are tired of the hacks out there that are simply hiding their real intentions and focus and creating a bait and switch.

What about you? Do you have a transparent focus and actions when you
are marketing? Why should you bother? First off, it is part of the Social Media culture, whether facebook or twitter. But it is also just integrity, which many folks seem to be lacking.

Transparency is a GREAT Success tool for marketers. It can help you in three powerful ways:

1) It builds immediate Trust and Connection.

People like people who are upfront and say what the true deal is.
They respect the person that fully discloses that they are a part of
something, or on a board, or own part of something. I have seen this
many times with people like Chris Brogan, Scott Monty, and Valeria Maltoni.

If you want to really get a person’s attention, then become totally
transparent and show you have nothing to hide- you believe that much in
what your message says and what your product does. You will see a great
impact on your efforts and future customers and business.

2) It shows that you are are operating in full Integrity, not just part.

Integrity in Social Media is everything. I have noticed in Internet marketing,
which we do a LOT of, it seems to be somewhat lacking with some people.
Social Media seems to be different. Integrity seems to be more of a
focus.

That is HOT! Because no matter what people say, they want Integrity
from the person they are doing business with, reading,listening to, or
watching. Integrity also has an amazing impact on your BRANDING. If you
get known to be a person of integrity, your brand will increase
dramatically out in the marketplace.

Become transparent- and you will be known and Branded for your integrity.

3) People are DRAWN TOWARDS what they perceive as OPENESS and Truth.

That is all transparency is in marketing- a MAGNET. Transparency
draws people towards you, and into what your message says. I was
reading recently a post by Valeria Maltoni, of the Conversation Agent blog,
about what draws people towards you, and she mentioned that Truth
always works. Amen! And becoming transparent in a way that IMPACTS
people with the Truth of who you are and what your company is about and
doing in the marketplace, will SET YOU APART from the other marketers
who for whatever reason, do not operate with such transparency.

Transparency is a POWER that marketers can use to show that they
have nothing to hide- and are NOT fearful of the word NO. I started
this blog 3 months ago- and the only reason is that I wanted to provide
some unique content for the social media arena as well as the Home
Business professional- and also to see if there was a possibility of
meeting some of the “big names” through the blog posts.

Why? I admire them and would love to be able to provide the power
they provide in this amazing social media zone. And- so far, I have had
numerous of what I guess could be considered the “big names” come by
and connect. Scott Monty. Chris Brogan. Shama Hyder (hi Shama!) Brian Clark. Valeria Maltoni. Carrie Wilkerson (this lady is one of the nicest people that walks this earth), among many others.

And that has made my writing more fun for me, as it shows that
although this blog currently has only a few subscribers-(NOTE: but
blessed with LOTS of readers on facebook, myspace, wetpaint, squidoo,
etc) it is getting folks to take a look at the content and hopefully is
helping some people. My goal is to have thousands of subscribers by the
end of 2009. We have a TON of subs on our training ezine- so hopefully
will here. Maybe the Lord will bless the efforts! What I just wrote- is
being transparent. And I hope that YOU as a marketer can see the power
in it.

4) Transparency carries with it IMPACT that people FEEL and are Moved by.

Marketers as a whole want to move people to think a certain way, and
to feel a certain way, and to act a certain way. In Social Media
marketing, that is the bullseye – if you can move people to do that in
the way that creates a success for you and the prospect. if you offer
full disclosure and are REAL with people, you will find that people can
FEEL that and are MOVED by that- instead of the same old pitch they get
a hundred times a day.

How about, “This is why that I am writing you, as I am a
marketer and believe very much that this product can help millions of
people. It is fairly priced and would love to get you to take a look at
it, and tell what you feel about it. Yes, I will profit from it, but so
will you with the Value that it offers.”

I wrote exactly that in a series of emails i sent out testing it
with a training product. I could not believe the response. I got a LOT
of emails back saying that the approach was refreshing and they
appreciated the honesty. Conversion rate? about 22%. Not bad for a test
on being transparent and open.

5) Transparency Lowers the Natural Resistance walls People often have.

If you want to reduce Resistance in your marketing efforts, become
transparent in your social media efforts. If you want to reduce the
number of Nos and increase the number of yeses, become transparent. if
you want to Connect with people in way that is immediate, become
transparent. If you want to reduce the number of visitors leaving your
site without purchasing anything- become real and let people see
through you and know who you are It will reduce the natural resistance
people have to marketers and marketing messages.

Does that go against the old ways of marketing? Yes, and I am sure
that there are some folks that will argue the point. But if you are
going to be in New Marketing, that is one of the foundational
principles.

Practice Transparency.

It will only work in your favor. One warning though- do NOT be
stupid about it and talk people out of the sale or message. I have seen
this before when it taken to an extreme and it works against you.   One
person made a list of all the bad things about their product- and made
not one sale. if you have to do that- find another product to market.

Just be upfront, and as a marketer, make sure that you operate in
full disclosure, and integrity with telling and showing you have
nothing to hide. And you will be glad that the Marketing Power of
Transparency will be adding fuel to your Social Media Marketing efforts.

blessings…Doug Firebaugh
PassionFire Training
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Editor’s note: this post was written by Doug Firebaugh of PassionFire International. If you’re passionate about social media, social media marketing and social networking lifestyle design, contact me about writing an article yourself.

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Welcome to the New Media Marketplace with the BLOG i360 system!

Ready To Unleash The Power Of Blogs in Your Business?

It’s been simmering below the surface for years and now this power shift has finally boiled over into simultaneous national recognition.

Like Goliath being slain with a lowly slingshot, the mainstream media (in the form of Dan Rather) came to the undeniable realization that they were no longer in control of information.

Within 30-minutes of that now infamous TV special on “60-Minutes II” broadcast bloggers were digging into the facts and questioning the validity of what had just been presented by the 42-year broadcast veteran. In less than one week, CBS admitted it could “no longer vouch” for the memos. And just weeks after the election, Rather announced his retirement and the blogosphere won another victory.

No matter what your political affiliation is, this incident is one very public example of the power of blogging. Blogging is quickly accelerating into a steeping, sloping growth curve of popularity and application. ABC News selected Bloggers as “People of the Year”, and Merriam-Webster declared “blog” its “word of the year.”

Putting the power of blogs to work for your business can have more an impact than you can imagine…and it’s easier than you might think.

It puts the power of information and the impact of influence in the hands of the “average Joe”. It makes instant publishing a reality regardless of your technical skill level. And it’s a business growth tool that the savvy small business owner can no longer afford to ignore.

The world’s oldest, most effective form of communication and marketing on steroids!

So why is blogging gaining popularity so quickly?  What’s the attraction?  And why is it so darn powerful?

The answer is quite simple when you consider history and human nature.

Blogging is an unstoppable technological force that exponentially multiplies the world’s oldest, most favorite, and most trusted form of information sharing — word of mouth.

Think about it.  Who do you trust the most to give you advice, recommendations, and information about opportunities, purchases, or choices?

If you’re like the vast majority of people, it’s the opinion of someone you know and trust. Someone who you feel is just like you. That type of trust comes from personal communication, social interaction, and the joining together of like-minded individuals.

Blogs and the blogging community deliver all that — and more.

Now is the time to master business blogging and put it to use for you! Do it before other proactive business owners step into your ideal niche and muscle you out of this primetime opportunity.

You can learn more about blogs and business blogging in particular at Blogi360

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