How to Spam Leverage a Network

Okay, I know that spammers aren’t really going to read this, but legitimate webmasters can promote their blogs on social networks like MyBlogLog, too. But you gotta do it the right way if you don’t want to be labeled a “SchMOe.”

So, when using any social network to try to appeal to someone to visit, read or link to your content, here’s some good ideas:

• Figure out if you’re in anyway relevant to their site—and especially if you’re a “competitor.” If you occupy the exact same space, your target might still be interested. However, if you occupy a completely different space, really, deeply contemplate whether that SEO blog will link to your carburettor blog.
• Make it clear that you actually have been to their site: add a real comment that adds value to the conversation on their site, or reference a recent article in your note to them. If they have a MyBlogLog widget, be sure you’re in their recent readers list.
• A general rule: don’t request a link exchange. If your post and your pitch are good enough and relevant enough, they’ll probably link to you. Same goes for adding as Technorati favorites, joining MyBlogLog communities, etc.

MyBlogLog has some advice that can apply to many social networks:

Sure, you want to gain more viewers, but is sending out thank you messages to every person who views your profile the right way to do it? If you were in their shoes, would you want a thank you from every site you visited online? I think you might think that was a little creepy to have several dozen thank you emails in your inbox every time you checked your email.

Sure, you want people to notice that picture of a hot girl on your avatar (whether or not it’s you), but would you be impressed by that? Would you click that avatar? Agreed that you may see an attractive avatar and think it’s hot, but what would be your first impression of the person who needed to resort to the ‘hot chick’ gimmick to make you notice them?

Naturally, part of the reason spammers don’t want to do this is that it’s time consuming to actually target your message to its recipients—but when you’re targeting human beings, it’s much more effective to relate to them in a human way.