Most Internet users can be, promoting themselves and their businesses to tens, hundreds and even thousands of people yet many of these “promotions” are actually “demotions.” With a few clicks of your mouse, most Internet users can become viral in minutes, promoting themselves and their businesses to tens, hundreds and even thousands of people. We see this everyday on Facebook, You-Tube, X and the list goes on and on. My observation is that many of these “promotions” are actually “demotions.” Some are hurting themselves and wrecking their personal brand. Here are a few examples that come to mind.

1. The Copycats… see people posting opportunities and then copy and re-post the same content themselves. How original, like they don’t share many of the same friends who already saw the same posting minutes earlier. If you’re trying to promote yourself as a leader, this could be a problem, because you clearly are a follower.

2. The Dead-Horse Beaters… feel they have to remind people 2-3 times a week why their products/services are the best. With every post, expect to lose “friends” and “followers”.

3. Unhealthy looking people promoting health products… You-Tube, need I say more?

4. The Overnight “Expert”… bought into someone’s mentoring program, now they are mentors and experts… hmmm. They are offering to help me build my business. I wonder what kind of success they have had in the past? Dare I ask? Don’t these people know that anybody can Google their names?

5. The Narcissist… lives on Facebook, inviting anyone with a pulse to “Friend up.” I don’t respond to individuals who invite me to be their fans.

6. The Consultant… knows all about this, and all about that until you get them on a call and ask them secondary questions.

7. The Drone… simply repeats whatever they hear (see copycats)

8. The Braggart… It’s 3 PM and I just played 18 holes of golf because I can! Overdone statements lead to resentment and distrust.

So how can we promote our business and ourselves in a positive way?

1. Be Honest…people who can relate to you will communicate with you. Telling somebody you made $472.16 last month in your biz opp. is much more powerful than telling people you make $25,000 a month doing xyz.

2. Be Authentic… most people are used to being pitched via the radio, television and internet everyday, you don’t want to sound like a commercial or something you aren’t. Telling people you have the best ever xyz, just makes you sound like everyone else.

3. Gain Trust by sharing your both joys and your pain.

4. Don’t be Tentative… if you can’t be authentic about your service/product, you need to find another one. If your posture in the marketplace is tentative, you will get eaten alive out there.

5. Associate with Winners… I don’t necessarily mean large income earners either. Winners are good people. Good people attract other good people and repel the bad guys.

6. Watch your Frequency… The frequency of your posts, tweets, and pings as well as the energy behind what your ‘e conveying.

7. Have a Strategy… what are your trying to accomplish? What future messages are you planning to deploy. Everything should be done with a reasonable goal in mind. Blasting out a great video about a service or product should only be part of the process.

8. Zig While Others Zag… you want to be memorable and relevant. Be creative and operate within your strategy.