Beware the Charlatans
It pains me to write on this topic. I sincerely thought that the basic tenet of Social Media – transparency – was becoming well understood among marketers. But, the experience I’m about to describe makes me think that abuse of this principle may actually be widespread. I feel angry and naive.
All names – and even industries – have been changed to protect the innocent (and I daresay “the guilty” get a pass too, as a result).
We signed a new client: a start-up with grand ambitions for touting their high-quality, respectable services to consumers. The executives of this company are thoughtful, experienced and down-to-earth. They also (blessedly) know what they don’t know, and turn to outside experts where appropriate.
Among the marketing approaches that the client claims no expertise on is SEO. So, they hired an SEO agency.
Within a few days, quite coincidentally, I start seeing new spam comments edging into my blog filter. Normally I delete these without a 2nd thought, but, these spam comments are of the type that make you think twice before deleting, i.e., they almost sound relevant to the blog posts.
So I double-check. Yup – definitely spam: the commenter “name” is clearly not legitimate. But the URL they provide? It is my new clients’ URL!
We immediately call the client execs. They had no idea that their new SEO firm was spamming the blogosphere to boost their Google Juice. They call the SEO guys with a cease-and-desist command.
And then, it gets worse.
After noting ominously that ending the blog spam campaign will hinder a fast rise in the Google rankings, the SEO agency exec nonetheless agrees to pull the plug on the blog spam… but, he counters with “another great idea.”
“Instead of the blog spam, we could have our employees post anonymously on blogs about needing a service similar to your offering… and then return a day later, posing as a customer who’s been happy with your services.”
I wrote about this slimy technique almost a year ago, and had been heartened to NOT hear much about such tactics again until this recent episode. Thankfully our new clients put the kaibosh on this campaign… but, I can’t help but wonder how many clueless and/or evil SEO and PR agencies are engaged in such foul practices.
To be clear: this fraudulent tactic must be called-out whenever we see it, because if it gains a foothold, all of the good work being done in Social Media will be poisoned by consumer doubts about authenticity.
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Comments
When we were searching for a new SEO partner this year we found that most of the big firms employed this kind of link-spamming as part of their program.
Of the 5-6 firms we talked to, all but one recommended this as a "white hat" tactic to increase page rank to increase SERP placement.
Guess which of the firms we went with?
Posted by: Greg Hollingsworth | September 30, 2008 11:04 AM
Good communication is based on trust and it's a process -- not an event.
I was just thinking about this topic and blogging on it too after reading Brian Solis's post on the state of social media. Scary because trust is something that takes a long time to build but can be torn down overnight. The client is lucky to have a vigilant and proactive PR firm.
They're also lucky you don't use names here because otherwise, this blog post would be on their permanent Google record and how ironic would that be?!
Posted by: Julie Wright | September 30, 2008 11:36 AM
This has come up around my office a lot lately. I'm hearing requests to create a fake persona on SM groups or create completely manufactured conversations.
Sure it may boost their Google rank for a while, but who wants to have a high rank pointing to a bunch of lies? In the end it will bite back 1000%.
Posted by: Janet | September 30, 2008 11:40 AM
I know I should not be surprised since we've seen this stuff through the years but...WOW. Too bad these guys are hidden because the way they are doing business is a sad statement on their lack of knowledge and ethics.
/kff
Posted by: Kyle | September 30, 2008 11:50 AM
All i have to say is WOW ... i can't believe people do this type of stuff when they are a 'legitimate' business.
--
http://twitter.com/franswaa
Posted by: frank | September 30, 2008 11:53 AM
Todd
You'll be glad to know that as part of our in-house training on social media for all PR staff, such practices have been discussed and pinpointed as not only counterproductive but plain stupid. Naughty boys and girls may have seen this work for them elsewhere in the past, but this is definitely not an arena in which to hoodwink the customer, if you want your reputation to remain intact.
Posted by: Jon Clements | September 30, 2008 12:41 PM
Yikes. I can't believe someone would think this kind of sleaze is a good idea. High-five to the client who stood up and said no to SEO scumbags.
Posted by: Amanda Gravel | September 30, 2008 01:12 PM
Great post and it's so true. Sadly, it's still running rampant. I get calls from SEO agencies that want to partner with us and they inevitably end up sounding like hit men -- "we have people that can post things in places ..."
Posted by: Tonja | September 30, 2008 01:36 PM
Sometimes when you've been preaching transparency for so long, it's just jaw-dropping when someone comes along and suggests astroturfing as "a great idea". Even with a crack down in Europe, it's pretty disappointing to know that there are still those out there willing to manipulate the web like that - and charge for it! I don't think you should feel naive on this one, it's safe to say that a lot of us working in social media assume that most of our peers are on the same page.
Posted by: Lewis Webb | September 30, 2008 01:56 PM
But what do you do if the "charlatan" is a well-known "social media guru" already embedded in the community?
Posted by: Mich | September 30, 2008 04:32 PM
Mich,
A very smart person once told me; the best way to deal with somebody like that is to ignore their existence completely. Blackhatters thrive on being outed for doing things that get them "banned from Google" etc. because people who work MLM schemes actually like that.
Ignore them, don't recommend them and if asked for a reference a simple "I'd rather not" will send your message.
Posted by: Janet | September 30, 2008 04:53 PM
Excellent expose Todd!
I think the main thing to consider is that we've (the royal 'social media/pr we') only just begun to change our habits. It's now our job to educate the other industries that continue to misuse opportunity.
I've just (just too late to beat you!) finished a post about applying relationship skills to networking.
Best,
Jed
Posted by: Jed Hallam | September 30, 2008 05:22 PM
I think Lewis is right. We just assume everyone else (particularly with professional credentials) believes in transparency online too.
I remember Paull Young saying he was speaking at a conference once and the SEO guy speaking before him said that companies should engage in the tactics you've mentioned above. Not only was he openly admitting it, he was advising it to a group of people as best practice.
Good call.
Posted by: Stephen Davies | September 30, 2008 05:49 PM
In the UK (and indeed all of Europe that has implemented the EU directive) this is illegal and could even land the directors of the company in jail. The new Consumer Protection Regulations outlaw a number of dubious practices.
Posted by: Stuart Bruce | October 1, 2008 04:41 AM
one of the services we provide for our clients is blogger outreach. when our clients see their competitors discussed in the comments, they inevitably ask, "what can we do about this?" with an eye towards spamming.
we've had to educate several clients on proper blog etiquette, and thankfully (and to their credit), they have all seen the light on how blogs work.
sad to see other firms seeking the shortcut path, rather than striving for excellence through hard work and talent.
Posted by: Matt | October 1, 2008 09:24 AM
I am concerned about posting a comment for fear it my be viewed as a fraud or spam attempt.
Thanks for a terrific insight into the underbelly of SEO.
Martin
Posted by: Martin Diano | October 6, 2008 03:23 PM
Ok, so I'm looking for an SEO company that plays nicely. Anyone can recommend a good one?
Thanks,
a
Posted by: Alex | October 13, 2008 02:21 PM