Archive for April, 2007
Protect Consumer Rights, Become a Citizen Blogger
Step 1 Learn the meaning of the word “Branding”.
Branding means to stigmatize. Whichever way you choose to look at it, from a regular everyday use of the word, to the marketing version, it still means to stigmatize.
Businesses work very hard to stigmatize their products & services. We see branding in action every time we turn on the television & view a commercial, turn on the radio & hear an advertisement, see a billboard with a half naked woman advertising condoms or a miracle sex ‘enhancer’, or turn on our computer & see ’sponsored links’ with every Google search.
Branding has been of benefit to the marketplace because they understand that we fall easily into the hands of a cheap smile, a handshake, talk of ethics, a supposed ‘bargain’, & temptation to possess what the joneses possess.
They largely rely on consumer WOM, which means word-of-mouth advertising. They send the consumer a temptation, the consumer goes to his/her neighbors, friends, and family with kudos for their “Must have” product or service.
The more times we see their logos, their billboards, their campaigns, the more we are enticed. This is THEIR branding, THEIR marketing process. THEIR stigmatization burned into our minds at night, while we tally up our bills to see just how much we may have left for that product or service. Or while we send ourselves into debt, financially, physically, mentally, & emotionally.
The problem is, there is far more marketplace stigmatization/branding than there is citizens branding their voices, concerns, and interests.
The marketplace knows this which is why there are fewer and fewer satisfied customers yet an explosion of unethical marketers, poorly constructed products, and a lack of consumer relations. (PR) Complaint departments make it more difficult for the consumer to have their needs met due to red tape, refunding hassles, or plain old dismissal of complaints altogether.
Online, the marketplace drill is typically to ‘talk’ about transparency & customer satisfaction while, at the same time, neglecting or even bringing the complainant to shame with reprimands, blatant lies, or tactical SEO strategies designed to hide complaints from search engine query results.
Step 2
How can we fight back? How can we, the consumer ensure our voices are heard?
This where the fun part comes in.
We too, have the ability to do as the marketplace does. It is called citizen blogging and citizen marketing.
We can market our voices, our ideas, and our complaints using the same education as they have available to them. In fact, the same forums, communities, blogs and social networks that are available to them, for free, are available to us.
If we utilize what they are teaching to their fellow marketers, we can leverage the playing field. Shifting the stigma/branding to our favor, which of course, is the last thing they want you, the customer, to know or understand. but beware of falling into a trap.
As you begin to read their marketing blogs, you will be tempted to see them as human beings who care about you, your friendship and the like. This is most likely to persuade you into not wanting to rock the boat with your opinions or consumer activism. Just try to keep in mind, that you are there to PROTECT the consumer at all costs, NOT to earn a buck.
It’s best to go in with the understanding that they will do or say anything to please their cohorts and their companies who pay their bills. They will see you only as a ‘friends’ if you have something productive to offer them.
They work very hard to blog and utilize social networks for submission of their articles, videos, and such. The view you as free submission tools and support vessels, as opposed to viewing you as a human being with real feelings, a family member, neighbor or consumer deserving of true care.
Once you have this understanding, as negative as it may seem, you are ready to learn how they tick, ultimately empowering you with an educated voice.
Step 3
Create a blog & join like-minded enthusiast communities. This is called utilizing social media & networking. Social media may sound like an intimidating word, but it’s actual definition is quite simple.
Social Media is “the use of internet platforms and tools which enable interaction and communication between users.”
In fact, the first email ever sent, the first website ever created, the microblogging tools we use, commenting, and every other form of interaction with people on a global scale or in your backyard by way of the internet, has been by the use of what is referred to as Social Media today.
A blog is a terrific place to start. If you are unsure how to start a blog, feel free to contact me, and I can easily walk you through the process either by email or IM. I’ll never ask you for a penny or to purchase any sort of product/service.
There are plenty of free blogging platforms:
Social Actions
Wordpress
Blogger
Are a few of many.
Once you begin expressing your voice, exposing bad marketers/marketing strategies that you disagree with, etc, you’ll be doing the world a favor by helping to brand the marketplace with true voices, and discrediting the marketers/marketplace strategies that have gotten away with too much in the world.
It begins with deceit from an average joes blog and moves into the corporate settings which cause global damage, such as Wal Mart & Coca Cola for example.
Read the truth about them here:
Wake Up Wal Mart.com
Killer Coke.org
If there’s a problem or complaint, begin to voice it online in any way you can. If they get away with one thing, it will only expand. We must hold them accountable.
YOU are all you’ve got to protect you. Find more you’s. Like me & other concerned citizens.
Speak up!
Online Investment Frauds Exposed
control of your investments has never been easier, but there are some online investment frauds you should know about. There’s a wealth of information online about stocks, companies, and their investment possibilities. Uncovering which information is worth paying attention to and which information is misleading, however, can be tricky.
Frauds to Look Out For
One common investment fraud is when a site or emailed newsletter recommends hot stock picks that aren’t actually hot—it’s really just in someone else’s best interests to get the stock sold. While not even true experts can promise a return on an investment, these recommendations aren’t usually even smart picks. Many online newsletters will accept payments to tout certain stocks over others, and your portfolio may pay the real price for the misinformation. What complicates this issue is that there are legitimate newsletters offering expert picks on stocks, but weeding through all of the information can be time consuming. It’s a good idea to check with your financial planner to see if there are sites or newsletters that he or she recommends.
Another familiar online investment fraud occurs on bulletin boards. If you are scoping the Internet for leads on good investments, you may come across sites where people are talking up a company or its assets. While it can be exciting to get in early on a good thing, these leads are usually false. People sometimes band together to spam a bulletin board and chat about a certain opportunity. It may look like a variety of people are recommending the prospect, when in reality this is a planned attack of misinformation geared to lure you into investing poorly. The opportunity, in all likelihood, is not the next big thing, even though the dishonest people behind the push to promote it want you to think it is.
How to Guard Yourself from Online Investment Frauds
- Learn how to acquire and analyze financial data. Public records can give you important data about the solvency and future of a company, and being able to review it puts you ahead of the pack.
- Check the stock history of the company and of other businesses the CEOs have run. Did those companies also make money? This can’t tell you what the current company will do, but good management practices can make or break a business.
- Find a broker or financial expert to discuss stock choices with. With current technology, you can choose how involved you wish the expert to be in your portfolio, but the expert’s goal is to make you money, especially since many of them make a percentage of your earnings.
And as the adage goes, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Look into potential investments with care, and ask the experts if you need to. Online investment frauds are out there, but with a bit of research and some healthy skepticism, you can make the most of your investments and your time.