Social Media Networks for Business Use at Web 2.0 Expo

PC World posted a great video that explains three new social media offerings from the Web 2.0 expo: itDuzzit, Engage, and Socialtext.  All three of these tools are designed to make it easier for companies to use social media to improve their overall business.  Click the link below to view the video.

Social Media Networks for Business Use at Web 2.0 Expo

It's great to see applications like these bringing businesses over to social media.  This is where smart developers will be focusing much of their efforts for the foreseeable future.

Who's To Blame?

Monday I wrote a post about a teenager's use of shady sales tactics.  I got several comments here and on LinkedIn, and everyone agrees that it's incredibly sad that teenagers and young adults are taught to use sleazy sales methods.  I couldn't agree more.  There will always be companies that view sales as a zero-sum game, and unfortunately they often hire eager young people to do their dirty work.

But shouldn't the kid take a share of the blame?  After all, he's the one tricking people to into buying magazines they don't want. 

We don't overlook an adult's use of rotten sales methods just because that's how his company trained him, and I think the same standard applies here.  If a 10 year old tries to trick me into buying candy bars I can blame her age, but a teenager should know better than to manipulate people for his own gain.

Does anyone agree with my assessment, or am I judging this kid too harshly?

Shady Salesperson

Friday a teenager rang my doorbell.  Usually when kids come to my door they're trying to sell me crap that I don't want, but as I prepared to say "no thanks" he let me know that his motives were not financial.  He told me he was in a group for young entrepreneurs, and as part of an effort to practice speaking in public his assignment was to go door-to-door and introduce himself.

They were having a contest, and if I voted for him it would help him win a trip to Europe.  He was very charismatic, and since entrepreneurship is near and dear to my heart I agreed to vote for him.  I figured he'd then direct me to a website to vote, and he could then begin planing his European vacation.  That's when he informed me that to "vote" I would need to purchase a magazine subscription! Not surprisingly I turned him down.

There will always be individuals and companies that are willing to do anything to make a sale.  This kid tried to dupe me into purchasing a subscription to a magazine I didn't want, and I'm sure his methods worked on plenty of other people.  I'm guessing the kid was duped into believing he has a real shot at winning an all expenses paid trip to Europe (assuming there is a trip) if he can sell more subscriptions than anyone else. 

I hope the kid learns one day that tricking people into buying from you doesn't make you a salesperson; it makes you a con artist.