I happen to like social networking to an extent. I belong to one popular site, but not any others. I like browsing through people's statuses, but I get so irritated and practically irate when I see people posting about the CRAP they are selling. I'm not talking about someone selling a couch they no longer want or an mp3 player or even a vehicle, I'm talking about companies that involve multi-level marketing and things of that nature.
Founded in 1886 and trademarked in 1932, Avon Products was an extremely popular multi-level marketing company that offered many skin care products, makeup, perfume, etc. It used to be that many women sold Avon...in fact, one of my grandmothers was one of them. Nowadays there is much more offered by Avon, but I still wouldn't buy anything from them because I'm really not into that sort of thing. The big difference between then and now was that most of these women would go door-to-door or call their friends on the phone to attempt to sell their products. Now it's all over the internet which makes it waaaaaaaay too easy to spread the word.
Lately it seems there has been an explosion of trendy business ventures out there offering women to become "consultants" to market and sell their products, while the promise of certain profit is looming over their heads. Companies such as Scentsy (2003), Mona Vie (2005), and more recently Thirty-One (which, incidentally, plays the "Christian" card: the name refers to the Bible's Proverbs 31) have sprung up what seems like overnight and women can't wait to get their hands on the products and sell them as quickly as possible.
The fact that these companies exist (whether I agree with their message or not is not up for discussion here) is not what bothers me. What bothers me is the fact that I am completely inundated with my "friends" promoting their products right in my face all day long. These "consultants" don't bother to create a separate group or page to promote their products, but rather take photos and post them and other updates to the social networking site for me to waste my time looking at their posts when I seriously couldn't care less about what they have to "offer" me. It is my preference that they create a separate page so that if I wanted to (even though personally I never would) I could add myself to that page so I could receive the updates that way instead of forcibly by way of my news feed.
One of my "friends" actually created a separate page to peddle her shit but then added every single female acquaintance on her existing page.... THEN told each of them if they added new women to the page they would be entered into a drawing to win some of her stupid shit! Without asking!! Unbelievable!!!
This, too, is a sore spot with me. Somewhat off-topic... Working in the community action/human services non-profit sector for several years, a portion of the agency's operating budget for service delivery came from fundraising activities. Never once did I peddle my cause to friends and family on social networking sites because I felt that it violated the purpose and spirit of being on Facebook or MySpace.
ReplyDeleteThe kicker of it is: my cause wasn't for personal gain, but rather to raise awareness about domestic and sexual violence. On the flip side, your "friends" are making money off their exploits on social networking websites.