How to FAIL at Social Networking

I just got a request to close the account of a member here on BiggerPockets.  While this doesn't happen very often, when it does, there is always a common theme.  In EVERY case, the person was unsatisfied in some way with the results of their networking.  The same goes for today.  This person had three posts on the site, all of which were solicitations in a group, seeking buyers for property.  Otherwise, they were not active on the forums, blogs, or any other place on the site.

The reason they were unsatisfied is that they expected the site to magically produce for them connections without doing the work. The did nothing to build relationships, and did nothing to be seen and known by the community at large.

We can't do the work for you.  If you want to succeed at social networking for real estate, you MUST pay attention to the following information:

You Will Never Succeed in Social Networking if you Don't Build Relationships!

Almost nine out of ten people who are unhappy with the results of their efforts on our social network do nothing but solicit deals.  The other one out of ten simply create a profile and expect people to come flocking to them.

Social Networking Requires You to Be Active and Visible.  Here are some tips:

• You will not make friends by joining a social network and immediately solicit business. 
• You will not do deals by joining a social network and immediately solicit business.
• You MUST interact and give people the opportunity to get to know you before soliciting business!  There are many ways to do that here on BP - forums, blogs, bulletins, etc.
• People will NOT just seek you out unless you are visible.  To be visible, you MUST create a complete profile.  You MUST also become part of the VISIBLE conversation happening on the site. 
• The most important key to success is to focus on establishing relationships! For more, read "Are You Wasting Your Time with Social Networking for Real Estate?"

I've talked about all of this on many occassions.  I think people have the false impression that people will just flock to you once you create a profile somewhere online.  There is nothing farther from the truth.  Being successful on a social network requires time and effort.  Those people who are generally the most successful on any network are those people who are focused; those who are a part of the visible ether. 

So . . . if you want to fail at social networking, create a profile and disapear.  You'll have no one to blame for your failure but yourself.