received a “comment” in the blog section of my website that is unlike others in recent memory. someone was testing a new comment generator software on our website. in a nutshell, this stuff allows people to drop bulk persuasive comments at various websites – ones that flatter or show interest — hoping that will fast track your approval of the comment(s) for public viewing at your website. once approved (and some websites are set to post when the commenting party first submits), they receive a “backlink” to their website. this provides the kind of third-party endorsement that google loves to see. thankfully, google is smart enough to know when someone is abusing the system — and many of these comment generators produce the kind of backlink surge that raises eyebrows with the search engine company. still, it raises interesting questions about the key vulnerability that allows this to exist.
vanity has always been a destructive force for business owners — especially those of the small business variety. they’re the ones who aren’t surrounding themselves with enough lucid advisors, who don’t take the time (or can’t afford the time) to be more than less informed, and who aren’t listening to those who try to provide constructive criticism. vain businesspeople are far too quick to accept and possibly even plan their next move based upon a few supportive words. they mistake these sorts of comments for encouragement. next thing, they’re investing in something because someone else offered up words that person thought would brighten another’s day. they weren’t necessarily serious about what they were saying (at least not “business-serious”), and they weren’t offering up weaknesses (which would be better targets for investment). anything other than sunny verbiage would prove to be a real bummer for far too many people.
let me stop the rant here. you get my point.
maybe i’m being too hard on small business folks. it’s difficult to ignore the patterns of behavior you see and hear over time, from the position of someone directing marketing and branding for many a small business. i’ve seen vanity play far too treacherous a role with this sector. challengers and big brands can survive bad decisions. small businesses are vulnerable, with more modest budgets for new investment. because of what transpired at my website, i was reminded just how dangerous vanity can be in business.
so — would you like to see the comments that were loaded into the fake comment generator being tested at my website without my permission? email me (eric.s.townsend@gmail.com) and i will forward the seemingly hundreds that were created for preying on website owners. wild stuff.
