How I Use Social Media to Make $87,000 a Month

Welcome, my friend! I am going to teach you my top secret techniques to making tons of easy cash using social media channels such as YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter. But, before I do that, let me clarify that I am actually not going to teach you any of those things. In fact, that’s not what this post is about at all. Sadly, I do not make $87,000 a month using social media. In fact I don’t make any money using social media. I’ll even go out on a limb and guess that neither do you.  Hey, we have something in common!

So, what’s this all about?

The phrase “fake it until you make it” is an exaggeration on a very legit truth. As an entrepreneur, I have learned the importance of having the confidence that your products and services are valuable. This confidence isn’t always based on solid proof, but more on one’s faith in the future. For example, when I started Web Logic Now eight years ago I had no customers, portfolio or referrals. I simply had to believe in myself enough to sell the value of my services to a prospective client. That’s tough, but it provides a priceless opportunity for growth. It’s a refining process, but it’s necessary.

Before the internet, trying to convince someone to hire you involved walking up to them, shaking their hand, looking them in the eye, and explaining why they should hand over their hard-earned cash.  Today, thanks to pay-per-click advertising and online payment processing, the phrase “fake it until you make it” is being taken to the extreme. You could theoretically sell a product that doesn’t even exist. In fact, scamming is a very real problem on the web today.

Get Rich Quick!

One of the most prolific areas of online faking is the sale of “get rich quick” schemes. (similar to the title of this post). Of course, they come in all shapes and colors and have much more convincing names than “get rich quick.” The majority of these internet “millionaires” make their money by selling you a toolkit (for $45.95) that teaches you how to sell a toolkit (for $45.95) that teaches people how to sell a toolkit.  Do you see the circle here?  The result is that there are about a million of these websites all trying to sell you some sort of information or product that you can then resell (and, theoretically, watch the cash roll in).

The truth is, for every 1,000 people claiming to have the secrets of making millions of dollars online you can bet only a handful are seeing profit and even less are making a living.  But people are enchanted with the thought of making $80,000 a year working 2 hours a day. (Of course each person who makes these ridiculous claims has pictures of their beachfront villa – so you know they’re legit!) Even skeptics (like me) are tempted by these marketers as they get better and better at, well… faking.

The Social Media Realm

Now we’re seeing something entirely different and, in my opinion, even more destructive.  With the explosion of social media, we’re seeing a mass of new fakers trying to sell you “Top Secret Techniques to Leverage Social Media for Profit”.  Why is this worse?  The problem is, with the old model you could measure your success (or more likely, failure) in dollars and cents. After a couple of months in the red you’d likely abandon your quest for internet millions, slap yourself in the face, and realize that in order to get paid, you have to add value. There’s no way around it. No shortcuts.

The trap of trying to leverage social media for profit is more dangerous than the traditional “get rich” model for two reasons.

1. First, social media is fun! There’s no way around it. Part of the lure is that it doesn’t feel like work.
2. Second, the cost is your time, not your dollars. People have a way of keeping track of their money and losing track of their time.

Social media disguises the true cost of your social media investment. It’s difficult to quantify results, a lot of fun, and often seems like it’s working. That’s a dangerous time-wasting combination.

What do you think?

What is the true cost/benefit of social media for businesses? How do you quantify it? Do you underestimate the actual cost of social media (your time) because it’s fun? (I know I do!) Is the whole “social media for business” craze causing more time-wasting and hype than true value? I look forward to some good discussion in the comments.

Apology

I apologize that I didn’t actually teach you how to make $87,000 a month.  If you feel tricked and angry, nasty emails can be sent to drew@weblogicnow.com.  Don’t forget to subscribe to the RSS feed by RSS or email.

Tagged as: business development, confidence, marketing, Social Media