“Likes” and “Followers” are for sale

So, when did it become socially acceptable for you to ask someone to like you or follow you?

In the real world, if you did that, you would be perceived as rather strange. If you did decide to constantly follow someone, you would probably end up with a restraining order against you!

Not so in the world of Social Media. Subtleties are for the not-so-savvy neophyte. These badges of influence: “Likes”, “Followers”, and “Connections” are quickly becoming a direct measure of an individual’s sphere of influence.

Did you know that “Likes” and “Followers” are for sale?

As the casual users of Social Media realize that the number of “Likes” and “Followers” means more than just an ego boost, a shady industry of influence-for-sale has cropped up on the web.

“Likes” and “Followers” are for sale. And like many other similar sleazy marketing pitches, promises of instant gratification and low costs are the norm.

Some of these may be legitimate within the strict confines of the rules; but are they ethical?

Celebrities, musicians, and even politicians have been known to kick-start their “following” by buying a few thousand followers. Here is an ad that I pulled down from the Web that, in no uncertain terms, lays out your options. It is ironic that in these days of globalization, “Likes” from the U.S. still command a premium!

Social Media is all about size.

You may not have a lot of money, but if you have a large number of “followers” who “like” and “comment” on your posts, tweets, or updates, you will do just fine!

Large companies like Genesys that provide Customer Relationship Management (CRM) are now planning to integrate customers’ influence scores, measured through applications like Klout, into their databases.

Conceptually, this levels the playing field between a high net-worth customer and one with a high-influence score. In the past, the two were often the same; not anymore. It may not be long before you see social influence trump financial influence!

So, would you follow someone who bought followers?