This is the second installment of my 2012 blog-posts-that-shows-people’s-laziness-to-try-and-motivate-us-more series called “Most people are lazy”. If you missed the first one, you can check it out here.
Oh, spam. I thought you were so 1999. I mean, I actually have known some of the world’s biggest spammers. They thrived years ago. Just when I thought it was over, or at least dwindling, I now get two new forms of spam: text message spam and social media spam. You see, spam apparently does not discriminate.
There’s a dictionary definition of spam, and there is my definition of spam. The more accepted, formal definition is something like: the use of electronic messaging systems to send unsolicited bulk messages indiscriminately. Obviously, “electronic messaging systems” has meant email over the years, but it is now moving towards other forms of communication.
My definition is: the use of electronic messaging systems to try and make money because these people are too lazy to forge relationships and lack the skills to properly communicate their product, service or offering (if it is even worth communicating about to begin with).
Seriously, spam is an outcome of laziness. Technology, and the beauty of technology, is to reform and replace archaic systems, or products, or systems so that things are more efficient for consumers and businesses. It is not meant to reform and replace being competent and smart-working in your sales or marketing.
Some readers of this blog run small, medium or large businesses. I know for a fact that some readers have enormous followings because either you’ve told me, or I just know. The lazy thing to do is to send mindless, mass, unsolicited communication to people in the interest of time even if they are already following you or are friends with you. That is not efficient, it is dumb. The better thing to do is to roll up your sleeves for a few hours and do it yourself in the interest of keeping relationships. Technology is great (I’m a huge proponent of all things “tech”, including products, services, tech people, etc). But another way to set yourself apart is to know when and how to use the technology available to you.
By the way, for the person who just spammed me on LinkedIn, you’ve been removed.
