From early on social media has been something that experienced digital marketers can manipulate. Gaming the system can range from auto adders on MySpace and “view” producers on YouTube, to follow and unfollow programs on Twitter or voting circles on Reddit, Digg, and StumbleUpon.
These tactics aren’t talked about often because nobody wants to be known for artificially manipulating social media. Still, there are a lot of people out there that use these techniques to build their client’s or their own personal brand. So while many people enjoy a utopian view of content and how it’s accelerated through the social web, the mechanics and tactics behind it can often be a little galling.
The ethics around this really interest me. If you are using these tactics to promote lousy content, then it immediately comes off as spam and is frowned upon. However, if you are using these tactics to promote worthy content, especially if it is being produced by someone that doesn’t have the ability to promote themselves, does it become okay? For example, if people are actually receptive and interested in content being amplified by some seemingly shady tactics, is then it ethical?
What do you think are the ethics of self promotion?