Over at WebProNews, Sharon Drew expresses serious concern that viral marketers will permanently abuse weblogs.
I've just learned of a company that markets itself as an internet marketing company. It hires people who have expertise in a specific area - say, video games - and hires them out as net-based stealth marketers. Here is what they do: they insinuate themselves into a blogging or chat community. They hang out in the community until they become trusted contributors and likeable personalities with some expertise. And then they ‘mention' a product they've just ‘tried'. They don't pitch it - oh no, that would be too obvious - they just mention it kindly with a bit of excitement. Just a bit.
Thankfully, we have Online Business Networks who provides a more balanced view.
My point is that all media is potentially suspect if it takes money from both sides of the fence. This has been going on for years. Blogs have just provided a new medium for it. And just because a media outlet is getting advertising money doesn’t mean it’s unreliable. It’s something to be mindful of, to be sure, but not a reason to single out blogs.
