Earlier today I finished a post on my business blog entitled “Stop hiding out on the internet and show yourself” in which I advise people to stop hiding behind their computers and screen names and let the people they are talking to in blogs and forums who they are in order to build trust and credibility. Unfortunately, I think that there is more to the story than just the business side.
Many people look to blogs and message boards for advice: financial, spiritual, business, love, whatever the subject may be. The problem is, that while the idea of being anonymous and hiding behind a screen name may be good for the seeker, it is not the way the advisor should approach this, specifically if they are holding themselves out as an “expert” on the subject matter. There are a few things that should always send up red flags:
* calling themselves an expert but hiding behind a screen name
* any business using a free e-mail address (AOL, Yahoo, Hotmail, Gmail, etc)
* anyone selling “answers” as part of a purchase (ie: membership)
The reasons for the red flags are simple. Anyone who is a professional or expert is going to want to build their credibility or at the very least promote themselves or business via blog or forum posts. It all leads back to credibility and trust. How can you trust someone’s advice if they are unwilling to tell you their name or the organization they represent? How can you be sure that they are qualified to even dispense advice? It’s one thing to post information as John Smith, MD and have a link pointing back to your practice where others can verify your credentials, but to post as NYdoc78 for example is completely meaningless.
As far as a company having a free e-mail address, that in itself should lead to suspicion. What reputable person would intentions of being taken seriously would ever use a free web-based e-mail address. After all, it only costs $6-$9 a year for domain name registration and most hosting companies offer free e-mail with even the cheapest hosting plan which should only run $3-$4 dollars per month. It’s a basic principle of any business communications or management class at the college level that no “real” business should ever use a free e-mail account for their professional communications.
That leaves the offers of advice for a pre-paid fee or registration fee. There are many companies out there which will direct you to their website only for you to reach a page that offers you their “free information packet” with a paid subscription to their site or newsletter. Those offers are largely scams and should be researched extremely carefully, if not avoided altogether.
Basically, care should be taken before following any advice found on the internet, but moreso when the source can not be verified and hides behind pseudonyms on the web. At a time where internet fraud and scams are at an all time high, you should always take extra precautions before taking any advice at face value, regardless of whether the site is heavily trafficked, largely popular, or even sponsored by a major company. It doesn’t take very much to register for most blogs or forums (if any registration is required at all), and none of these outlets ever certifies the credentials of those who post to them.