Forums: Discussions for entrepreneurs and small business.

I was listening to the SuN radio show today and towards the end, Rich and Joel talked about someone here getting a deal because the prospective client googled them and was lead to conversations here that impressed them.

That got me thinking - I do this but does anyone else?  Because you can google and get SuN conversations, do you ever censor yourself here?  I have some questions about my own business that I know someone here could help me answer, but they are not things that I would want people in my industry to read about at google. 

I think every business owner should be conscious of what they say publicly - employees have been fired and businesses have failed because of  "loose lips".  Shoot, a guy just got arrested in WI for trying to out-do a friend with the scariest internet terrorist scenario contest they had going.  Do we sometimes forget just how very public the internet is?

Just curious if I`m the only one who finds myself thinking, "hmmm, would I want my competitors to see me asking this here?" 

~Kim

Kim -

I`ve been involved with various online forums since 1998 and have been very much aware of just how "public" statements on a public forum can be.  Several times I have had clients come my way due to postings on design forums.  I`ve often had editors and writers contact me as a potential quote sources for article and books precisely because of what I have written in forum messages.  My forum comments have also led to me getting speaking engagements.  In "real life" I`m known for being sometimes outrageous in what I say and my personality is not going to change much online.

If I do censor myself in any way it`s in not referring to specific clients or projects by name, or in a great deal of detail, at times.  I certainly don`t want/need to embarrass or hurt the feeling of someone with whom I`ve worked in the past - or someone who may be a current client.  I`m also not going to resort to name-calling, or what I consider unprofessional behavior, in forum postings.  I wouldn`t make use of such behavior in a "real world" public situation and online forums are not that much different.

I look at forum participation as a way of learning much more, sharing what I have learned in the course of my business adventures, a great way to connect /network with other people, and an surprisingly successful marketing tool.

- J.




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Jeff Fisher | Jeff Fisher LogoMotives | Tweet! Tweet!

There`s some old aphorism about how if you want something to be a secret it should be known only to you and God.

If you have trade secrets and want to discuss them, you`d likely want to avoid anything having to do with the Internet, unless maybe you formulated a secure site. Any text you type goes "out there" and floats around forever. So too with any images, as we`ve seen with compromising photos of various celebrities.

Censorship implies a moral standard. But reticence is something different. You`re being rationally reticent when you choose to refrain from talking about business secrets or potentially valuable information. That`s not censorship though.

I think LogoMotives (Jeff) hits the target right on. I don`t spend much time personally thinking of a forum as an advertising venue, but it`s still part of the nature of forums. Countless times I`ve used Google "Groups" to find the non-biased, subjective opinions on products or technology, or just a topic. In most cases, nobody in the group forums is beholden to anyone on a commercial basis. If they are, it`s readily apparent.

I don`t censor myself at all, other than to maintain some level of diplomacy. But that`s more a personality trait than a concern for being "found" in a Google search. :-)

Great question Kim. 

I learned this lesson in an ugly way.  I was a member of a Yahoo group and all the sudden someone starting posting unpleasant things about me on the group because they found someone else out there had the same email address/screenname (It wasn`t CreativeGal, but as an example, I`m sure I`m not the only one using this name out there).  They assumed I was this other person and used the unpleasant google content of this other person against me.  I was banned from the group before even being able to convince them it wasn`t me.