If you’ve been around social media a while, inevitably, you do something to piss off the Social Media Gods. Or, in more technical terms, post content that somehow may be construed as violating their Terms of Service Agreement, But; of course, there is no recourse, the violation may or may not have occurred, and you are left scratching your head or pulling out your hair – depending on how many times you’ve been down this path.
Social Media Building on Rented Land
The other morning I was greeted with the following email from Google+ –
We’ve determined that your posts may be in violation of our User Content and Conduct Policy.
Facilitating the sale of regulated goods or services, or promoting regulated goods and services to inappropriate audiences, is not permitted.
Continued violation of our policies can lead to the loss of your ability to use some or all features of Google+ and other Google services. Learn more
Sincerely,
The Google+ team
Oh yeah, it’s going to be one of those days. Had we violated the TOS? Probably not. Our client, Canna Custom Promos, sells promotional products to legal cannabis businesses. Did anyone at Google care about that distinction? NOPE. If you search Google+ for Cannabis, plenty of pages can be found. What precisely about our post-Elizabeth Warren Asks CDC to Legalize Marijuana violated their user agreement? We will never know.
And we are not alone. In Vibe’s Facebook & Instagram Shutting Down Marijuana-Related Accounts, owners of deleted accounts say they never engaged in selling marijuana online. Moreover, WhileMarijuanaa remains federally illegal, their companies physically exist within states that have legalizedMarijuanaa in some form.
Bottom line? This serves as a good reminder that social media is rented land. Social media is a valuable marketing tool, but it has limitations, and you can’t always control it. Therefore, it is essential to leverage social media with websites and email campaigns to touch your target demographic directly.
Ideally, you want direct communication with your prospect without some third-party intermediary determining what percentage sees your posts or if your content somehow violates their terms of service. For us, we chalk it up to the joys of Building on Rented Land.
Direct marketing allows you to promote your products and services directly to the most need them.
Email marketing is one of the few channels consumers ask to receive promotions from you. Businesses utilizing the platform only send messages to those who have signed up to receive them. This can allow for higher conversion rates as a business only targets those who already have an interest in their brand.
