I recently did some housecleaning in my Facebook account, defriending anyone who is littering their social messages with business pitches. I recommend you do the same or Facebook is going to get littered with pitch spam. Several of the people I blocked are friends in real life but insisted on regading Facebook as a place to pitch. Do you try and sell stuff to your friends at a party or social occasion? Tupperware aside, I bet you don’t because there is no relevance or intent- and when the pitch is not relevant, you look like an opportunist or, even worse, a jerk. When I’m on Facebook, I’m there to socialize, make plans or catch up with distant friends- I’m not there to buy stuff.

This is the real value of FB and the reason it has grown so rapidly- it is a closed network. Only those you choose to associate with are in the loop of your social interaction. The other major social platforms like Twitter and blogging are open, public forums where anyone can participate. It is appropriate, where you add relevant value, to  be businesslike there. But not in my ‘living room’.