10 top tips for getting on my nerves...

Is it me? It may just be me, but I suspect that it isn't.

Someone, somewhere, once wrote that the way to do online marketing (such as through social networking and blogging) is a little reciprocity, give and take, share and share alike. Absolutely. You will hear no argument from me on that. Helpful people will always get my vote (and my business for that matter). Not rocket science, just the basics of good customer service.

But it isn't really a new phenomenon this reciprocity thing is it? Ever heard the phrase "use a sprat to catch a mackerel"? Same idea from a different era: give a little with the hope of getting more in return. It's probably a more honest way of putting it too.

I'll get to my point...

So what's the problem then? The reciprocity idea has manifested itself in blogs everywhere, we've all seen it and many of us have done it: Ten top tips for [insert desirable but often unachievable thing here].

It's utterly logical: share a little of your knowledge for free, demonstrate your capabilities, help out a potential customer and they'll come back for some paid-for work as your reward.

However, this incarnation of the reciprocal marketing approach has become so popular that there are now marketing consultants offering 10 top tips on how to do 10 top tips. Twitter is laden with them. Blogs, websites, news sites, they're all overflowing with helpful articles proffering tips for everything from conducting successful offline networking to selecting a suitable Virtual Assistant, written by a Virtual Assistant. No hidden agenda there then... no, I mean it's absolutely not hidden, it couldn't be more overt.

Maybe it's time to concede that this ship has sailed. We're all going to have to put our thinking caps on again to come up with a more imaginative way to get our message out there.

If your social media marketing consultant is suggesting that you prepare a newsletter, blog update or tweet featuring any mention of "10 Top Tips" then they're well "behind the curve" and you should fire them immediately. Well, that may be a little harsh, but I would recommend that you at least give them a stern talking to!

Right, must dash, have just received 5 useful tips on how to rant less and the first is "Know when to stop".

All hands to the pumps

Well, today, down at Printshop they are busy... really busy. The printing presses are running at full tilt, the phone is ringing off the hook and the emails are pinging into their inbox as fast as the internet can carry them. Settling down to do any work, particularly stuff that requires your full attention like design and print, can be really hard to do under those circumstances.

Desk space is also at a premium down at Printshop as it's all hands to the pumps, so I'm delighted to say that they've asked me to look after their inbox and 'phone calls so they can get on with things.

I'm working remotely so they aren't tripping over me. I can access email via the web interface provided by their hosting service without the need for messy things like VPNs and so on. The phone is forwarded on to me and here I sit, poised and ready to go.

We've agreed that unless there's something particularly urgent, I will compile a digest of messages, filtering out the rubbish of course, that can be properly dealt with a little later on this afternoon.

Meanwhile, back at Printshop, there's just a little bit less to contend with, which means they can get back into their stride and look after their customers properly.

What's more, the sun is shining, the washing is drying on the line and the birds are singing.

Glorious!