Nate Riggs: Social Business Strategies; communication, social web strategies, & passion in Columbus, Ohio.

Ever watch the Wizard of Oz?

I love this clip:

Go Toto! Way to expose a phony, right? As kids (and even as adults), we all cheer on the little dog and laugh at the flustered professor, as he tried to recover from his busted scam.

Learning from the Wiz
Look at this message I received from a recruiter named Jack, with Sears Holdings.  Read the message.  Jack is trying to use his colleague Ashley’s LinkedIn presence to recruit candidates.  Really?

If you take time to read up on my Brand YOU, you’ll notice that I have no experience or desire to EVER work in vendor management.  I never even mention it.  My content tells you about five things – communication, technology, people, athletics, and family.

Then, take into consideration that I’m hundreds of miles away from even being able to set up an in-person interview.  The position is located at Sears HQ in Hoffman Estates, IL.

What’s really annoying is that it takes less than an hour to open and complete your own LinkedIn profile, and yet Mr. Forbes hasn’t even made an effort to disclose anything about himself.

Wrong first impression given?  BIG time. Wasted effort?  BIG time.

Get Out from Behind the Curtain
There’s a serious difference between intention and perception.  I’m sure that Jack has the best intentions in finding the right candidate for the position, but my perception of him and his effort is quite the opposite.

At first look, Jack appears to be blatantly hiding behind curtains.  That’s unfortunate because you and I are savvy internet consumers and our trust is hard-earned.  You only really get one shot at a first impression these days.  The media moves too quickly.

These social tools are not a means to make a quick-and-easy buck with a shotgun approach (and believe me, Jack is getting paid to fill this position).  Offering low value to high volumes of people permeated the Web 1.0 era.  Guess what?  That era has long since past.

If you’re one of those people intent on approaching social media like Jack, here’s the very best advice I can give you.  Stop.  Save yourself the effort and log off.  Quit tweeting.  Delete your LinkedIn profile.  Take down your website.  Throw away your iPhone and toss your wireless router out the window.  Stop wasting your time polluting our new media.

The rest of us are going to build our brands by sharing bricks of content.  We’re going to work to expand networks and spread good social capital.  We’re going to do this by focusing on people and relationships first, before ever thinking about making a sale.

There’s no value or longevity in hiding behind the curtain.