We’ve written before (and had a lively debate about) the benefits of outsourcing the nonessential activities in your life – housekeeping, lawn care, project management, bookkeeping, and so on. Now comes the news, via a BBC reporter, that some people are actually making real money blogging and networking on behalf of others. Actively social web workers know that it can take a tremendous amount of time and energy to maintain a compelling blog as well as a presence on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Pownce, and whatever the other network-of-the-week is. But would you consider paying someone else to take this load off your shoulders?
On the one hand, it’s clear that having an active social network can be very beneficial to the web worker. If you’re looking for work or selling a product or seeking developers or hunting partners, being out and about and visible on the various sites and services is a great way to start. Just like any other PR or marketing or advertising activity, social networking helps to get the word out about your existence and activities. If you’re too busy to do it yourself, why not pay someone else to do it for you?
But on the other hand, you have to wonder about the wisdom of subcontracting something as central as your own identity and reputation to someone else. Politicians and celebrities get away with using ghost writers to pen books, but what would happen if a web worker got caught using a proxy to generate blog entries? Could you keep your story straight, or would there be awkward e-mail moments when someone referred to a Twitter conversation of which you had no memory?
On the whole, I suspect the original story – of making £1,000 per month networking on someone else’s behalf – to be a new urban legend. But perhaps I am naive. Can you see yourself getting to a point in your career where that’s a good deal? Or are you ready to hang out a shingle and assume the blogging duties for someone else? If you’re making a living at this, we’d love to hear from you.
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