"By groveling on social networks, you risk your image, your worth, and your future. Don't do it."

Fellow writer, and assumingly great guy, Jonathan Crossfield recently got a taste of social networking groveling, something everyone who dabbles in social networking of any type has - or will have - experienced at least once.

That's right: Mr. Crossfield got on his knees and begged an online community to give him some attention.

And, to no one's surprise, it worked. Members gathered together and supported Mr. Crossfield by giving his blog and his incredible writing talent a little bit of attention.

But was it worth it? Is a little online social attention worth groveling? Believe it or not: by groveling on social networks, you risk your image, your worth, and your future. Don't do it.

Say goodbye to your image Mr. Crossfield.

Mr. Crossfield got a bit of attention, his name - and incredible writing ability - is now known, but at what cost? If Mr. Crossfield had not looked to groveling for attention and had, instead, broken out of the blogging mold, he would have received more positive attention for quality work, rather than having to beg for it.

As he sits now, Mr. Crossfield is now - and most likely forever - "the guy who writes great content, but has to beg for it to become popular."

A victim of the social networking stigmata.

Despite how negative the title sounds, it's not as bad as you probably think. We all want to beg from time to time, and we all want to be popular on top of the online world, but that's no excuse to lower your self to begging for online votes. Sadly, it's just not.

Don't beg, just work harder.

An alternative to begging - and a strategy that will build your image, rather than destroy it - is just to work harder. Write more (and better, if possible) content on your blog. Submit more stories, one after another. Work at reaching the top. At least that way you can be viewed as "the guy (or girl) who worked his or her way to the top."

Again: there is nothing wrong with a little begging, but there are alternative methods you can use. Why not start with months of hard work, and then try begging a little? Or get smart with your begging and make it look like a challenge.

It's tough, and a lot of webmasters and bloggers were not built for it, but internet marketing can payoff over time. Just be patient, and put all of your effort into it.

Groveling = worthless.

Now, after begging for attention on his blog, Mr. Crossfield will have to work hard on rebuilding his online worth. New visitors to his blog will discover that he had to beg for attention, and his blog's value might decrease.

It may seem far fetched, but it's the reality of begging online.

When it comes down to it: there is no real reason to beg or grovel online. Anyone can reach the top, all it takes is time and hard work. If you're not dedicated to working that hard, then perhaps you don't deserve to be on top?

Don't take this the wrong way, Mr. Crossfield has a great blog. If you haven't checked it out yet, head over there and read a few of his posts - they are all of really great quality. He knows how to write, and write well. He writes interesting insights, and he knows how to get attention. Unfortunately his online social networking abilities are slightly lacking.

Live and learn.

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