Social media has transformed the entire landscape of the web—not only how people produce and consume information, but also how businesses must engage and take care of their customers. If you want to be truly successful with online marketing, there are some rules of the new media environment that you need to learn and follow. These are the new rules for business success online.

You Have to Be Genuine

You’ve gotta be real. You can’t be the pushy car salesman. You actually have to demonstrate that you care. A lot of traditional marketing is overly pushy and sales-oriented, and these days, consumers are getting more and more effective at blocking out advertising entirely. When you get an unsolicited marketing newsletter or a spam message in your email inbox, do you read it? Or do you trash it immediately? Same rule applies to your potential customers. They’re smart, and they don’t want to be pitched to. Consumers trust the recommendations of their peers, and they trust companies who go out of their way to demonstrate that they care and provide helpful, relevant advice in the right context.

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