Social media is a funny thing. It’s good because you can market yourself to the world. Entrepreneurs thrive on social media. DMs can be used for direct sales and advertising. Sometimes, we get offers for endorsements, networking, and promotions. Some people have even found love on social media. However, there’s a dark side.
Many people slide into DMs for nefarious reasons. Some people try to get you to sign up for inappropriate links. Sometimes there is spam for false promotions. Those false promoters have fake views and fake followers. Or, they tell you to DM their main profile. Ma’am, why didn’t you message me from your main page if you want to endorse me? Also, I’m not paying for a product you want me to promote. That’s dumb. Don’t fall for that trick. Or, you get the bitcoin or cash app people who claim you won a grant from the government.
Then, of course you have the creeps. I hate the creepy people who send messages like, “hey beautiful,” or “I love you.” Sir, how can you love me when you don’t even know me? My thing is, your account doesn’t even look real. The first picture was posted two weeks ago and it looks like it was stolen from someone else’s page. Your English is all broken and you say crap that doesn’t add up to our level of non-friendship.
Typically, I delete dms from people who look suspicious. I’m not trying to end up on one of those locked up abroad or love the other way shows. I only use my dms for networking with other authors, by offering free promotion. So, if you get a weird dm from me, please know that it’s a hack and alert me immediately.
Shana Hannibal 