How to Spot a Social Media Fake

You've likely come across an individual online who seems to have it all together. He's always posting on Twitter, Facebook and every other social networking website available about gigs, jobs, entrepreneurial ideas, networking, conventions and his latest undertakings. To the casual observer, this person may seem to have everything going for him: Steady work, successful businesses, fresh ideas and a lot of networking to back it all up. While this may be true about some, others don't hold up when put under scrutiny and are known as social media fakes. Being able to identify these individuals will protect you from sure-to-fail businesses and scammers.

Instructions

1. Look at her ideas-to-established businesses ratio. Someone who posts frequently about new business ideas and working on implementing new plans, yet has few or no established businesses is likely all talk and not much else, speaking highly of herself online, yet producing little valuable substance in real life.

2. Ask to see his business plans. A 425-character snippet of a "business plan" posted on Facebook may seem like the abstract of an effective plan, but it may be all that exists in actuality. Don't invest any money into this individual's business unless you can confirm that he has experience in creating businesses and doesn't plan on taking your money and disappearing.

3. Consider whether the conventions he goes to serve a purpose. Someone who amasses a large collection of ticket stubs and interviews with professionals might be going to all these conventions because he's not spending any time implementing his ideas. Also consider the conventions he's attending; do they all pertain to his niche, or are they on such a wide range of subjects that he couldn't possibly be focused on a specific business or plan?

4. Look for generic content. A social media fake doesn't have enough time to invest in creating original blog content and memorable status updates, and may instead spam his Twitter and Facebook account with links to other individuals' work, or with links to spammy content that leads to his other social networking accounts.