Don't believe what you read until you do your research.

As my readers (all 6 of you) know, on the left are a list of very eclectic blogs in advertising, public relations, creativity and marketing. I view them as the no bullshit list. These people do not need to give you fluff or deception. And they also aren't tied to any marketing platforms...well except Vinny Warren who makes TV commercials...but his blog is all about creativity not selling you on why TV ads are better. Plus he has street cred with his body of work.

This is part one of a series on looking for bias when you read a blog. Often bloggers have an agenda for their own profit (or their agency's) vs your benefit. Sell a book. Champion a platform. Give speeches. Increase their billings. Etc. And those bloggers will slant their posts steering you to making them money. They are marketers right?

This blog post is going to focus on someone I do not know. But the tweet and his post was timely. In the last week two studies on Facebook advertising paint their effectiveness very poorly. In fact the Reuters story shows that 4 in 5 Facebook users ignore the ads.

Facebook Ads Simply Do Not Work, New Study Confirms

Facebook comments, ads don't sway most users: poll

But then my friend Dan Perez tweeted a post by someone I guess famous looking at his website and twitter profile. The post was about Facebook ads. And to be honest most of the post is really helpful. Except the first of ten points about Facebook ads (I have some issues with a few other points nothing dramatic like this). If 4 out of 5 Facebook users ignore the ads you can only have a shot of reaching 4 of 5 Facebook users vs the 850mil that Brian Carter is touting.

But why does he say this? Maybe because he is 'All In for Facebook'. 

He wrote a book called the 'Like Economy'. And if Facebook turns out to be a poor marketing platform. Or if people don't share as much as people like Brian want you to believe (as well as Agencies such as Likeable, Vitrue, and Facebook themselves). Then Brian's book and much of his insights are wrong. And of course that would be bad. For them.

But then when I responded that 4 in 5 people ignore the ads, Brian's response had me concerned about whether he is as smart as his resume:

I am sure Brian means well. He isn't trying to blatantly deceive you. But he is obviously based on his body of work someone who is more likely to glance over any blemishes Facebook marketing may have. And his post is not 100% accurate. And he doesn't care!

I am not saying these people and agencies are wrong. But many posts here on this blog prove with data that people rarely share as a percentage of content they consume, and that Facebook is a very poor performing marketing platform. This might change. But my guess is the better platforms will come and not be named Facebook.

I will be honest. I have no idea if Brian is a successful marketer for Clients or Brands. I can say he has been more successful than me at making money and at least has people believing he is (I would have to do my due diligence this is just face value stuff). I have examples from Chris Brogan, Brian Solis, Michael Brito, Chris Voss that I have saved and will be showcasing them as this series continues.

Do your research. Look at your blog writer's profile. Do a Google search to see their footprint. See what they do, sell, and what makes them money. Before you take what they say at face value.