Secrets to Success Deborah Cole Micek and John-Paul Micek

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Market Lodge might enable ‘molesters’

A new application on Facebook, Market Lodge, pays users 10 percent commission on sales made on their recommendations. Vendors can submit products for approval, as long as they're willing to cough up 35 percent commission on each product sale.

Market Lodge is the brainchild of a startup called bSocial Networks. They're betting that Facebook users will like the idea of helping merchants sell to their friends. I'm betting it'll open the doors to a flood of fledgling Marketplace Molesters.

Facebook hasn't been a friendly place for profit since opening its door to developers. I've never seen more useless widgets for fun and games in one place than what you'll find after 12 months of "open-door development" on Facebook. And while Market Lodge is a step in the right direction, the way I see it, it's got two challenges:

» Facebook tried to capitalize on membership connections last year by introducing a marketing system that allowed friends to broadcast product endorsements to each other.

That's been a dud -- mostly because Facebook's users revolted when they realized there was a feature called "Beacon," which tracks and shares information about their purchases and other actions made on other Web sites.

» Online social networks as a whole have had trouble generating big profits from advertising. The problem is rooted in an old-school marketing mindset and interruption-style of communication.

Instead, apply the CHARM formula (Captivate attention; Hook emotions; Advance trust; Radiate desire; Motivate action) and you'll be ahead of the pack right out of the gate.

Market Lodge actually makes it easier regular folks to make money-making recommendations. But that's where the danger lies. "Average" people don't know how to market or sell without molesting friends and family. Doubt me? Just think of friends who's all fired up about the new multi-level marketing program they just joined. In fact, even those who call themselves marketers or sales professionals often don't know how to do it either. Even fewer know how to seduce.

So if you plan on becoming an affiliate with Market Lodge, keep it low key. Unless you have a really strong personal brand that attracts a "clean" list of friends, stay away from network-wide promotional messages. Even if you've got that highly focused network of friends, take the time to create some good (connection-based) content as a mass message, and strategically inject a relevant recommendation.

If you're a vendor, you can request that bSocial add your product to their line up. The vendor registration process is ridiculously simple.

If you've used or are planning on using Market Lodge, please let me know about your experiences.