Putting URL Signatures In Forum Post a Bad Idea?

[handelgate]

And I just need one additional post to be able to link in the message body. Sorry!

And I definitely use signatures and username with the name of my company...

[Wowzerz]

I don't trust anyone who puts a link in their signature.

What does promoting a business have to do with trust? Lame.

[eliz4biz]

Uh, did you notice his signature???

[johnwillis]

i hate when people put links in their signatures.

[excitednewbie]

I guess I wasn't very clear with my question.

A. Someones goes into a forum and post about how great a product is which influences other members to purchase product because they believe they are getting an unbiased review.

B. Someones goes into a forum and post about how great a product is, but their signature contains URL. As a user, I generally don't believe the review b/c of course everyone thinks their product is great...I don't totally dismiss it, but its ability to persuade me to purchase the product is diminished....maybe that's just me and that's what I was trying to figure out...

does the ability to appear unbias ( and possibly persuade a large group of people) outweigh the advantages of search engine ranking?...especially in an industry (cosmetics/skin care) where word of mouth is important?

[Karlz71]

Im going to put mine in now tbh

[HarveyJ]

If you have the link in your sig, you're obviously trying to sell it.
If you're attempting to sell it, then anything you say can't be trusted, simply on the basis that you have a vested interest in people buying it.
This doesn't mean it's a bad product, just a bad sales pitch. HOWEVER, it IS good for the SERP of the product, as Google loves you more when you have more links.
Then again, the sales pitch is only a bad one if people are simply forum spamming. If you stick around and become engaged, it's a different matter again.

i.e. I have a vested interest in people going and joining up under me at Affiliation Cash. It makes me money when they start making sales.
Is it a bad product? No. Is the sales pitch bad? Well, I don't usually pitch it straight off, I actually talk to people that express an interest in affiliate marketing, and I offer useful advice on offbeat sales tactics.
(i.e. I have one offline advertising tactic that costs substantially less than Google, and still get as good, if not better, in terms of ROI, so long as certain environmental conditions are met (usually the person has to be in a large corporate or educational environment))
If I just posted about Affiliation Cash, and then buggered off, then that's a bad idea, as it's likely to jsut get people upset with me.

[zharlene]

I agree with Mega B. You ought to put your sig link everywhere you can, as long as it's allowed. Nothing personal, just business...you shouldn't care about what others think. If you're a well-known member that sort of helps around when people need it, it helps you too in the long run.

[excitednewbie]

HarveyJ, thanks...what you said about becoming engage in the forum and gaining trust and influence even if you are bias makes a lot of sense.

zharlene, thanks....it's not so much that I care what others think (though i do)...so much as I think appearing unbias makes you more persuasive, but it seems most people who posted in this thread think SERP benefits outweigh advantages of appearing unbias.

thanks for everyone's advice.

[businessworld]

Fourm sign is benifit in search engine ranking for our website.

[koercive]

If you build rapport on a message board, you will be more trusted. If you have been a member for a long time and have been providing valuable input to other users (such as if you are helping someone fix their car on a car forum by providing pictures and instructions on how you did it), people will probably be more likely to click your URL on your sig. In addition, with enough rapport, I think you can even easily post a "Help me out" type of thread where you ask users of that forum to go to your site to either register or give feedback.

In addition to getting more links on google, you can take your product further by becoming one with an online community.

[x3xsolxdierx3x]

I put my link there because....well......at least people can see the work that's gone behind it......it makes no sense to not take advantage of an opportunity, especially when it's offered........besides, I don't think people will care much, as long as your'e genuine, helpful, and have a good reputation around forums......

[SIMPLEROBB]

lol i think it was a joke

Hahahahahaha I got it the first time

[jackfranklin]

What will happen if we put the url in the signature, because we are following it.

[discountedclothing]

As long as the site you're promoting is live, friendly and contains relevant information about the product/site your promoting. If not, don't bother to put a dead link/signature you're just wasting our time.