At what point does social media marketing, or Internet marketing in general, transform from a pull strategy to a push strategy.  Sure, we all see the spammers on Twitter and those annoying Facebook pages you “liked” because you are related to the owner.  All they try to do is sell, sell, sell.  On the flip side, you have these social community organizers trying to build a loyal fan base to who will undoubtedly, spend very little money.

This doesn’t just occur online, these are just simple examples we can all relate to.  Somewhere in the middle though is where you’ll find companies like Apple.  So the big question is, how do you get there?

First, you need to understand that community building is often just as annoying as spammers or those that do nothing but sell and you’re likely going to get the same outcome.  Yet small companies still refuse to find the happy medium.  While they think that building an online community or “fan base” is a pull method, they are often pushing.  The only difference is they aren’t pushing their products, they are pushing their brand.

Recently, Anthony K. Tjan wrote a post in the Harvard Business Review, Business Needs More Judo, Less Karate.

“One is a bullhorn, the other a magnet. Or, as I like to say, one is karate and one is judo…So how do you shift to more of a pull mindset? Simple: think more judo and less karate. The word judo translates to “gentle way,” and this martial art focuses on using an opponent’s strength and weight to one’s advantage. Karate, in contrast, is characterized by punching and kicking. We need much more of a judo mindset in business. Not just in marketing, but in negotiations, product design, communications, and selling.”

The key takeaway is with your online marketing strategy, a bullhorn is a bullhorn regardless of what your blowing.  So keep your message clear, build awareness, but don’t get so caught up in your “branding” that we, your listening audience, get annoyed.