Caution: MySpace.com

You've heard the stories on the news, on CNN, and maybe even firsthand from local community members about the popular growing website www.MySpace.com and the controversy it is creating. If you haven't, the next paragraph is just for you. If you are familiar with MySpace.com and the controversy, skip ahead to the third paragraph.

Well, you're reading this paragraph, so either you don't watch a lot of news OR you're just not too technologically savvy (not that there's anything wrong with that). Basically, MySpace is an online community where people can create their own accounts and profiles, upload pictures of themselves, friends, family, etc. They can add music and videos, and they can tell the world everything about themselves if they choose to do so. The premise behind the site sounds great, but apparently, there have been too many instances where the wrong people are creating accounts and profiles to use the site to seek out underage girls and boys for improper intimate relations. See, MySpace doesn't really have a way to police itself and verify with certainty that you are who you say you are. I could create an account right now, and say that I am a 16-year-old female living in Costa Rica, and there is no way to verify that. Whatever I say, goes. Whatever Johnny Sex Offender says, goes. It can be a little scary. But again, don't get me wrong, the premise is good. And probably 99% of users are using the site with the right motives. But nonetheless, you'll have to be careful.

Okay, so now we are at paragraph three. So, you either skipped ahead here, or you just read through my summary of MySpace. Let me get in to the reason for my posting here. I didn't just post to bash MySpace. I actually created my own MySpace page for real estate and networking purposes.

As a Realtor, I am told to make sure my name is out there for the whole world to see and associate it with real estate. So, I figured, I might as well create a MySpace account and tell the whole world, "Here I am, Dan C. Hamilton, Realtor!" Ahem, okay, back to earth now, so I did it. I created a MySpace account, mentioned that I am a real estate agent servicing the Columbus, OH area, but I can also be of assistance outside of Columbus. I posted a link to my website, www.DanCHamilton.com, and to my video Reel-Tours. And guess what... it worked!

One afternoon, I checked my account mail and found an email message from a buddy I had graduated from high school with, and he said something along the lines of, "Hey Dan, I am living in (a city other than Columbus) and I was wondering if you could help me locate a good Realtor here in my area." Wow! I thought, "Oh my gosh, if MySpace can create business like this for me, I am going all out to make my MySpace page the best." And then that referal from my old high school friend turned into even another referal for me as I became acquainted with that real estate agent I referred my friend to, and the other agent referred one of their clients to me. Two clients from MySpace? I was really on to something here.

But that's when things started to get a little too out of control for my liking. I started having people posting themselves into My Friends group, many of the people I definitely wouldn't want as a friend as a married man (women looking for something a little more than friendship) and it really started stressing me out. I was getting so worked up about, "Who are these girls? Do I know this person, are they trying to contact me for real estate, or is this just a ploy to get me to fall into a trap and pay a fee for one of these girls' personal websites with explicit pictures and such?

Well, needless to say, I decided to cancel my MySpace account. My relationship with my wife is too dear to me to jeopardize at all for any reason, uncluding trying to gain a couple real estate deals out of it. I mean, in the scheme of it all, I still did get two real estate deals out of it, and that's much more than most people will ever get out of MySpace.

I'm not saying MySpace is bad. Honestly, there were a lot of nice features with it. And if there was a secure means to get rid of all the bad people on MySpace, I would definitely keep my account active and try to garner up more business and continue to market myself to the world. But right now, for me, it is too risky. And parents, your kids will get into MySpace if they aren't already. And it's just like the ads you see on TV for smoking or drugs... just talk to your children. Tell them what to be careful of. Tell them my story. Tell them the stories you see on the news, and make sure they know that it could happen to them if they aren't aware and knowledgable, and careful. MySpace is going to be around for a long long time. It might even turn in to an internet staple like www.Google.com, but it could be Pandora's Box to the right (or wrong) people.

Please be cautious of MySpace and talk to your children. Thank you.

Dan C. Hamilton
Keller Williams Greater Columbus Realty
Direct (614) 944-5936
Email dchamilton@kw.com
Visit www.HamiltonHomesGroup.com
Visit www.DanCHamilton.com