I watched recently, as someone on Twitter asked his followers if they would recommend a blog for him to read. He specifically asked people not to send him a link to their own blog.
I asked him afterwards what feedback he received. He said all, except one person, tweeted a link to their own site.
There were 2 things there, which were of interest to me:

 1. I found it interesting that he would need to ask people not to self-promote.I

2. I also found it interesting that these people were prepared to make themselves look so desperate and needy.

What drives business owners to do that?

So, why does this happen? In my experience, business owners pester you when their marketing isn’t compelling enough to attract your attention. In other words, instead of fixing their marketing so that it’s attractive, they push broken marketing at you.
You see it all the time:

• When no one is subscribing to their newsletter, they subscribe you to it without your consent, then spam you.
• When no one is visiting their website or blog, they bombard you on social networks with links to themselves.
• When no one is calling them, they interrupt you with unwanted cold calls.

Commanding attention works better than demanding it

A more effective approach, is to command attention rather than try and demand attention by being a pest. This means developing marketing, which people will embrace and share. It means having the courage to stand out.
Of course, this requires a change in strategy and tactics, but the upside is huge.
You command attention. You attract interest. You capture people’s imagination and gain word of mouth referrals.
You generate opportunities.

Most importantly of all, it works

Source: jimsmarketingblog.com