One of the new way for social networks to get new members is through invitation spam email. What happens is that a social network will send you a spam email that says something like basheer has sent you a cold drink. To accept this gift please click the following link…

I’ve also gotten other spam invitation requests such as dating networks that says a user has added me as their friend and I need only to sign up.

This form of spam “marketing” is clever because not only does it not seem like spam, but a geniune friend request to sign up. Not only that, but it gives you an incentive to sign up for this invitation. You get to figure out who this friend is and possibly connect with them.

Even Facebook has joined on the invitation spam bandwagon. As BitterWallet wrote “When sharing a photo with friends or family the expected use of that personal email address is a one-time invitation to view the photos …. instead Facebook is storing the email address for future marketing use and implying the original sender wants the recipient to “join Facebook”.”

Is this the right way to market social networks? Or will get immune to these new forms of spam as well, deleting them instantly like all the other garbage we recieve on a daily basis?