Tom's Hardware Signature Rules???

[DataMedic]

I'm thinking of adding a signature to my profile, but I don't want to get in trouble as I know many other members have been banned for "signature spam".

I see that some members such as hardware representatives have a link in the their signature. For example Western Digital Reps have www.wdc.com in their signature tag.

If I were to add my website link as a signature, would I get in trouble? I run a legitimate data recovery business, and am certainly not looking to spam anyone. Which is why I'm asking first.

Perhaps a moderator could weigh in here. Thanks.

 

[ex_bubblehead]

No on the link. Self promotion is frowned upon. The Western Digital reps are allowed the link as they have been designated by management as official representatives of WD.

 

[DataMedic]

Ok, thanks for the reply. I guess I just don't see how what they're doing isn't "self promotion" by that definition, but I'll avoid the link as I certainly don't want to get banned.

 

[Deleted member 217926]

I think you would much more likely be nicely asked to remove the link before any bans were issued

Obviously it is 'self promotion' for our official reps to have links in their sigs and if you have a company that manufactures tech products for an international client base and that has enough market saturation ( and advertising revenue ) to require hiring people to answer technical questions on forums about said products then by all means contact the management about official rep status. However if you work for Bob's PC repair it probably aint happening

 

[Pinhedd]

Ok, thanks for the reply. I guess I just don't see how what they're doing isn't "self promotion" by that definition, but I'll avoid the link as I certainly don't want to get banned.

Hi,

The official representatives featured on our forums are from major manufacturers that act almost exclusively in a professional support capacity. We provide a platform to bring users and troubleshooters together and we don't really care if that troubleshooter is a community expert or the manufacturer's official representative. We don't allow them to hawk or promote their products (at least not without permission or solicitation) as we don't want to turn these forums into an advertising venue. Having a link to the manufacturer's website in the representative's signature goes hand in hand with their forum title.

As for a simple website link in a signature, I personally could care less but others might not feel the same way.

 

[Vic81]

Hi,
I have a question which is related to the topic of "link to manufacturer site" in the signature. Do the same restrictions apply to a Kickstarter project?

 

[Deleted member 217926]

Hi,
I have a question which is related to the topic of "link to manufacturer site" in the signature. Do the same restrictions apply to a Kickstarter project?

Yes. Meaning it's not allowed.

 

[JaredDM]

So what about a simple link to something like a blog? Would that be considered "self promotion"? Most blog owners do make money somehow either through advertising or using the blog to generate interest in their company.

 

[ex_bubblehead]

^
Yes, that also falls under the self promotion rule.

 

[JaredDM]

OK, so it seems to me then that links really just aren't allowed in the signature at all. I mean, unless you want to link to a personal homepage of nothing but pictures of your kids. It seems that pretty much anything else will get you banned (and no they don't warn first, just ask the thousands of people banned for signature spam who didn't understand this unwritten policy).

 

[ex_bubblehead]

^
Who is this mysterious "they" to whom you refer? And no, we have not banned "thousands" for signature spam. We ask that links be removed first, then warn, then a senior mod removes the signature. Bans are a last measure in the vast majority of cases. Please get your facts straight.

 

[JaredDM]

My first account on Tom's was banned a few days after I opened it with absolutely no warning just because of a simple link in the signature. I couldn't even message the moderator who banned me.

Asked around to some other guys I knew, and they had all had the same experience of being immediately banned with no warning. I think you're the one who needs to "get your facts straight". Maybe you don't immediately ban without warning people, but most moderators on here do.

 

[ex_bubblehead]

And with that we're done here.