Is Being Polite on Social Media Important?
You go ahead and answer that one for me!
I bet you do know the answer, right?
It’s…
“It depends”
As a business owner:
If you are connected to business leaders in your community, following social media etiquette rules is important.
If you use social media for professional networking, following social media etiquette rules is important.
If you sell a product on social media, following social media etiquette rules is important.
If you sell services on social media, following social media etiquette rules is important.
As a business owner:
If you run a successful company and your staff handles your social media, following social media etiquette rules on your own profiles might not be important.
If you have a gazillion dollars (yes, I just used that word) and you are jerk about it, following social media etiquette rules might not be important.
If you are Ellen, Oprah or Jimmy Fallon, you don’t care much about the rules because you make new ones!
Since None of You Who Read This Are Ellen, Oprah or Jimmy Fallon, Listen Up!
If you want to use social media to better your brand, your business, or public profile (as leader), it would behoove you to adhere to certain social media etiquette rules.
Seems though that many people seem baffled by this!
Case in point; my post 25 Social Media Etiquette Rules to Rock Your Business in 2015 is the one post in 2015 that was shared like mad across ALL social media platforms! I wrote a few posts that did better on Pinterest, a few that did better on LinkedIn and Facebook, but this one was shared all across the board.
In writing this follow up post, I am highlighting three practical rules I find many people break continually.
It’s rather sad, because breaking any of these three rules immediately shines a rather negative light on you as a professional!
Of course, it’s only my opinion… so if you disagree with the three I picked, let me hear it!
- Always address negative feedback and/or posts. Do not ignore them, or worse, way worse, delete the feedback and/or posts. You never know who might have taken a screenshot in the first place and deleting it usually fuels the fire! Someone who was mildly upset might get really really mad at being ignored or deleted. However, take caution… see #2
- Profanity has no place in a business conversation, offline or online. No matter what someone else says, does or threatens to do. Stay calm, cool, collected and do not stoop to their level. Ever.
- Don’t put your friends in Facebook groups without asking! No one wants someone else to make decisions for them, and in business that’s just wrong. I have been put into so many groups, I now have added a ‘check my Facebook groups’ line to my monthly to-do list. As a social media manager, I work on Facebook and these groups drive me crazy! I know how to turn off notifications, that’s not the point. The point is that someone else decided that I needed to ‘know about this product, industry or event’ without asking me my opinion.
To Be Taken Seriously, You Have To Behave Like a Professional.
…and then you can be my friend (again)
Please stop ignoring negative feedback, reviews or criticism. Stop using profanity and don’t add me to any Facebook groups.
…now go and play nice!
Go Rock Your Social Media Marketing in 2016!
What etiquette rule do you see broken on a daily basis?
What rules out of my original 25 rules would you pick as your Top 3 practical rules to never forget?
Leave me a comment; I’d love to know what get your fired up!
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