Social Media Etiquette
Wait! You mean I should have manners and etiquette when I interact on Social Media sites? I can’t just push myself on others as I please? Send out links on Twitter that have catchy titles but lead to a StumbleUpon or Digg page so you can vote for my article? Is it bad etiquette to schedule 100 tweets a day for links to my articles that are not fresh and new? Yes, you can do all these things, but chances are, you are missing out on building real relationships and community by doing that.
What Is Social Media Etiquette?
I don’t know if there is a definition on Wiki or how many other articles there are written about social media etiquette, but I will list a few things that come to mind for me when I am using social media.
- Don’t Be A Loudmouth: When I was going through my Twitter followers the other day, I noticed that some of them tweeted over 80 times a day! What were they tweeting about, usually themselves. This, to me, is like trying to have a conversation with someone that continuously interrupts to tell you something about themselves.
- Don’t Be Sneaky: I have noticed people sending out links on sites that have these great titles so I click on them only to find it doesn’t link to the actual article, it links to a Digg or StumbleUpon page asking you to vote for the article. But, I haven’t even read the article yet, and I don’t even use Digg. Link to the article, people will Stumble, Digg, or RT if they like it. If you do link to one of these (or any number of other bookmarking sites) say it when you send out the link.
- Scheduled Tweets: I occasionally will schedule a Tweet to go out 2-3 times over a day to promote an article I have written that day, mostly if I know I won’t be near a computer to do it manually, and I have only done this twice. Scheduling 10 tweets every hour linking to posts is rude in my opinion. Once a post is a few days old, move on to fresh material. That is kind of like the comedian that never changes his routine, people stop wanting to see it. Don’t over promote yourself, it makes you look selfish.
- Don’t Be Stiff: Social Media can be fun, but if you make it all business, it will show. It is ok to have real conversations about leisure activities with people you know, it is ok to just have conversations. Don’t act like Social Media is a corporate job and you have to wear a tie to join in, put on some shorts, a pair of flip flops, and enjoy the scenery sometimes.
- Connecting All Your Social Media Sites Together: I have seen this too, where you have Twitter, Facebook, and Friendfeed all linked together, and every time you say something, it echos 3 or more times in a row. There are ways to link these together without having the echo (will have to save the how-to for another post). I mainly use Twitter, so I send Twitter to Facebook and Friendfeed and leave it at that, if you connect Friendfeed back to Twitter, and Facebook, you are creating double entries.
Don’t Tell Others How To Use Social Media:
Ok, I did just that didn’t I. These are just suggestions, by no means can I or anyone else tell you how to use social media. But you should try to use Social Media in the same way you would conduct yourself in public, or in business.
Discussion:
I only listed a few of my pet peeves about etiquette in social media, do you have any?
Related posts:
- Social Media Mondays: Episode 3
- Social Media Monday: Favorite Spots
- Social Media Monday: Episode 5
- Social Media Monday: Thanks Twitter
- Social Media Mondays: Episode 2
I think the key is just being honest and yourself. The people that I have really started building relationships with have come from just regular conversation on Twitter – not promotion. And the results or these relationships fair about way the couple of clicks I get from promoting my posts.
.-= Tom@Free Squeeze Pages´s last blog ..The 4 Reasons People Unsubscribe Mailing Lists =-.
It took awhile to figure out, but I finally disconnected my Facebook and Twitter accounts. It was confusing my kids [on Facebook] and annoying me. FriendFeed is connected to Twitter, but I never use FriendFeed. In fact, many use this to boost their subscriber numbers, but I have no clue how this works.
But, enough about me. You make good points here. I’ve noticed a trend with de-friending for too much spammy-like tweets/posts/updates. It’s distracting and unproductive and now it’s costing people followers.
Think we all came to a conclusion that whoever is going for self-promoting in social media requires some really hard work – anything but hard pushing yourself, that is. Agreeing on the double entries, I have personally eliminated some Facebook integration apps just to prevent unwanted echoes. Be thoughtful, people will appreciate you for it.
Rewarded your effort with a stumble & RT. Keep it up!
@wchingya
Social/Blogging Tracker
.-= Ching Ya@Social Media Blogging´s last blog ..Art Of Communicating in Social Networks =-.
Great article Keith. I think a lot of people only use social media to promote their blog or articles. Of course I am doing this too but I think it’s important to not get obsessed with it. I think social media is, well, about being social. About connecting to other people. It’s not about having a one way conversation. You can truly get that anywhere.
.-= Julius Kuhn-Regnier´s last blog ..How to Make a Great First Impression Through Guest Posts =-.
I just turned off Twitter update from BackType. I noticed that if I commented on certain blogs, it would update my twitter every time that post received a comment. Very frustrating.
Another thing that seems rude is having a shortened URL for the website on a profile. It makes no sense unless their trying to hide the actual URL until clicked.
.-= Brian D. Hawkins´s last blog ..Connect With Me – Leave Your Links =-.
All the twitter related advertising companies popping up don’t help matters much.
.-= Dennis Edell´s last blog ..DEDC Updates – What the (Near) Future Holds for You and I! =-.
I usually turn off my TweetDeck when I’m concentrating on something important as it gets way too distracting. I prefer people who tweet a few good quality links a day rather than numerous mediocre ones.
.-= Natalie´s last blog ..10 Inspirational Japanese Digital Illustrators and Artists =-.