Poke in Moderation: Tips on Social Networking Etiquette
The US economy is crumbling around us, unemployment is reaching record-breaking highs, and I’m supposed to focus precious brainpower on how and when to poke, tweet, and ping my colleagues?
As more and more employers and colleagues become involved with various social networks, I find myself checking LinkedIn, Facebook, and even Twitter before I head to a new client meeting. I’m assuming they are doing the same, so as potential replacement for first round interview, I guess it can’t hurt to be on the politically correct side of business social networking.
Five Tips for Responsible “Facebooking”:
- 1. Choose your profile picture with care: Display a picture that is a true representation, but not over the top. Think “would I show this to my boss?”
- 2. Write your biography accurately and use your privacy settings to restrict access: Misrepresentation will always hurt you in the long run. Be truthful and take the time to employ your security powers to restrict user access.
- 3. Post with a purpose: Over-posting is a big don’t and will have your “friends” dropping like flies. Comment to your colleagues when you have something meaningful to say or add. Further, use the functionality that matched your intention. If you want a private discussion, use the message feature.
- 4. Be aware of the “one to many” factor: Understand that when you post to most places on Facebook, multiple users can view your information—sometimes hundreds or thousands of people. Think before you disseminate.
- 5. Watch what you write: Be mindful of your tone. Sarcasm and anger can be quite detrimental and once it’s in writing on platforms like Facebook, it’s very hard to get rid of it.
Five Dos and Don’ts for Twitter:
- 1. Follow people you know and trust: Remember the “Don’t talk to Strangers” advice? Well, it applies here. Attempted to associate with those who will inspire you and/or help your career, not hurt it.
- 2. Avoid misrepresentation and be clear about your Twitter intentions. Nobody likes to be the fool, so don’t alienate and potential contacts by a sneaky sales attack or personal over-share.
- 3. Be personal (with restraint): Employing the advice of the previous point, Twitter is a balance. Professional relationships often benefit from an infusion of personal information, so post material that will have meaning to your followers.
- 4. Understand the functionality and use is appropriately: While responding to tweets is meant to provide an open discussion format, personal details should be sent via direct messaging.
- 5. Reciprocate with a reason: No one likes shameless self or company promotion, so try to respond to tweets that interest you with meaningful content that will add to an ongoing discussion.
With the potential for social networking profiles to eventually eliminate the traditional resume and act as a candidate screening process (whether you authorize it or not), it may be wise to be on the conservative side when it comes to virtual behavior.
