Etiquette for Social Networking
Years ago when social networking primarily consisted of message boards and forums, etiquette there was pretty simple. The rules were black and white and pretty easy to remember. These days with all the various social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Squidoo , the rules are now gray.
This is especially true for business owners that use social networking as part of their marketing plan. Are the rules the same? Are they different? I mean seriously how do you know what you should be posting/tweeting/blogging about in the business area?
Recently I encountered a situation on a social networking application that really threw me for a loop. Someone had posted a comment to another person’s post that was just completely rude, unprofessional and inconsiderate. Not only was it none of their business to condemn Person A’s decisions but Person B continued with their rude, sarcastic comments. It was because of that I began to ponder what the exactly where the rules where for social networking etiquette.
Now there was no Miss Manners book of Social Networking to turn to so I thought I’d start off with a few of my own..
1. Be open and honest yet fair
2. Play nicely - Don’t be a bully!
3. Be respectful
4. Remember - to be transparent and utilize full disclosure
5. Before you post something online , ask yourself would I say this in person
I guess the most important thing to remember is that if you don’t follow the “rules”, it will come back to haunt you one way or another.
What “rules” do you follow when social networking?
