I had a completely different topic that I was going to write about this week. After annoyingly being bombarded with emails and notifications from being added to a group without my permission, I felt the need to write this post and help everyone out. Most of these are for Facebook but you can use them with most any social network.
Do NOT automatically add people to a group without their permission!
This is icky and not polite in any way! DO send them a personalized note letting them know why they should consider joining your group and why you are sending them the invite.
Do NOT send mass emails through social networking.
DO send friendly and conversation emails to connect with your friends. Anything else is called Spam. Be mindful. Yes, you can spam someone through social networking. We all have received a mass message through Facebook or LinkedIn and to me it is pretty annoying when I see one – especially on Facebook because every time someone replies, I receive another notification. Not cool for those who didn’t even want to be a part anyway.
Do NOT promoting yourself or your business on someone else’s wall (without permission).
Again this really is icky and will not attract people to you or your business. DO share your favorite business pages on your own page.
Do NOT mass invite people to come to your event!
NO I do NOT want to attend your tele-call, your yard sale, or your program launch that you are passing off as an “event”. Do create an invite and kindly post it on your wall for your “likers” to see. If they are interested in the event, they will sign up! You could potentially lose people who would be interested if you didn’t clog up their inbox with another event invite.
Do NOT send automated messages in Twitter when someone follows you.
This is wrong in so many ways. DO take a couple seconds and send a personalized note thanking them for following you or adding you as a friend. Seriously, take the time to interact with me when you find out I am following you. Allow me to mingle with you before asking me to join your mailing list, like you on Facebook or whatever else you are automatically sending out.
It is important to understand that if people like you and are attracted to you — they will join your list, follow you on Facebook, and probably anything else just short of throwing themselves at you. Just be patient and win them over first. The rewards will come.
And while we are on the topic, check out a past vlog post on Social Media Etiquette.
Do you have a Do or Don’t of Social Networking that you would like to share? Post it in the comments section below!
Hi Alicia – I enjoyed your blog about Social Media Do’s & Don’ts, however, I wanted to discuss sharing on other people’s walls. I have a different take on that one, and I am an offender and proud of it. My feeling is that if you are looking at a business page, it is okay to to comment there and introduce yourself and your business page there because this is “Social Media” and the point is to be able to communicate with each other. I welcome others to promote on my business page wall. The more people I can meet and network with the more opportunity I have to get them to know me and their connections to know me. They do not have to be in the same business as I am to need me. It’s about meeting new people. So my view differs here and I just thought I would throw it in the mix. If someone was taking advantage of my wall and posting offensive or nuisance things I would block them and that’s that. But most people are really just trying to network and that is all good to me. Thanks for you well done blog! Sue
Hi Sue! It is ok to disagree with me! 😉 I focus more on conversating with people on pages and then once they get to know me, they will get curious and want to find out more. Social Media isn’t meant to be so here I am, in their face! If it works for you, go with it! Xo, A
Hmmmm? I agree with you Alicia about not posting about your business on someone else’s wall. For me it’s like sticking a flyer on someone else’s shop front (so don’t agree with Sue above-sorry).
I also don’t like when people immediately starting promoting their business as soon as you connect.It’s s like being introduced at a cocktail party and you immediately start dishing out your business cards; it’s not what SM is about for me. Also constantly promoting your own business on Twitter is a turn-off for me. It’s like sitting at a cocktail party/dinner with someone and they never stop talking about their business; it’s SO boring. So I keep it to about 1 tweet in every 30 (if that!) about my business.
I try and use the cocktail party scenario to guide me as to whether I am doing something correctly/politely or not; it’s helped me 😉
Great post 🙂
Hi Vanessa! I couldn’t agree more and love the flyer in the front window. That is a great comparison. Have fun with it! Thank you for reading! Xo, Alicia
Hi Alicia, I agree with you on all of your points, but I have a question about the last one. I do contact my followers on Twitter when I see they have followed me and I first address them saying hi and using their first name. I then thank them for following me and let them know I’m looking forward to connecting with them (because I am, everything I say is genuine). And then I invite them to join my mailing list and add a link. Is that still rude? My intention is to connect with them, get to see who they are and what they are about. I check out everyone’s page who follows me and if they are in my niche or look like they have something interesting to say, I will also follow them back. So it’s not all about me, but I do like to invite them to my mailing list, because I figure if they are interested enough in reading my tweets, they may also be interested in my emails (and I have gotten several signups this way). So let me know if my polite approach to breaking one of the rules is still a no-no.
And I have to say, I also disagree with Sue, the first commenter. My FB page is not an open advertising station. I’ve had people just post their business page on my wall and not even “like” my page, just using it as a bulletin board. I did not appreciate that at all. If someone wants to share a message or even a site that is relevant to my niche and topics then I’m all for it because it would be contributing to the community vibe I am trying to create on my page anyway. But just simply promoting yourself is not cool in my book.
Hi Alexis! Thank you for sharing this, I do agree that it should be done with more finesse! Thank you for reading and and sharing your thoughts!! Keep them coming! Xo, Alicia
Thanks girls, for your feedback on my comment. I will re-think the way I introduce myself on your walls in the future, however, I will continue to welcome the opportunity to meet anyone on a social media business page — it’s just the way I am configured….I come from a heavy marketing background. Thank you for the topic 🙂
Here is a new pet peeve–don’t “check me in” at a place on facebook. I have since disabled this so no one can check me in but previous to doing that I had people checking me in. I have both a personal and professional presence on facebook and I don’t really care to have people checking me in during the work day let’s say to a place that is clearly not work related. I am a small business owner and my working hours can be much different from the traditional 9 to 5’er. So if I “sneak off” to a girls lunch on a wednesday afternoon–I won’t be checking in. Loved the article. Now if you figure out a way to get this message to the people who really need it let me know. Would love to know your strategy!
Hi Libby! Thank you so much for taking the time to read this! I agree more people need to be aware of what to do and what not to do! Feel free to share it!! Xo, Alicia
Hi everyone
With the age of social media and technical ways of communicating, we seem to have lost that personal touch. I come from a time of party lines for telephone service, manual typewriters and no way to copy anything unless you traced it. And with pressure on everyone to get that client, we have reverted to a very impersonal way of doing business. People do like that phone call and hand written message that they receive in the mail. When you make that effort, I believe that it means that you truly do care about them. With today’s fast paced world, this may not always be possible but putting a bit of discretion into our communications could make a huge difference.
Hi Carol! You can totally give someone the personalized note through social media that you would send in the mail… minus the signature. It is faster, more reliable, and in a place that they are daily. Having that personal touch with each email opens a new friendship between you and that person so much quicker than snail mail could ever do! Thanks for reading and sharing your point of view! 🙂 xo, a
Hi there…I am enjoying your posts so much! Yes, I am reading this one late, but they are still helpful.
I don’t mind being invited to events and getting mass messages. This is sometimes the only way that I know something is going on, and I can choose to participate or not. On the same note, I think it’s really important to emphasize we can “leave a discussion” or say no on an event. It’s easy to ignore them. I think people who use facebook don’t know how to delete these things, and then they start their needless complaining 🙂 It’s easily our choice to participate or not.
I do like your reminder of etiquette to send a personal message first and ask. That is a good reminder to be polite and respectful.
I am guilty of adding people to my group, but at the same time, I post a message telling them that if they aren’t interested, it’s fine, and then I leave instructions on how to turn off notifications and/or leave the group.
Thanks for all of your great advice!