Blog
Social Media Manners
Posted on Nov 14, 2011 by The Woodlands of Columbia
Many of us do not even remember a time without social media, a time when we still had land lines in our homes and our cellphones only had ‘Snake’. That was a day when we were blissfully unaware that so-and-so was at the coffee shop with so-and-so or when someone’s relationship became ‘Facebook official’. The social media boom surfaced and spread at such a rapid rate that we never really had a chance to lay down any ground rules and establish a system of ethics. Social Media and the issues that surround it are often the elephant in the room, or more accurately, in the palm of everyone’s hand, so after much research on the subject, I’ve developed a list of my own social media code of etiquette, or humble advice, however one chooses to receive it.
1. Who should really be your ‘friend’? In response to such a question, some of the rules of the past still apply, for example, don’t talk to strangers. If you do not know them, you don’t have to accept them and let them into your personal cyber life. It’s still your life and you should still take control of who you wish to associate with. Chances are you cannot name all of your Facebook friends or Twitter followers from memory and you may definitely forget a quick friend request that you accepted from your family pastor a few months back as you post the photos from your latest hazy visit to fraternity row. The best remedy for this faux pas is to do what your mother said and choose your friends wisely. If you must post the pics from the foam party, don’t befriend your boss.
2. Separation of Social Media and Real Life . . . There is nothing more awkward than for someone to call you out about something you posted on insert preferred social media here during a face to face interaction. The first rule of social media is don’t talk about social media . . . except on social media. I like to think of it as an alternate existence. Sure it may come up in casual conversation, but that does not mean that you should go sticking ‘like’ stickers all over town creeping everyone out, or speaking in hash-tags, thats just weird.
3. A Posting Predicament . . . Another instance when your mother knew what she was talking about; if you have nothing nice to say, don’t say anything at all. This rule is particularly important when dealing with social media because unfortunately, you cannot take something back quite as easily when it is posted on the Internet and 250 people saw it before you had a chance to hit the delete button. The dreaded social media trail has gotten countless users into heaps of trouble, so think before you tweet, you have all the time in the world to post a well-thought out rebut void of incorrect spelling, cursing and misinformation. Hey kids, keep it classy.
4. Know when to Stop . . . Too much of a good thing is not so awesome and this overwhelmingly applies to social media. What you do on your own time is your business. Please, tweet to your heart’s content, but when you are visiting your grandmother, ordering food or coffee or checking out at any store, put the posts off until later. Think about it, that hot date wants to see your beautiful face, not the top of your head as you obsess over someone’s newly single status.
5. The Fun Stuff . . . There are so many positive aspects of social media, otherwise, why would it have become the norm? Its value as a marketing tool, especially for small business, is immeasurable, and I don’t even remember birthdays before Facebook. It really puts the excitement back in the birthday, even after age 21. It is undeniably the most global reaching method in which to put yourself out there for all of the world to see, or as little of the world as you wish. And the buck does not stop at Facebook, Twitter and Google+, there are many more exciting forms of social media in which to get involved. My personal favorites include Instagram (a photo-sharing feed) and Pinterest. (a diy, recipe, fashion, design, anything-you-can-think-of sharing haven) If you have yet to check these out, you are in for a treat. They will keep your love of social media fresh and exciting and open up even more possibilities for you and your cyber social life, enjoy!
Tagged: the woodlands of columbia, usc apartments, usc housing, off-campus housing, social media, facebook, twitter, etiquette, college
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