Social Media Etiquette – Don’t forget to say Please and Thank You
Posted by Lauren Potgieter on 23 Aug 2010 | Tagged as: Social Media, Uncategorized
If you ever had a mother that was slightly obsessed with manners (which my mother definitely was) there is no doubt that you have been taught a certain degree of etiquette. From saying please and thank you to not putting your elbows on the table, etiquette is expected and respected in a vast majority of social circles. Just as we exercise etiquette amongst our friends and family, so should we exercise a degree of etiquette with our social media strategy as a part of our brand. Do you bring politeness and etiquette into your social media brand strategy or do you prefer to turn your nose up at the need for manners?
According to those in the know, one of the most imperative aspects of social media etiquette is to keep it clean. From what we have seen over the past few years, word of mouth is stronger than ever and in order to keep your own reputation squeaky clean, it is important that you do unto others, as they say. If you get attacked by another brand or another brand is doing something that you do not approve of, make your voice heard but do not lower yourself to their level and get your hands just as dirty.
Also, make sure you deal with any complaints or negative references to your brand in the same way that you would do so “in real life”. Meaning that if that particular person came into your office or shop and complained, how would you deal with it? I doubt that you would verbally abuse them back, even if you were the Grinch personified. If you get a verbally abusive tweet or wall post, do your best to reply to the rant as your brand but also use a personal voice, showing that you are not replying in a spam type of way, but as a person that is willing to help and who wants to know why that customer is so mad or disappointed.
And finally, give back in moderation with what you take. Conversation is not a mere monologue where you speak and speak but do not listen, and the public do in fact want to hear what your brand or service has to say whilst having their own say at the same time. If they can see the spark of conversation, they will begin to interact. If you can, share your own information as well as the information of others you respect, as it is just polite.
It seems that when it comes to social media, the buzzword “interaction” continues to remain. But in addition to that, another word that pops up in social media conversation (another buzzword, by the way) is “consideration”. Just as you would not go snooping through your customers bag or knock on their door at 3am in the morning, make sure you exercise a degree of consideration and give credit where credit is needed as it can be easy to forget that you are dealing with people and not just usernames and profile pictures.
You will realise that these pointers are simple as well as obvious, but many of us tend to forget where “we” end and “our brand” begins. And finally, do not forget your please and thank you’s, otherwise your mother will be highly disappointed
