The 60 Second Guide to Social Media: How to Talk on the Internet

Social Media & Pre-Sliced American Cheese

A lot can be said about how we portray ourselves and our businesses through social media channels. Some advisers will recommend not to post anything that may alienate your audience (the “pre-sliced American cheese” or “greatest common denominator” philosophy).

But there is more to social media than being non-offensive or inclusive. The trick is to be non-offensive, inclusive AND CON¬CURRENTLY: interesting, available, current, occasionally funny, informative, and not-too-busy-to-pay-attention-but-not-too-idle-to-over post. Oh, and ditch the social media ‘I just opened my account’ generic page/avatar uniform as soon as you can (Need help? Give us a buzz).

Social Media & Baked Goods

A social media post is like a baked good. Imagine you and I are visitors to a bake sale. We walk past the first table: dry multi-grain muffin. We move towards the second table: over baked biscuits. Third table: two day-old cornbread. Are these things horrible? Maybe not, but we both know what we were really hoping to find: a freshly baked, decadent, velvety cupcake with half of a ripe strawberry wedged in the frosting.

The Recipe

1. Be ready to display excessive persistence.

2. Don’t find things to re-post. Find INTERESTING things to re-post.

3. Think about what your readers/followers/friends need: A laugh?
Product advice? Coupons and deals? A human behind a logo?

4. It never hurts to educate and inform – that’s where the web’s roots are.

5. Don’t annoy. It’s bad enough when a person is thought of as “spam”, it’s worse for a company or brand.

6. Please don’t annoy. (Don’t over post. Don’t re-post the most popular web buzz. Don’t only post external links without bait: good descriptions or pictures associated with the links.

7. Don’t let social media be a chore. Hundreds of people would love to spend time on Facebook or Twitter while at work. You have a valid reason to (believe me, you do), so, for the sake of the rest of us: enjoy it.