When Social Media Isn’t
I’ve been saying this until I’m nearly blue in the face: you have to be social on social media to succeed. People are still doing feeds from Facebook, saying that they get no clients from Twitter (because they only have a feed from Facebook), and doing everything they can to make social media easier for themselves. Social media requires some work if you want to do it right. Here are some worst practices!
Broadcasting
What can I say about broadcasting that hasn’t already been said? People want conversation and engagement. So listen, chat, be friendly, and inclusive. Reach out to newbies and be generous first.
Reckless Retweeting
Retweeting conversations between other people, retweeting a whole list of people when you’re having a conversation with just one person on the list, and retweeting Friday Follows with no reason given to follow all come across as lazy.
Bad Auto-DMs
On Twitter, good Auto Direct Messages are a rare breed. The majority of auto-DMs are, at best, boring and at worst spammy.
Whining on Facebook
Having a negative attitude on Facebook won’t generally make people want to engage more with you. Don’t tell people how stupid Facebook is on Facebook. If you hate Facebook that much, don’t use it. But if you hate it and still insist on using it, for God’s sake, shut up about it (you know who you are!). I can say this, because I know you’re not reading this right now, you Facebook hater, you.
Oversharing
Are you anti-social on social media?
Do you have people who’ve begged you not to post pictures of them on Facebook, and yet you continue to post and tag them? Hint: you’re not Ansel Adams! Respect your friends’ wishes, and don’t overshare or stalk, and tag responsibly. Remember, friends don’t let friends tag unflattering photos.
Using Personal Facebook Page as Business Page
Occasional spillover isn’t so annoying, but your friends expect to see more personal posts on your personal page. There are many benefits to having a business page for your business!
Alienating Your Audience
Recently a friend sent me a tweet from a brand saying that “The likelihood that I will unfollow you on Instagram once you have a baby is about 97%”. Maybe someone thinks this is “disruptive” but it just seems antagonistic.
Giving Twitter Shoutouts to Those You Don’t Follow
When you give shoutouts listing people to follow, yet you don’t follow any of them, this is inexplicable.
Repinning Every Pin
Have you experienced this? Someone repins every single thing you pin, yet doesn’t follow you. That, my friends, is stealing someone’s Pinterest soul. If you like my pins that much, follow me!
Do You Practice Social Media or Anti-Social Media?
Certainly you’ve seen some anti-social media practices. Which ones really get your three billy goats gruff?
Those are great points and I share the rant and blue face – especially tweeting from facebook and auto DMs.
Hi Bridget,
On the plus side, those who do socialize will stand out even more, since more and more people and brands are not willing to socialize! So there’s that.
Thanks for the comment. Yes, auto-DMs drive me crazy!
Sincerely,
Carol
Nice post but I disagree about not shouting out people I do not follow. Not that I do it often but I follow who I want or need to follow where I want to. If I am not following both of you on Twitter because I like your blogs or Facebook interaction better do you not want me to share with my Twitter followers that they might like your Twitter feeds better than I do? I think not.
Hi Tosca,
That’s an interesting viewpoint–one I’ve never heard before. I wouldn’t guess that that would be the reason for giving someone a shoutout that you didn’t follow. I guess it would be like being in a restaurant and saying “try the pasta–I don’t like pasta, but you might!”.
Thanks for sharing your view.
Sincerely,
Carol
First, can I take back what I tweeted to you about my FB search difficulties? (At least I didn’t post it on FB!). I think the social part of social media is what makes it worth while, but I know it’s a real time commitment to be truly sociable and perhaps that’s where some people are missing the boat. I think reckless retweeting is what drives me nuts the most–why would ‘you’ (meaning anyone) retweet the retweet that I just retweeted from your tweet in the first place???? I think that kind of thing is just messy and I feel idiotic even writing it!
Hi Kim,
I know what you mean about retweeting the retweet–that adds to the clutter and is one reason people sometimes unfollow people who do that. It may be more of a newbie tweeter doing that, and hopefully they’ll grow out of it. We can dream, can’t we? ;-)
Thanks for the comment!
Carol
Hi Carol
Great Post
your comment about shout outs , I get what the other poster Toscasac is saying , I don’t think they don’t like the pasta , it’s just their on a diet . The follow me I will follow you is the wrong philosophy , it just breeds people to want to have lots of followers , and for what ? Just to collect people to make you look popular , Popular for trying to find cures for cancer or life changing products ok ..- but just so you look popular it’s not cool .
Most brands get social media wrong , because they just want you to purchase, they run the product in your face all the time. They also think if they treat u as insignificant you will want to belong to their club . They don’t talk back because they are afraid of saying the wrong thing . While I am a brand to the trade , I am not to the public , however now I want to be , why because Embroidery is a dying art and I want it to survive.
pinterest – I thought it was great way instead of saving magazine clippings as your inspiration……n , and creating physical presentation boards , all now can be done online, I don’t follow many people because I do not want to be influenced, I still believe in human interaction with nature and other people which fuels my trending, and pinning. However I do like others pins ususally coming across them if I pin and pinterest tells me another pinner pinned the same pin , then I will go to their board, and like or repin things I truly love , not just doing it to do it .
Facebook – I am starting a business page , and I am just using it as another voice . I am hoping that my followers from other sites , will follow me there , and help to put the word out … Maybe I am dreaming here …lol
twiter = I use it , to inform people whats happening on my tumblr/ instagram. I am not good with twitter . I ADMIT IT …
For me the game changer is instagram , it is the quickest way to get your point across , and the beauty of are the tags , it’s fascinating to see sooo many talented people in the world , so many happy people just having fun and enjoying life . The tags are so relevant even when they they appear out of place. I feel likes are more important than followers .
To sum it up , I am exhausted with SOM. This is why I come to you .
I am off of the soapbox lol
Hello Natalie,
I understand about not having to follow those who follow you. People do need a certain number of followers, though, in order to get their message heard. Social media is a very competitive space, and having at least a few followers is important, otherwise it’s like you’re singing in the shower to yourself!
But following for no reason doesn’t work, either. I think if the person/brand offers some kind of value, then I’ll follow.
The old-fashioned push marketing doesn’t work with social media. We have to pull people in with good engagement, listening skills, and education or entertainment. And while all other things are never equal, if they were, I’d choose the brand with good engagement on social media.
I love that you’re bringing back embroidery! Look at what’s happened with knitting lately! It’s all kinds of cools, with knitting clubs meeting in coffee shops, yarn bombing, etc. A few years back, you couldn’t give away yarn! Why couldn’t the same thing happen with embroidery?
It’s so interesting all the different ways people use Pinterest, and I love your approach–staying true to your own vision and passions.
Twitter is high-maintenance and it’s not for everyone. Maybe your strengths lie in Instagram. You could keep a light tough with Twitter and focus on the others. There’s no law that says you have to be everywhere. Maybe skip Twitter for now(?).
Thank you, Natalie, I appreciate your thoughtful comments! Gave me a lot to consider on a Monday morning!
Sincerely,
Carol
Your Welcome Carol ! I am glad you have this blog it really does help to put social media in perspective !
I agree about twitter , and i learned the hard way about singing in the shower…
have a great and prosperous week !
Thanks so much, Natalie! That’s funny (that you learned the hard way about singing in the shower!)! There are so many ways to fail–not just with Twitter, but with all forms of social media! Thank you for being so social, and thanks for the comments! I appreciate your support.
Sincerely,
Carol