It won’t instigate a lawsuit. It won’t change the world order. But there are a couple of things you should clearly avoid as a business using social media sites. Why? Because you might irritate someone…and that person could be a client or a potential client/customer with whom you are trying to build a relationship. And it makes both you and your business look bad.
On Facebook: Don’t set up a group page or a personal page if you’re a business; instead, set up a fan page. On a fan page (there are three kinds of these), you can create status updates to announce events that will then appear in your fans’ news feeds. You can’t do this with a group page. If you are using a group page, your news and invitations will show up in your friends’ personal Facebook inboxes. That is spamming…and people hate it. They might even un-friend you if you do it frequently. Another good reason for your business to use a fan page instead of a group page: you can target your updates demographically, and attach links, photos or video clips.
On Twitter: “Hey you! Thanks for following me! Read all about my newest invention on www.inventionimsodarnproud.com!” Don’t send new followers automatic direct mail (DM).
If you use Twitter, you’ve received generic messages just like that that seem inauthentic and canned. People hate these because there’s nothing substantial behind them. And because social networking is all about genuinely engaging with others, it’s simply not a meaningful message. Besides, you will eventually get blocked, unfollowed, or reported to the Spam Police.
Also, don’t send random @messages unless you’re replying or responding to someone you know.
On Linkedin: Don’t ask for recommendations from people you don’t know very well, especially high profile professionals. Recommendations on Linkedin are taken seriously and it takes time to think through and key one in. It’s difficult to refuse someone with a request of this nature, so people will often write a recommendation anyway. But they could easily view this request as opportunistic on your part. So don’t ask in the first place, unless you’ve really worked with someone, or otherwise know the person well.
On any social networking site: Don’t spam. Anyone. Ever. If you do, you will be dubbed an irritant that people online will eventually begin to avoid like the swine flu.
