Social Media Etiquette Tips

I was scrolling through my dashboard/newsfeed whatever you would like to call it, and I saw something I never want to see again.

Yup, that’s what it looks like. Someone “liveblogging” their child birth.

There is so much wrong with this. Birth is not something for the entire world to see/hear about! Seriously, gross.

Newsflash: Your Facebook friends DO NOT care about your child birth. There might be one or two who are interested…text them. Don’t update Facebook or Twitter or whatever else to broadcast a baby popping out of you.

Gross.

Stop.

One thing Facebook is famous for is the ability to “like” things, such as statuses, wall posts, photos, famous people and more. So what’s proper etiquette for liking things?

First of all, only notification bomb your best friends. A notification bomb is where you like a bunch of things on a person’s profile, usually photos. It’s funny when it’s close friends, but super annoying when you don’t know the person very well.

And, in my opinion, the most important thing to remember: never like your own statuses. You wrote it, so your enjoyment of it should be implied. Liking your own statuses just looks, well, pretentious. And lame. So don’t.

There is never an excuse to use minority slurs or make sexist remarks through any social media network (or in real life). So quit that. It doesn’t make a person look smart or cool, it’s just annoying and offensive. I personally have started de-friending or un-following people who make such comments.

I don’t need words like “fag” or “retard” clogging up my dashboard and newsfeed. It’s bad enough when people use those words in real life conversations, but putting offensive things on the internet for hundreds of people to see is just unclassy and tactless.

Cyber bullying doesn’t have to be directly aimed at someone.  As can be read here, cyber bullying and harassment doesn’t have to be personal. Slurs and biases that are taken too far count as bullying and harassment and the last thing we need or want as a society is a higher suicide rate.

So, watch what you say. And for goodness sakes, all adults out there should know better. If something isn’t going your way, calling it “gay” or “retarded” won’t fix that. It’ll just make you sound like you didn’t finish high school. Time to learn grown-up words to express disgust and discontent.

Maybe you’ve heard of Foursquare, maybe you haven’t. It’s a location-based social media service that’s gaining more and more users every day.

So, is it for you?

Simply, yes – if you know how to use it.

Simply put, it uses GPS to find where you are, and lets you check-in to different venues. Check in enough times, and you can become the mayor and earn badges.

The purpose? Just for fun, really. It’s also great for people who own companies to reach out to more people. A lot of places have specials, like 10% off when you check-in or a free drink for the mayor. That kind of stuff. It’s basically a way to reward the people who go there often.

There are plenty of tips that come with using Foursquare that I’ll touch on in later posts (just check the Foursquare category) but I thought I’d introduce it first. It’s not as well known as things like Facebook and Twitter.

So, tell me. Do you use Foursquare?

Stop sending your friends game requests. If they don’t respond to your first 20 invites, what makes you think they will on number 21 or 22?

I, personally, have most popular games blocked on my Facebook. I’m sick of logging on and seeing that I’ve got 10 people still wanting me to play Farmville. If I’m going to game, I’ll get on my xbox and do it.

The thing about Facebook games, is most of them are so time consuming. They’re designed to get their players online as much as possible. Plant your crops, come back an hour later and harvest. And if you don’t, they’ll die.

Do yourself (and us all) a favor and play a good game on your own time! I personally like Apples to Apples, Bananagrams, Resident Evil and Halo. And best of all, I don’t have to bother other people with requests all day when I play them!

Hardly anyone likes their job 100% of the time. But that’s why it’s called work, right? Because it’s work.

Everyone complains about work at some point. I’m not denying that. But really, stop doing it on Facebook/Twitter etc! Don’t you realize your employer can see it? Your coworkers can too. And potential employers.

Not to mention, those who complain about work just seem like whiny losers. No offense. And by that, I mean, take offense and stop complaining.

The worst is when I see people whining about working like, a 4 hour shift, or working 3 days a week or something.

Really?

A lot of people in the world work a lot longer for a lot less money.

Grow up and bitch about your job to your friends in person where no one else can listen in.

A common misconception floating around is that Twitter is just for people to share what they had for lunch, what TV show they’re watching or how the weather is.

This isn’t exactly true. Twitter is about social connections. It’s a way for companies to reach thousands of people, among other things.

So, what’s appropriate?

Really, anything is fair game, as long as it’s done right. The more @mentions and #hashtags in a Twitter update, the better. Links are also good.

For instance, instead of “mmm pizza” one could update with “Just had lunch at @FMSpicyPie #goodeats http://www.fmspicypie.com/”

It’s essentially the same update, but the second one is much more “Twitter friendly.”

It’s all about knowing your audience.

It’s 8 a.m. and you’ve just arrived at work. You turn on your computer, check Facebook and see on the right hand side of your Newsfeed, a couple of your friends have birthdays today.

So what’s the proper way to go about this?

First, stop and think. Do you know them? How well? Would you wish them a happy day in person?

If any of those are answered with a “no” don’t bother writing on their wall. Keep your connections friendly. As in, “with friends.” It’s weird getting a bunch of wall posts from people you rarely talk to. Seriously.

Now, think about the post you’re about to compose. I think the worst happy birthday posts are the ones that are exactly as follows: “happy birthday.”

How much does that totally scream “OBLIGATORY WALL POST” seriously? Make it exciting! At the very least add some exciting punctuation at the end. Maybe a smiley face. Anything to make it seem like you wanted to wish the person a happy birthday. That example (which I see all the time) just makes it seem like the well wishes were forced and not fun.

Thinking about writing that on my wall? Skip it. Seriously.

And as a final note, does acknowledging the birthday on Facebook exempt you from well wishes in person?

Absolutely not. If you see the person, wish them a happy birthday. It’ll take you two seconds and it means a hell of a lot more than a wall post.

I personally generally have between 450 and 500 friends. Is that too many? Really, it probably is. I certainly don’t keep up with everyone on my friends list. But around 500 is pretty average and pretty acceptable.

That, readers, is too many friends. I certainly don’t feel very special being friends with this person. Who even knows that many people?

I do not suggest becoming friends with that many people. That’s 1,406 people to see your mistakes!

Do you have to be close friends with all your Facebook friends? Certainly not. But use a little judgement when adding friends. Please.

If I wanted to witness family drama, unwanted pregnancy, lovers quarrels and awkward situations, I’d sit in front of my TV for a marathon of Teen Mom and Jersey Shore.

I’ve noticed a lot of my Facebook friends like to put absolutely everything about their personal life online. There’s a time and a place to talk about your issues – Facebook is not the right outlet.

First of all, every single one of your friends can see what you post. And, if your privacy settings aren’t super restrictive, sometimes friends of friends can see your statuses and wall posts. Do you really want Jim from your office or Pam from down the street to know that uncle Joe and aunt Trish are fighting and you can’t get your ex husband to pay for your unwanted child? Eeesh.

Not only is it awkward for your Facebook friends to see all this, it can actually cause more drama.

So seriously. Keep the drama off Facebook. Sure, I enjoy sitting back and seeing a good verbal spat, but honestly, I spend more time judging than enjoying.

And for all you adults out there, you should know better. I’m 19 years old and I know what’s up.

Drama on Facebook = Immature.

Just remember that.