Netiquette IQ Blog of The Day - Social Media Etiquette

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From ronsela.com

If you’re reading this post, you’re probably familiar with the variety of social networks available online. While you might be familiar with platforms such as Facebook and Twitter, you might not know the rules of using each network effectively for your business.

Social media has become an essential marketing tool for businesses of any size. To help you learn how to use social media for business, here are 17 social media etiquette rules to never break:

Facebook

Facebook has nearly 800 million daily users who are connected to about 250 friends. This platform is a great tool for building a community for your brand and creating valuable relationships with customers.

1. Respond to every comment.

Regardess of whether the comment was good or bad, it’s essential to respond to your customers in a timely matter. In fact, research shows that 42 percent of customers expect a response from brands within 60 minutes.

2. Entertain first, sell second.

Before you can sell your product to customers, you must develop a relationship with them first. The only reason people will like your page is if you engage with their emotions and provide them with value.

Instead of posting updates promoting your product, share blog posts, images, quotes, and videos to inspire and entertain your audience. It’s also a good idea to share updates asking questions and engaging customers in conversation.

3. Carefully schedule posts.

One of the most important factors to remember is to never overpost. When you do this, you will flood your fans’ Facebook feeds, which will motivate them to unlike your page.

Instead, pay close attention to when your audience is most active on Facebook. Most brands only need to post two or three times per day at a maximum, so make sure you find the right amount that works for your brand as well as your audience.

Twitter

When tweeting from your business’ Twitter account, it’s essential to follow the proper etiquette. Twitter is a great way to create a voice your brand; therefore it’s important to be mindful when posting online.

4. Understand the power of a hashtag.

This is the most important rule of using Twitter for business. #No #one #likes #to #read #useless #hashtags.

As you use hashtags to build your brand, focus on the hashtags that help you reach your target audience or a specific niche. By using the appropriate hashtag, you’ll contribute the conversation that’s taking place in your industry.

5. Don’t use all 140 characters.

Although it’s tempting to use every character in a tweet, make sure to leave room for your followers to retweet your post. This will encourage followers to share your content and contribute their thoughts.

 Google Plus

Many businesses underestimate the power of Google Plus; however, it’s one of the most powerful tools for creating and sharing engaging content.

6. Format posts.

Google Plus is the only social platform that enables users to format their posts. To create content that stands out, be sure to take advantage of your ability to bold, italicize, or underline words and phrases.

7. Target the right circles.

Organize your followers into circles on Google Plus. This will allow you to create and share content that’s targeted towards the right audience.

8. Engage people in conversation.

Google Plus is also effective for engaging customers in conversations. Not only can they comment on your content, but you can also comment on your customers’ content. Whenever you comment on a customer’s update, remember to +mention users on their posts.

Instagram

Instagram is changing the way brands share a visual story about their brand. When using Instagram, it’s important to select a theme that reflects your brand.

9. Use the right hashtags for your brand.

Instagram is very similar to Twitter because it connects conversations through hashtags. To grow your audience, use relevant hashtags that reflect the message you’re aiming to share on Instagram. This will help you connect with your target audience and gain more followers.

10. Comment and like photos.

To build your following on Instagram, engage with your followers and people in your niche. By commenting and liking photos, you’ll build awareness of your brand and create new customer relationships.

11. Post high quality images.

Remember, Instagram is a platform for telling the visual story of your brand. Whenever you post an image, make sure it’s high quality, is appropriate, and uses a filter that reflects your brand’s theme.

LinkedIn

LinkedIn is a powerful tool for the professional side business. This social network can be used as a platform to establish your brand as an industry expert.

12. Post industry-related content.

LinkedIn is a networking tool used to connect with professionals and organizations. When posting content, share blog posts, images, and videos that relate to your industry and contribute to valuable conversations.

13. Utilize LinkedIn groups for content sharing.

A great way to build your brand on LinkedIn is to participate in industry-related groups. Just remember when participating in these groups not to “sell” your business to group members. Instead, share content that relates to industry conversations, trends, and news.

14. Use a professional yet friendly voice.

LinkedIn is a platform for professionals, so it’s important to use a professional voice. While it’s OK to share entertaining content, make sure it’s tasteful and appropriate for your target audience.

Pinterest

Pinterest is an excellent platform for curating content. Not only that, but it’s also one of the fastest growing social networks.

15. Create pinnable images.

Pinterest is all about imagery. Whenever you create an image to pin, make sure it’s high quality and visually engaging. It’s also important to use images that relate to the source you’re linking to.

16. Schedule your pins.

When using Pinterest, it’s important to remember to not over-pin. Only pin content that’s valuable for your brand and pin content throughout the day. This will prevent you from overwhelming your followers with a variety of content all at once.

17. Always link to the original source.

It’s absolutely necessary to always match your image to the correct source. When people use Pinterest, they expect to click on a link that will lead them to the desired website. For example, when posting a photo of a meal, the user expects to click on a recipe, not a website for basketball shoes.

Stick to these rules, make them your commandments, and you’ll have world-class manners on social media.
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A government Trojan is spyware installed on a computer or network by a law enforcement agency for the purpose of capturing information relevant to a criminal investigation. Depending on the program, government Trojan horses may intercept email or VoIP traffic, scan hard drives for relevant digital media or even record conversations and videoconferences. As this type of software captures data and then sends it back to a central server for processing and analysis without a user's knowledge, it is generally classified as a back door Trojan horse virus.

Governments have approached implementing Trojan horses in different ways. Swiss government agencies have been reported to be working with Internet service providers (ISPs) to record speech on an infected PC's microphone, as opposed to of intercepting encrypted voice packets. German agencies have sought authority to plant Trojan horses on the hard drives of suspected criminals using email that would install keyloggers, record webcams and microphones and scan infected hard drives for for documents, diagrams and photography. These email messages would be tailored to each unique target, similar to the method used in spear phishing attacks.

The German government received widespread attention in 2007 when its Interior Minister disclosed a plan to install Trojan horses. Switzerland and Austria have been reported to have similar programs in development. Romania, Cyprus, Latvia and Spain already have laws that allow "online searches." Chinese covert intelligence bodies have also been associated with Trojan horse activity against both other governments and private industry. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is known to use a tool called CIPAV (computer and Internet Protocol address verifier) that can record IP addresses and send the data back to government computers. Given recent disclosures of warrantless wiretapping, the FBI may well be conducting covert surveillance of hard drives. Although no official U.S. government Trojan program is known to exist, past revelations regarding the NSA's Total Information Awareness (TIA) project and Echelon, a signals intelligence (SIGINT) collection and analysis network operated by the U.S. government in cooperation with several other nations, make the existence of such a program credible.
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 In addition to this blog, I have authored the premiere book on Netiquette, " Netiquette IQ - A Comprehensive Guide to Improve, Enhance and Add Power to Your Email". You can view my profile, reviews of the book and content excerpts at:
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