As part of my panel on social media at the Worldcom PR conference in Montreal recently (see post below), I created these “7 Deadly Sins of Social Media.”
Are you willing to admit your sins in the comments?
1. Deafness
Actively listening to what’s being said about your brand is at the core of social media.
2. Slowness
Social media is a NOW environment, not a “we’re working on the December issue in July” industry.
If it takes you too long to react, the opportunity can vanish.
3. Caution
Companies have to empower their agencies to facilitate social media conversations. Agencies have to empower their employees to handle social media on behalf of clients.
If you’re afraid, you’re not in the game.
4. Phoniness
Social media users – especially social network members – are cagey. They can smell b.s. three clicks away.
Resist the temptation to create your own reviews and other falsehoods. It doesn’t work.
5. Greed
The whole point of social media is for people to let other people know what’s good and righteous.
If you refuse to link to other sites or don’t create and distribute good content, etc. you are not being a good social media citizen – and it will get noticed.
6. Inflexibility
Think of social media as its own world with its own rules.
Don’t try to “social media-ize” your existing marketing and message. It doesn’t work.
7. Seriousness
Much of the social media’s appeal is based on humor and satire.
If you or your company can’t handle getting made fun of on occasion, you may want to rethink your social media plans.
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[...] Baer posted what I think is an interesting list on his Convince and Convert blog, “The 7 Deadly Sins of Social Media.” They are definitely things you’d want to avoid if you started Twittering or blogging. [...]