What’s in your Top 5? Join the #5Things conversation on Twitter.
- Who do you want to be online? We live in a world of disappearing photos; apps that promise to keep our “Secrets,” and where “catfishing” has its own TV show. Our expectation of privacy changes daily, as we continue to populate the Internet with more and more of our lives. Never has it been more important to have a clear understanding of who you are and what you want to be online. Here are a few tips:
- Take the time to evaluate your digital footprint. Have you Googled yourself lately? In the chance you’re looking for a new career, count on your potential employer doing the same.
- Selfies are not the best LinkedIn profile pictures. Use the platform to build a network of colleagues, peers, potential employers, and influencers.
- Use your bios to be clear about who you are, and what your content is about. Stick to your area of content expertise.
- Educate yourself on privacy settings.
- Know the expectations of your employer. Don’t speak on their behalf if that is not in your job description. Avoid using their moniker in your @username, and while not legally binding it’s acceptable practice to state “opinions are your own & not that of my employer.”
- Build a consistent personal brand across all of your platforms.
- Twitter Mute This week Twitter announced it’s equivalent to Facebook’s “hide” option. A softer approach than their block feature, you’ll soon be able to rid your newsfeed and notifications of that annoying tweetaholic without taking away their ability to leverage, retweet and favorite all of your best content.
- Social Shopping? There’s a hashtag for that. Last week Amazon launched #amazoncart, a collaborative effort with Twitter which allows you to place items in your shopping cart via hashtag. Notice an item you’d like to later purchase while perusing your newsfeed? Simply retweet it with #amazoncart, and it’ll be waiting for you to buy later. Personally I’m more excited by “Drone Delivery,” but with users consuming approximately 10 hours of content each day, the streamlining trend is on the rise. Brands are continuously fighting over maximum visibility, and therefore creating opportunities to lure you away or jointly barter for your time.
- FB Audience Insights Three cheers for more info on those that “Like” us! Facebook’s new “Audience Insights” are intended to give brands or anyone using Pages, a more in-depth looks at their target audiences, with aggregate information about geography, demographics, and purchase behavior. Unlike it’s partner in crime “Page Insights,” this new tool will examine trends about your current or potential customers across the entire Facebook platform, rather than only interactions on your Page.
- Identifying & Activating Advocates: #WhyIStay
You know that person in your life that is always taking about how great they are? Don’t you just love that person! Not so much right? But, that person all your friends told you about, the one who sounds absolutely fantastic? Now, he seems interesting!
Social Media works in a similar fashion; in fact statistics now say the millennial generation trusts user generated content, or the view and opinions of their peers, 50% more than that relayed to them via media. This is why we must focus on engagement rather than likes, because regardless of how fabulous we continue to be, we need to build an audience willing to go out and advocate on our behalf. Michigan Radio has recently joining a social campaign doing just that. Following a recent poll identifying 37% of Michigan residents would rather live elsewhere, they joined other radio affiliates to encourage their listening audience to share “why they stay” via Twitter with #WhyIStay. Providing organic, free, advertising for our home state, enticing new visitors, and hopefully adding new listeners to Michigan Radio. Now that’s social done right.
Now that you’re in the know, unplug from social and get outside! Bert & Zachary Levi said so.
