picture credit to pinklea

Yesterday I wrote about building expert status on social media.  Instead today, I would like to share how to avoid the total opposite.  No one wants to look stupid, particularly on social media where your mistake lives on for eternity! Taking the time to check what you’re posting and avoiding common issues that really can take a bite out of your reputation.

While you get ready to become an expert, here are seven things you should avoid at all costs.

1. Spelling errors. We all make them from time to time, but if your tweets are rife with “loose” in place of “lose” and worse, then people are going to notice and your reputation is going to suffer. It doesn’t take long to spellcheck a post before you release it to the world and it’s a necessary thing, particularly if you know you can’t spell. Remember that for many people, this is the only contact they have with you!

2. CopyCat. So many people literally copy and paste entire phrases from a blog post. I often can’t believe my eyes.  I’m talking about professionals with a certain level of reputation.  Obviously they don’t see anything wrong with it since they promote the post with the highest pride.  Experts know and find the source in a google second these days. Big no no.

3. Text speak. Yes, it’s effective when you want your sister to know you’ve arrived at the airport and don’t want to take much time, but on Twitter and other social media sites, posting something like “C u b4 i go to club” is not cool. It makes you look like someone who can’t be bothered and that’s probably not the impression you want to give.

4. Ranting. You’re justified in ranting once in a while, though it’s usually better done offline, but still, you should try to avoid being the person that no one wants to befriend because they are always complaining. It really doesn’t make a good impression and you’ll have limited followers.

5. Only advertising. It’s fine to mention your products and do some self promotion, but no one likes it when someone starts spouting ads every single time they post. You’ll lose your followers rapidly with this one, except those who only exist to advertise, as well.

6. Using robots. The whole idea of social media is that you are interacting with other people, so robotic tweets or postings just don’t cut it. You can certainly use tools that allow you to post information ahead of time, but don’t go with an auto-bot . . . it only annoys people and makes everyone realize that you just don’t get the whole point of social media after all.

7. Individualistic. You know what I mean. Those who never reply/follow/friend/connect back unless they need something.  The world does not evolve around you and your business.  If you have the “me, myself and I” approach in social media, the donkey ears will stick out no matter how many fancy hats you’ll try to wear.

Are you making any of these mistakes? The good news is that it’s fairly easy to fix all of them. You need to remember to be social while using Twitter, Facebook and other sites. As long as you keep in mind that you are doing this to interact with your target audience, then you should be able to stay on track.