How do you create an image that represents your brand and values in social media? Many of us use social media to engage with our customers, prospects, and peers. We have the ability to share a message in a very personal way. But social media is a two-way communication medium, and if we aren't careful, it can take away from our reputation.
In this post, I'm going to talk about some of the dangers of social media, as well as some tips on how to navigate it in a healthy and positive way.
How do you create an image that represents your brand and values in social media?
Many of us use social media to engage with our customers, prospects, and peers. We have the ability to share a message in a very personal way. But social media is a two-way communication medium, and if we aren't careful, it can take away from our reputation.
In this post, I'm going to talk about some of the dangers of social media, as well as some tips on how to navigate it in a healthy and positive way.
What's Your Brand and Values All About?
It's important to consider what you want your social media platforms to represent before they get started. This will help shape the content and tone you share.
Think about what you want your audience to take away from interacting with you. Do you want to be friendly, authoritative, humorous, controversial, educational, engaging, etc.?
Now think about what your brand and values are. Is your business a safe place? Are you a trusted advisor?
If you're a professional, your brand and values should align with those things.
Make sure your social media presence reflects that before you get started.
Dangers of Social Media
When you start creating content, it's easy to get carried away with it. Especially if you're working on several projects at once, you might end up posting content that is inconsistent.
Remember to always make sure you're delivering value. If you aren't offering value to your audience, then it's best to be cautious with what you share.
Here are a few things you need to keep in mind to avoid getting into trouble on social media:
Lack of Transparency. One of the main problems with social media is that it's easy to hide behind a screen.
You can set privacy settings to keep certain information private, and that's a great idea. However, it also makes it easy to put out misleading content or be misleading to your audience.
People have a difficult time knowing if a person or a company is trustworthy, so you need to be transparent. Let people see you, and let them know exactly what you're doing.
Using Social Media to Damage Reputation
We've all been in situations where we accidentally shared something online. But if you're using social media to hurt your reputation or gain notoriety, then it's probably best to hold off.