Everyone is Watching What You Do Online
By Paul Esajian on November 11, 2013
It is a harsh reality, but everything you do online is at the mercy of everyone’s opinion. That is to say, every tweet you send or response you post can be dissected and interpreted for everyone to read. All it takes is for one angry tweet to be resent or one post to be shared for you to do severe harm to your business. The simplest way to avoid this scenario is to keep your posts to yourself and bite your tongue when times become turbulent. This is not always easy to do, but it could potentially save your business from a world of hurt.
There are always people who will go to your website, follow you on Twitter and read your Facebook posts without you ever knowing it. Some people will make negative comments on blog or Facebook posts with the sole purpose of trying to get engaged in a conversation with you. You may think you are having a conversation with them, but you are really doing it in public forum. They will increase the venom in their responses and try to get you to say something negative or catch you in a “gotcha” moment. Their sole purpose is to get you to slip up and say something you may regret.
If you go into the world of social media with the understanding that everything is there for everyone to see, it may change your approach. It might be easier to say one thing, however, than do another. People are sensitive about religion, politics and even which sports teams you despise. You never want to be afraid to share what you think, but if you do, you need to remember that you may upset people that will never work with you because of it.
The purpose of social media, from a business standpoint, should be to share your products and services while attracting future business. Deviating from this strategy makes you more susceptible to trouble. The more you engage with negative people the more likely you are to get angry and say something you regret.
Every comment you make is there for everyone to see. You are doing much more harm than good by continuing to post items that generate a response. You should be the go to source for real estate and investment information and not for pubic opinions. You can share your opinions on TV shows and lighthearted topics in nature, but once you strike a nerve with people, you will be forced to backpedal.
If used properly, social media can be a great thing. You can connect with people you never would have or grow your business faster than ever before. With that comes responsibility and the knowledge that you are fair game. Keep this in mind the next time you hit send.