John S. Wolfe

Don’t be THAT guy!
That was the subtitle of Evo Terra’s talk, “The 10 Biggest Mistakes in Social Media,” prior to the Phoenix Social Media Club’s Oct. 14 meeting at Jobing.com.
Terra, who is director of media strategies for Sitewire.com, emphasized that social media is about interaction.
“Social media is a two-way conversation,” he said. “It’s about collaboration, and it’s done in public.”

Evo Terra, director of media strategies for Sitewire.com

Here are the 10 no-nos:
1. Don’t #hashtag everything in your Twitter tweets.
It’s obnoxious. Use only one, sometimes two, in a tweet.
2. Don’t use any auto-DM program to reply to anyone who chooses to follow you on Twitter. It’s annoying and hurts your reputation.
3. Don’t be the Twitterer who shares only links. If anyone cares, he would just follow the person you’re linking to.
“Twitter is about showing your personality,” Terra said. “I don’t get that through a link.”
4. Don’t be the idiot who uses @(name) at start of a tweet. That’s a direct reference to the person but comes off like a shout.
If the mention is sincere, you will have a better chance of connecting with the person, he said.
5. On Facebook, do not create a Fan page for yourself and then invite all of your friends to become fans.
“It’s like being in a band and wearing a T-shirt with your band’s name on stage,” he said. “Uh, no.”
6. The biggest mistake on Facebook is the assumption of privacy.
Rules change, settings change — so expect that your posts are in the public eye, he said.
If you need more evidence as a reminder, go to Lamebook.com.
7. Committing one or all of these errors:
* frequent unimportant posts
* polarizing posts
* inappropriate posts (language or content)
* “everyday life” posts like where you’re eating lunch.
“A grad student did a study and these were the reasons why someone ‘unfriended’ someone else,” he said. “Everyone’s pipeline is getting busier and busier. Don’t add to it.”
8. One-way communication.
“It’s not a broadcast medium,” Terra said. “It’s a social medium.”
9. Confusing acquaintanceship with friendship.
If you’re a “friend” on Facebook, don’t expect the other person to carry your torch, he said.
10. Getting phished.
Don’t share your user names and passwords with other sites. These sites can then take over your profile and do all sorts of nefarious things under your name.
“You’ll be enticed by a worm in the water,” he said. “Don’t bite.”

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