Monday, October 28, 2013

Social Media Monday—Linking Your Social Media Accounts and Other Major Blogging and Social Media No-Nos

by Edie Melson

Successful social media is something of an art form—with lots of gray areas. Building a successful online presence takes a good amount of flexibility and a little bit of experimentation. But even though I encourage people to find their sweet spots, there are a few things you want to avoid. Today I’d to weigh in on linking your social media accounts and other major blogging and social media no-nos.


No-no Number One
Do not link your blog with social media. What I mean by that is you don’t want your blog o send a notification of your newest blog post to Facebook or Twitter or any other social network. On the surface it seems that would be a great shortcut for those (almost all of us) who find ourselves in a constant time crush. But it’s not. 
Here’s why:
  • You run the risk of spamming your friends and followers. Computers make mistakes, and especially if you have Facebook and Twitter linked, you can get repeat messages. This is unintentional spamming.
  • People today are smart, savvy and cynical. We can tell when something posted on social media is computer generated and we won’t bite. So you’re not getting any traffic this way.
  • Finally, you need to control the way your social media updates go out and how they’re worded. Different platforms may need slightly different wording. You also want the opportunity to add relevant hashtags and mentions.

No-no Number Two
Do not link your Facebook and Twitter accounts. Like I said above, you’ll probably end up with duplicate posts and irritate your followers and friends in the process.

No-no Number Three
Don’t use the auto-scheduler option on your scheduling program. For example, on Hootsuite, I can turn on the auto-scheduler and it will compute when the majority of my contacts are online and schedule my updates to go out then. Again, on the surface this reads like a time saving measure. It’s NOT. 
Here’s why:
  • If the program computes that the majority of your contacts are online between ten am and noon, it will schedule all your updates then. You may have a higher concentration then, but you’re missing out on some valuable exposure by ignoring the rest of the day.
  • The program doesn’t take into account those who will find you through hashtags or by referral.

Now, I can hear the question from here. “What about Hootsuite? Isn’t that an auto-scheduler?”

No, not really. Hootsuite (as well as Buffer and Tweetdeck) are SCHEDULING programs. They have the option of auto-scheduling. But utilized correctly, there’s nothing automatic about them. 
  • I compose the update. 
  • I choose the social media platform.
  • I dictate the time it goes out.
Now it’s your turn. What questions do you have about social media dos and don’ts? Leave them in the comments section below. Also be sure to share if you've gotten in a fix by letting a computer manage your social media life!

Don’t forget to join the conversation!
Blessings,

Edie



16 comments:

  1. Edie, I'm still learning all of this, and I want to make sure I understand. I can still refer to my post on twitter, or Facebook, but not automatically schedule it. The problem is having the same title show up on all the platforms at the same time, right? However, if I change the twitter feed to be a question (then link to my post) or do the same thing on other accounts--is that okay?

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    1. Crystal that's a good question that I need to clarify. Yes, you still want to post about your blog on Twitter and Facebook, but not automatically schedule it. It doesn't matter if YOU share it at the same time on both platforms. If you think about it, how often are you on Twitter and Facebook at the same time? And it's okay if the updates are the same. But sometimes, for Facebook, I'll compose a longer update because I have room.

      What you want to avoid is several updates in a row on a specific platform. That can happen if Facebook and Twitter begin reposting each other's posts. Here's the link to a blog post I wrote about spamming. Scroll down and there's a screenshot of my inbox from someone who got caught in that trap on Google+. http://thewriteconversation.blogspot.com/2013/07/social-media-mondayare-you-guilty-of.html

      I hope this helps clear things up a bit. Post again if it's still not clear. This is a little tough to communicate correctly.

      Thanks so much! Edie

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    2. Thanks Edie, that does help. Just like Tarissa said, I never hesitate to click on your links--though I hadn't quite put it together that it's because I trust you and what you're promoting. That's exactly the kind of trust I want to build. You have no idea how much I appreciate the things you do.

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    3. Yes, this helps very much, thank you. I must agree with Tarissa--I never hesitate to click on a link you provide, either here or on Twitter. I hadn't put it together that it's because I trust you, though it totally is. I just know that you always have something relevant to say, and you are one of the people that I look to for answers on how it works. Now, if I could only figure out how to find the best hashtags. . .

      Thanks again!

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    4. Look for a post later this week about what hashtags are popular now. I did one last year, but some of those are out of date. And thanks for all the support and encouragement! Blessings, E

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  2. Edie, you're not kidding when you say successful social media is something of an art form! I've been on Twitter for nine months now and I'm just barely starting to get the hang of it. I still make mistakes, but I've learned a lot from reading your blog.

    Thank you for spelling out exactly why auto-posting and linking social media accounts is a bad idea, because it does seem like a time saver on the surface. It may take a smidge more time to compose a thoughtful, relevant tweet or Facebook message. But, those are the messages that actually connect you with readers, build trust, and set you apart in the vast sea of social media.

    I never hesitate to click any link you post on Twitter, Edie, because I know you are a real person who chose to share that link because you thought it might prove beneficial to another real person on the other end.

    Thanks again,
    Tarissa

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    1. Tarissa, I'm blown away by your comment. Building that kind of trust with my friends has ALWAYS been my number one goals. You've given me an incredible gift. Thank you!

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  3. Love all your tips, Edie! I especially love your advice to not link FB and Twitter. I feel like duplicate posting between different platforms (and automatic posting, too) takes some of the "social" out of social media...because we're not taking the time to word our updates for our audiences or tailor them to the platform. But maybe that's just me.

    Love your helpful tips as always!

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    1. Melissa, in an ideal world, yes I agree about posting different things to FB and Twitter. But I admit I seldom have the time. It's just one of the things I struggle with :) Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts - Blessings, E

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  4. I hope when you do the hashtag update you explain how to use hashtags. lol Great post. Plan on trying to get to chat tonight.

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    1. Look for the Hashtag post tomorrow! Blessings, E

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  5. Edie, thanks for explaining something that was intuitively worrisome to me. I couldn't exactly figure out why, but I never wanted to link anything automatically. The different formats of Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, etc. seemed to suggest, if not different content, at least different slants on that content, as you suggest. I wondered if I was just being a control freak. Your post has reassured me. Also, I never explored Hoot Suite for fear it was just an automatic program. Now I will go check it out! You are SO HELPFUL!

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  6. Hi Edie -

    My Facebook posts show up on Twitter, while my Twitter posts and blog show up on my Amazon author page. I also have my blog posts connected to Goodreads. That's about the extent of my linking. Could this present a problem?

    There are so many options and few guidelines. I'm glad you're addressing these issues.

    Blessings,
    Susan :)

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  7. Social media optimization done by the Social Media Agencies is great answer to spammers where most of the marketers are provided with SMO rather than SEO.

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  8. I've actually heard most of those from a local SEO Phoenix, but this only occurred to me now, it's about when I should post my posts. Is there a specific duration when I should post my next share? For Example, If I posted something around 9am can I post another one after 30min. or an hour? If not, then what is the ideal interval for each post? Thank you!

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