This blogger and Social Media Doer saw an article called “10 signs you’re a social media jerk,” by Jessica Levco in PR Daily. After reading it, any real Social Media Doer is a jerk in her book, especially because all one has to do is meet one of the qualifications. Trouble is, the list seems to be based on her own prejudices and not based on any real thought or logic.
Let’s look at them, and I’ll explain:
1. Posting anonymous comments. If you’re going to contribute to a conversation, tell people who you are. Don’t hide behind oh-so-precious monikers such as “I Luv Hemingway,” “Reading This Article,” or “PRdivalicious.” If you don’t provide your name, it looks like you’re hiding something. And it just makes you look silly.
Zennie62: I agree. That’s just wrong for a lot of reasons if it’s being used for bad purposes. But a corporate Twitter account is a different story. So I guess corporations really are people, too – in this case.
2. You’re attached to your smartphone. Whether you’re at dinner, on the soccer sidelines, or playing pat-a-cake with your two-year-old, your smartphone never leaves your sight. Put. It. Down. There’s a time and a place to tweet or post—and it’s not when you’re talking to someone face to face.
Amen. There’s nothing worse than a person who looks down at their phone while at the dinner table – unless they’re sharing what they see for conversation.
3. Faking authenticity. If you tweet or post under the guise of, “I’m just trying to be real,” or “I want to be honest,” you’re not. You’re trying too hard. If you want to be yourself, be yourself. Just don’t preface it that way.
Now this is just plain stupid. Who cares? Look Jessica, I’m just being real here, but this is nothing more than you expressing issues. Geez.
4. Blatant self-promotion. Don’t clog your social media channels with your product or brand information. People can see right through it. You want to be “authentic,” right?
So Mashable’s constant posting of links to its blog post is self promotion? Or a radio station promoting an upcoming show? This is nonsense.
5. Referring to yourself offline by your Twitter handle. When you attend social media events, do you put your Twitter handle on your name badge, instead of your real name? Ugh. Remember, you are a person. A real, honest-to-God person. You are not your Twitter handle, even if it’s your first and last name.
So my Twitter handle happens to be my YouTube channel name, too. Same is true for iJustine. I am Zennie Abraham, but if someone calls me “Zennie62” I don’t go all buggie about it.
6. You publicly correct people. We’ve all made grammatical errors or accidentally tweeted the wrong links. It’s embarrassing. What makes it worse is when someone points it out publicly. If you feel the urge to correct someone, send the person a DM. If you can’t, well, at least be subtle: “You might wanna check your last tweet.” They’ll see it as an act of kindness, not as one of humiliation.
Yeah, that is totally obnoxious. But then so is calling someone a Social Media Jerk. If you think about it Jessica, you’re correcting people while saying that correcting people is a bad thing to do.
7. You tell people your Klout score. This is tragic. You are a person. You are not a number. Why not tell people your SAT scores, too?
Look, Klout scores are inaccurate, but when you join, it has this code that posts your score for you automatically for all to see via your Twitter account. Does that make every Klout user a Social Media jerk? No. By the way, use Kred!
8. You’re a Facebook addict. No, seriously; it’s a problem. You’re constantly updating your status, playing Farmville, and sending messages to your high school boyfriend. Every fleeting thought is written down in a post. As you pose for pictures, you’ve already decided which photo albums they will go in.
So what? The person uses Facebook. There are also people who think actively using Facebook is a sign of good mental health.
9. You name drop Twitter handles of people who follow you. Just because you follow someone doesn’t mean you don’t actually “know” each other (most likely). It’s OK to say that you follow certain people on Twitter, but you’re mistaken to think you are actually friends with them. You actually have to meet a person before you can say you “know” them.
This is wild. I don’t think anyone gets hung up on the idea that a Twitter Follower is a real friend – but it’s a good way to be introduced.
10. You refer to yourself as a “social media ninja.” Well, I guess it’s better than referring to yourself as “Anonymous.” And you’d better have the Klout score to back it up, Grasshopper.
There are people who say they’re Social Media Ninjas or experts (like me) – that comes from constant use, practice, testing, and helping others. If a person wants to call themselves that, salute them, get to know them, and LEARN from them. But for God’s Sakes, don’t call them a jerk. That’s being really evil. It’s as if you got up on the wrong side of the bed or something. Give it a rest.
Stay tuned.
Jessica’s post: http://www.ragan.com/Main/Articles/45563.aspx