Social Media Networking Blunders

What’s your biggest irritation that you deal with while social networking for business? I’m sharing my top 4. This post might be one of yours, by the fact that I’m assuming anyone really cares about my opinion anyway.

We are social animals. Even if you consider yourself an introvert, most everyone seems to have a need to belong and subsequently become a part of groups that share a common interest.

Your communities may be the neighborhood that you live or work in, your church or common faith gathering, your extended family, the local pub, a service club, a business group, book club, hobby or craft special interest group, athletic association, school, political action committee, favorite charity, trade association, or online social network forum, etc.

We gather because of common interests and many times for the purpose (or as a result of our association) to expand commercial trade (or business). The best example of this purpose is your local chamber of commerce or national trade association. Net 2.0 and social media networking has become a relative new platform to pursue business contacts.

In our quest for relevant connections, we sometimes forget our manners while attempting to embrace the “new transparency” movement. Your ultimate goal of biz networking is to build YOUR business.

My top 4 blunders from my own observations are:

• Coming off as a pushy sales pitching buffoon that attempts to turn everyone they meet into a customer.
• Offending the personal sensitivities of people’s religious or political beliefs.
• Demonstrating blatant incompetence and lack of professional business skills and integrity.
• Put-downs or “dissing” other people or their business in live and online forums.

Each of these blunders could fill another blog post or even a chapter in a book. It is important that you are aware of these and others if you intend to create good “word of mouth buzz”.

Social Networking is the ultimate platform for public relations and generating opinions about you, your business, and your profession. Participate in the activity by all means, but do it as though your business reputation depends on it. Because it does.

Learn more from these books and articles:

How many friends do you need to succeed in business?

The Target On My Back by Zita Gustin

How Not To Network by Ilise Benun

Networking – The Best Promotion for Successful Business by John Erdman

5 Deadly Mistakes You Can’t Afford to Make While Social Networking by Rick Itzkowich

And the grand-daddy book of them all:

How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie