Have you ever noticed that people tend to act differently when they are online? It seems that we’ve forgotten how to act, so  Momma Manners is here to deliver a much needed lesson.

Mind Your Manners
Do you have an online business or an online presence? If the answer is yes, then you need to be extra careful about your online persona. Your social media accounts and websites reflect your character. Wouldn’t it suck if you lost business because of some drunken Tweet you decided to post,  because you posted a disgruntled Facebook comment after dealing with an antagonizing co-worker? If you don’t think your clients are researching you, then you’re senile. Here is a challenge for you, search your name or your company’s name and see what the search results yield. Be sure to use more than one search engine.

I Deleted Everything!
The first thing you should remember is that nothing is truly deleted from the internet. You can remove a snarky comment on someone’s blog, but your unkind words are still floating out there in cyberspace.

How Should I Conduct Myself?
Carry yourself online the same way that you would in person. Don’t post or write anything that you wouldn’t want on the first page of a newspaper.

Spelling—Try to avoid abbreviations or poor spelling on your social media accounts and website. We know that social media accounts are more casual than an office e-mail, but it is better to be overly formal then to be unprofessional. Your websites and pages are a reflection of your organization, and of your own character. Don’t tarnish your presence.

Watch Your Temper

One of your clients may have made you mad, or maybe a fellow employee really ticked you off, but don’t air your dirty laundry online. It’s just embarrassing and immature. Employees are losing their jobs over social media postings, and you don’t want to lose clients over something you wrote. Think before you type!

Keep It Separated—Make a professional and a personal social media account. It sounds like common sense, but some people haven’t figured out that it isn’t a wise decision to merge the two. If you have a Facebook, you should have a personal account attached to your personal email, and you should have a professional account connected to your professional email. There is nothing wrong with friending your customers and clients, but you don’t want them associating on the same page as your crazy cousin.

Censor Yourself

If you don’t have anything nice to say ,don’t say it at all. It’s an oldie, but definitely a goodie. Yes, you can post statements under an annonymous screen name, but if someone finds out who you are, you’re screwed. Just don’t do it!

Friending

Don’t friend your boss on your personal Facebook account! That’s what LinkedIn is for.

Responding—If you’re going to have a fanpage or some other form of social media, you need to engage your followers. If they posted to you, take the time to respond to them.

Keep It Clean—You and your friends may have a cool nickname for each other, but don’t make it a screen name. Also, keep your clothes on! We know you worked hard for that Adonis figure, but if a client were to come across a half-naked picture of you, I’m sure they won’t be impressed.

I Can See You!

Yes, there are privacy settings, but the world is a small place. There are ways to work around privacy settings on social media pages and websites, so keep that in mind when you are writing your content and posting images.

Music—If your website has music make sure that it isn’t offensive. Sounds like a no-brainer, but we all know what happens when we assume.

Language and Tone—Don’t use profanity! Also, if you’re trying to portray a certain attitude through your website (like sarcasm), you may want to reconsider. Your written content may come across as funny to you, but it may come across as offensive to another. Language and tone should be a special consideration if you’re conducting business internationally. Remember that context of your message can be received differently; depending on who is reading your website or posts.

Ultimately, if you wouldn’t want your grandma to read it or see it, then maybe you should reconsider what you’re about to publish.