Melanie
Welcome to the Monday Morning Marketing Podcast for all decision makers and action takers. Take it away, Esther.
Esther
Good morning and welcome to another episode of the Monday Morning Marketing Podcast. Today we're talking about online etiquette, the do's and don'ts of the online world.
Melanie
Also known as netiquette.
Esther
Apparently so. Okay, apparently we're back in 1997, or whenever the Internet came into full user-ship of many more people. But yeah, it's something that people should know, but many people seem to be ignoring, and they're turning into keyboard warriors and trolls and you know. All those mean, nasty things we wouldn't really do in real life.
Melanie
No. Well, shouldn't do in real life.
Esther
Shouldn't. Yeah, shouldn't do in real life. Okay, so that's what we're starting off strong. Don't do online what you wouldn't do in real life.
Melanie
That's a really good thing to say. Oh my God, that's about as open and honest as you can be.
Esther
It's about as obvious as you can be, too, though. If you're not going to slag someone off in real life, don't do it online. Don't post on somebody's vulnerable post, oh, you look ugly. Okay. Would you walk up to them in real life and say that? No.
Melanie
No they probably wouldn't.
So don't do it online.
Esther
And if they did, then they'd get the slap they deserved. But don't insult people. Don't give your opinion so openly and brazenly. I mean, everyone's entitled to their opinion. But just realize that typing it online can be portrayed or read as something completely different.
Melanie
Yeah. And also, just be mindful that even though you may have put something up in anger or you found out your sister's pregnant and you're announcing it before them, then you change your mind. Just remember, people can screenshot that. People can save that, they can download it, they can share it, and it's already too late. So you've really got to think of what you're doing and how it's going to be possibly kept or stored beyond how long you've put it up there for.
Esther
And not just people screenshotting it. The social media platforms themselves store these things the instant it has been put up, even if you deleted immediately. So It can be found. There are ways and means that are more techy people know how to go back in time on websites and platforms and find these things. And that then brings us to, if you post something when you're young and less intelligent, your future boss may find that. So just be careful about the drunken photographs when you're out, the comments that you put on other people's posts, being rude or racism, all these things can-.
Melanie
It's one of the first things I say to people, actually, on the Start Your Own Business Course, it's normally on the first day of the Start Your Own Business Course I do that, once you've put yourself out there as a business or an entity that can be found online, then everything that you have said or taken photos of or places you've been means that you can be found online. So you have to go back and remove or change the audience or just delete these posts or these photos so that people don't need to know any more than they absolutely have to.
Esther
Yeah. And that works for even if you are a solopreneur or in a small business, but you are the face of that business, then even if the business isn't named after you, like my business isn't called estherocampo.com, people will still connect you to the business. So everything you do online, even on your personal side needs to be a presentation of your best side.
Melanie
Absolutely.
Esther
So don't lower your inhibitions thinking that, oh, nobody knows me online or I'm on a platform that nobody's going to find me on. They will. Trust me. And if you get an op-ed written about you or an article written about you, they should go and do the research and they will find everything. Everything.
Melanie
Now, how many of you are part of a Facebook group or even a LinkedIn group? And you go to ask a question and then somebody says, oh, would you please just read into the past conversations, the past chats, because this is asked so frequently. Now, one of the Facebook groups I'm a part of is Genshian Impact. And I've learnt very early on not to just put up a question straight away because there's a really good chance. It's an enormous group. There's literally thousands of people in it all over the world. And so there's a really good chance that your question has already been asked. So another really strong thing to do as part of your etiquette online is to please do the search function first before you ask a question because there's a really good chance it's been a nice long, healthy thread of answers already there for you.
Esther
Yeah. And on that note, there is a function on Facebook that you can click a button to follow the thread or the conversation. You don't have to type in following for the update or just the letter F.
Melanie
People still do that.
Esther
People still do that. People are still doing that. Okay, so think of the people that are receiving all of those notifications.
All these Fs.
All the Fs and all the following for more, just press the button. You can tell I'm getting really... That one is a pet peeve of mine when people just put in the F for right following. Please just press the button. It is there for everyone's sanity. But also another bug bear of mine is grammar and punctuation. So when people write the wrong your or the wrong their or the wrong to, it's like...
Melanie
Or the total abbreviation, the you are. But then I do understand that not everybody...
Esther
Text talk.
Melanie
Well, text talk. I do understand that not everybody knows how to write with good grammar and punctuation all the time.
Esther
But if it's a business page...
Melanie
You have to do with some effort then, yeah.
Esther
Yes. At the end of the day, most of our audience are business owners or work for a company, and it's a representation of the business or the company. And it's a representation of the business or the company. And even, like I said before, even when you're on your personal one, you're still representing the business and the company. So download Grammarly. Just write a quick, which there do I use in this situation into Google? And they'll tell you. There's no, yes, I understand people have spelling issues or dyslexia and things like that. But there are many, many tools out there. Or at the very start, at least put, sorry if there's any mistakes, I'm dyslexic. But on a business page, I think the extra effort needs to go in. Definitely.
Melanie
You mentioned Grammarly. I use QuillBots as well. So QuillBot can be used on your website and Grammarly can be used in like Word or Notepad or something like that.
Esther
Yeah. There's many tools, many tools out there. So it's one of those things. Respect people's privacy. Melanie touched on this one with, don't blurt out the good news that somebody else has to share first. Another one in that one is writing in the comments, I had to bite my tongue to say anything. Yes, we know, Karen, you were the first one to know. We always know that you know everything before everybody else. It's fine. But respect people's privacy, too, when you're sending emails, when you're writing comments, maybe don't tag them in it if it's not relevant to them, especially. Don't tag people in photographs that they're not actually in. I see this all the time on Instagram.
Melanie
Oh, that can be so annoying, can't it?
Esther
You're like, oh, somebody tagged me. No, it's nothing. It's spam. It is, yeah, it is nothing to do with your business, nothing to do with you. Yeah, please stop doing it. And apart from anything, if you're uploading or sharing photographs that you don't have the ownership of, then that's just... I was reading a post the other day-.
Melanie
Do you mean like copyright or something else?
Esther
Almost like copyright. Well, intellectual property, I think, would be more-.
Melanie
that's punishable.
Esther
It is.
Melanie
You can get a fine.
Esther
It is. But in the day and age that we're living in now with AI, then people... And I saw this the other day, actually, that one of our esteemed colleagues, Mary Smith, was saying that people are using her image and putting it into AI and coming out with images with her in it. That's not okay.
Melanie
No.
Esther
That's not okay. You get permission or use something else that you yourself have designed, not somebody else's image.
Melanie
Yeah, it's very personal.
Esther
Very, very. Or photoshopping people into the image just to make you look better or more with bigger up friends. Like I have a photograph of me and Mike Stelzner, and I was actually there.
Melanie
Okay. So I think another really important thing to do is to respect people's time. If you've got a point to put across or a story to tell or a sale that you want to try and put across, then my strong suggestion to you is to get to the point. People don't have the patience these days, even with decent storytelling, to waste their time and not actually find out what the actual end outcome is. So let's say you've got the most incredible leading header for your Facebook Live or your email, and then you've got this rambling page by page sales pros that you want to use. I do see that a lot on lead magnets that I've collected in the past, Esther. So they've got this amazing lead magnet And then you go through this great long page of thought leadership and I'm the greatest and here's my testimonials. And how many people actually read those?
Esther
I skip straight over them.
Melanie
Exactly.
Esther
Wonderful. Five stars. Now tell me what I actually want to know. It's the same as the click bait inside, especially Facebook and things like that. There's like, oh, best hotel in in the UK named this week, just tell me what it is. I don't want to have to click into your link for you to tell me. I know that's the whole point of it, but I would respect you a lot more if you just told me in the text. But on the flip side of that, I have a colleague who does not want me to get straight to the point and expects, Hello, good morning. How are you? Every single day? Whereas I would just be like, Have you this done yet? You know? So, also understand that the audiences are different for each thing. I personally can't stand when people just don't get to the point or when they say my name repeatedly. It's like, I know my name. I know it. But I did see a funny video a few days ago where somebody was saying precisely this, we don't email in a natural way. You would never finish a conversation, like natural conversation that you expect an answer to with, kind regards and your name and then go, Hi, Jane. Here's the thing you asked for. Do you have any further questions? Kind regards. Joe. You know? It's like, we know what... Like after the first email, you shouldn't have to say the person's name over and over and over again, because if you were to read back through them again, it would not flow. Again, that is That's one of those, maybe it's a personal issue, maybe it's a company policy that you must always include the person's name.
Melanie
That's interesting. See, that's where I differ. Yeah, because if I've put down regards Melanie, then I would expect them to call me Melanie. Hi, Melanie. I wouldn't say, Dear Melanie. I'd say, Hi, Melanie. Because it was like recognition of the person who's written. We need feedback, guys. Who goes with Esther and who goes with me?
Esther
I was just saying it was a video that I saw, but one of the things that bugs me in emails and in messages online, my name is everywhere. So if you're going to write to me and spell my name wrong, at the end of my email, in my email address is my name, on my social media platforms is my name. So if you're going to spell my name, just look, it's not that... It's always close by.
Melanie
I see emails I get that says, Dear Sir, that annoys me.
Esther
Well, that even. Yeah. Well, that leads us nicely on to the, Forgive the mistakes of others.
Melanie
It does. As we were talking earlier on, we appreciate that people do have dyslexia and people make mistakes. I have more than once put up social media posts with spelling mistakes or grammar mistakes. It's not your job to become the grammar police. I mean, if you keep seeing it, it might be worth sending a DM like, Are you well? Is everything okay?
Esther
Is somebody else writing your posts?
Melanie
Yeah. Is somebody that doesn't like you doing your posts?
Esther
Have you been hacked?
Melanie
Yes. There is that element. But life's too short for you to make instant snap decisions about people just because they've made a few spelling mistakes. As long as you can get the gist and as long as it's polite, then it's not hurting anyone. And remember, some people do it with speed, other people are doing it because they're in-experienced. Like I said, life's too short. So just agree to just let it go unless it's really something repeatedly wrong or something like that, then it might be worth highlighting.
Esther
Or something that changes the context completely. Yeah, totally. So if it changes the meaning of the thing completely, then, yeah, by all means, reach out. But do it, like Melanie says, in a private setting with a DM, with a little, Hey, just saw your post. Did you realize that there was a spelling mistake on the image? Sometimes those are the ones that go the most unnoticed because you're in a rush. Another friend of ours from Canada, Elaine Lindsay, was saying to me one day that self is one of those words because the letters are so close together or so quick to type it, she'll write S-L-E-F instead of S-E-L-F because they're just so... Our fingers move quite quickly. It's one of those things that her computer doesn't even pick up on as being wrong. So And if it wasn't Elaine, I'm very sorry. I'm now thinking that it might have been somebody else. But anyway, self was one of those words. And there's many things like that, that you can... Quiet and quite They're spelt with the same letters. Just change two of them around. And yes, gives completely different context and completely different meaning. But be nice about it. Don't abuse your power. You should have I said this one. Your power. Power. If you're a moderator in a forum, if you are helping out in a big chat room or colleagues inside a forum or chat. Do chat rooms still exist? Well, a forum, because we have the groups on social media. So if you're helping out there, be nice. Don't just not accept someone's post because there are spelling mistakes, but also don't let people be writing lots of mean things under it without removing them or kicking them out if need be.
Melanie
Yeah. With the same process in mind, remember that it's your job to keep the relationships and the tone of conversations at level where it's polite and manageable. But every now and then, aggression will come out. I've seen it in community groups. I've seen it previously at event groups as well, where maybe there's been a misunderstanding or something like that. And your job as a moderator is not to stamp things out, but to try and have a balanced opinion so that debate is allowed. Obviously, we will have rules about profanity and that stuff, but you can't attack a person and you shouldn't be discriminating against people. But you are allowed an opinion. It depends on the group, doesn't it, Esther? It really does.
Esther
It does. And each group has its rules as well, because you'll notice that be nice. And if it says no profanities, then stick to it, because there could be legal consequences for going really out there. And remember that when you're typing something, it doesn't come across with the same emphasis or the same meaning sometimes, than what you think it does in your head. I have found myself on many an occasion typing out a response and then deleting it just to get it out of my head, because otherwise I'll be going, Oh, did you see that post? They should have known better. They should have... But If I type it out and then delete it, it no longer lives rent-free in my head.
Melanie
That's quite a useful thing to say, actually.
Esther
As long as you delete it. Do not click post accidentally. But Remember that you're on the internet, okay? And there are people that don't have as much experience on there as you or that you don't have as much experience on there as them. There could be a new platform come out and all of a sudden, two days later, there are experts in the platform. It should be a safe space for everyone to have these community groups and to have these forums and to have these... Even emails should not turn into places to attack people because life's too short.
Melanie
You've got to be really careful about where you have these discussions as well. Every time I go into a major watch of something, so I seriously went into Smallville last year, and I watched all of Smallville from start to finish. So I started joining their groups. Now, obviously, Smallville is well and truly over and done with. But there'll be other series that I've watched that haven't finished. There's a Stranger Things one that at the time of recording, hasn't finished. So I'm part of that conversation. And there's chats about what could happen and any side stories or back stories that we could add. And that's fine for a TV show, but it's not your opinion that matters when it comes to how a business is run. Unless there's some public story that's going on, you have to be really, really careful about how you talk about a business because this could easily be something you could be charged with This could be slaughter. You've got to be really careful about how you talk about businesses, or even if you're a member of staff at a business, again, you got to be exceptionally careful how you talk about that company because you can be be arrested, depending on what you say, of course. Depending on where you are in the world, it can be quite a serious offense. That's another thing that you've got to be careful about when considering etiquette online, is not just talking about yourself, but talking about work colleagues, your boss, their customers, their customers, your suppliers, or anybody you collaborate with, because it can all have a nasty impact because you have put it online.
Esther
Yeah. So one of the things that I see a lot, because there's a lot of local community groups, and one is called Saints and Sinners. So it talks about good things that businesses do. And obviously it names those businesses that are the saints.
Melanie
Wow.
Esther
And how they have affected. Really? Positively. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So this is one of my local towns, has a Saints & Sinners group. But when it comes to the sinners, either people automatically know who the other person, who the original poster is talking about, or all the comments go name and shame, name and shame, name and shame. No, please don't. Because like one person's opinion, if you're going to do that, you'd be best to go to Yelp or to Google business profile and put there directly to the company. Put your review. Put your review and let them handle it directly there rather than putting it in a random group that they're probably not a member of and they cannot not protect themselves, but defend themselves. Defend themselves. That's the word. Thank you. But when you were saying about the TV shows, one of my things was always because we're here in the United Kingdom and Ireland, we get stuff later than other people. So spoilers. Spoilers were always a major one. When I was watching Game of Thrones, I would actually get up at four o'clock in the morning to watch it so that I would avoid the spoilers on social media during the day because it wouldn't come out until nine o'clock the next night. So you've all these hours to avoid the spoilers. The TV that I would watch usually is football matches and football soccer matches get very heated. And the people that take it online as to their joy or their particular distaste, do in a way that usually ends up being hate speech. It's like somebody misses a penalty and automatically they are the worst in the world and everything gets brought into that conversation, including their nationality, their race, their skin color, everything. And it is not okay. It is never okay to do that.
Melanie
Yeah. Some of this stuff is so obvious, it's just not even funny.
Esther
Yeah, but it's the fact we have to say it. It's one of those things. I mean, we could go on and on and on, and we probably will do a part two for children, especially if you have products that are sold to children or children's clothing and things like that. But right now, I'm feeling very angry about the whole thing and about how people misuse the Internet when they should know better. I mean, the internet has been around for a long time at this point. We should all be respectful and we should all know how to use it without offending others, without crashing people's businesses, because other people that I've seen online have said how they've gotten a bad review and they've never even given service to the person that reviewed them. So it was either-.
Melanie
Yeah, I've heard that before.
Esther
It was either a missing, like mistaken identity or, again, one-letter difference, or just revenge for something in somebody's personal life. So it's never, never okay to do this. If you have a problem, take it to the Ombudsman, take it to the business directly, take it to the platform. If someone is being racist or using hate speech towards you, go directly to the police.
Melanie
Yeah, well, yes, absolutely. Well, that's all we have time for for now. As Esther said, we will likely do a part two because believe it or not, we can think of more. But it may not be next week. We may give it a break and do another one in a couple of weeks time. So if you have anything that you would like us to include, if there's anything we haven't obviously covered so far, do let us know. We're always looking for your feedback and we will be back next week with another podcast. Bye for now.
Esther
Bye-bye.
