9 December 2008 No Comment
With so many users, both corporate and ‘civilian,’ it’s almost odd to walk into an office without at least one person on Twitter. Tons of people are using Twitter to share their dinner plans or promote their new product or compose customer feedback (at a hugely decreased cost I might add). But with so many users, it needs to be said: Be careful with what you say.
The advent of blogger firings was only a short few years ago, but seems to have been all but forgotten (it’s not juicy anymore), and though I haven’t heard too many stories, I do see it as something that will happen to Twitter users in the future.
Take some of this advice, and be mindful of the comments you make on Twitter.
Don’t Share Confidential Information
It’s probably common sense that confidential information about your company shouldn’t be shared with your Twitter followers. This was probably the number one reason for blogger firings when that was hot news. Telling the world about a new cost saving, proprietary process could easily be picked up by a competitor, and for some reason employers don’t like that. Pfft…employers.
Censor Internal Gripes
Aside from confidential stuff, companies also don’t like it when you complain about internal policies, people, etc. I know we do it on our smoke breaks and at lunches, but news travels fast on the Interwebs and it is usually within a companies legal rights to terminate an employee in order to protect it’s reputation. Complaining employees can easily be seen as a reflection of a companies internal instability. For some reason employers don’t like that either. They are a fickle bunch, yeah?
Bad-Mouthing The Competition
This one is tricky. Especially in a market dealing with Internet services, it’s easy to cross paths with a competitor, client of a competitor or potential client of a competitor. Do yourself a favor and try not to speak with ill regard to said competitor. It may be the truth, your boss may even agree, but it looks unprofessional and can indeed lead to legal problems down the road. Why employers don’t like being sued is beyond me.
Opinions vs. Official Stance
I recently consulted with an attorney making use of Twitter. And she is really working it. Tons of followers, it gets tons of her attention and she is getting a ton of rewards. The very first thing I noticed about her account was the way in which she connected with people. She was very personal and easy to approach. She responded to people consistently and held great conversations. “awesome” I said. “But stop doing that.”
Obviously I didn’t want her to stop completely, but we had to define some lines. When you are speaking as a lawyer, personally or not, your opinions could be construed as official stance. No matter your industry, take care to note your opinions vs. advice and define them clearly.
Don’t Get Too Personal
If you are working with a company’s Twitter account it’s important that you come across as a person and not a sales pitch. This is the essence of social media. However, it’s not a good idea to share those intimate pictures of you and your boyfriend while Tweeting on your employer’s profile. Rule of thumb: if you wouldn’t show your mother, don’t show your followers.
I’m sure that’s not it, but that should get you going. In the end, use your noggin. That’s the best tool we have anyway, might as well put it to work.