Social media has become an integral part of everyday life for maintaining connections with friends, family, and colleagues. While social media provides opportunities, it also presents challenges regarding privacy and appropriate use. The document provides tips for using social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter safely and effectively through maintaining privacy settings, avoiding oversharing of personal information and photos, and keeping work and personal accounts separate. Resources are also listed for getting help with using different social media platforms.

1. Your Social Media…You
Social media has become a part of our everyday lives. Our friends and families want us to join Facebook to keep up
the latest information about kids, vacations, photographs and events. Current and former coworkers, clients and
vendors look for us on LinkedIn to maintain that business relationship regardless of our current job situation. And
Twitter, well Twitter is a unique experience for every user with opportunities to learn, educate and listen.
There are challenges and opportunities that exist for any social media. The question you have to ask yourself, is
what do I miss if I choose not to participate and what do I gain or miss by participating? Social Media will be with
us until the next great wave comes along. Below are suggestions to attempt to stay safe within the online world,
places to go to for help and understanding of the media and new opportunities that continue to grow within the
social media environment.
Important Considerations
1. Use appropriate photo (Profile section) 4. Include your maiden or former married
• Professional dress name (Profile section)
• Professional demeanor 5. Utilize and participate in groups (Groups or
2. Get recommended (Profile section) Search section)
• Former colleagues/bosses
• Learn from others experience
• Vendors
• Increases your credibility
• Clients
3. Complete information (Profile section)
6. Customize your URL’s (Profile section)
• Education • Work
• Employment history • Personal
Additional LinkedIn Help
• LinkedIn for Dummies
o www.dummies.com
• LinkedIn Learning Center • LinkedIn Blog
o http://learn.linkedin.com/ o http://blog.linkedin.com/
Common Facebook Mistakes
1. Ignoring security settings 5. Allowing access to photos
o Set these first o Review your security settings, you never
o Have a friend review your account to ensure know who is looking
you are comfortable with settings o Remove pictures that even have the potential
2. Accepting everyone as a friend to cause problems
o Build slowly and safely 6. Tagging others in photos
o You can always add, it can be harder to o Ask before you tag or name someone in a
remove someone photo
3. Friends from work o Check often for photos you are tagged in
o Be sure you are comfortable with work 7. Using personal for business
people seeing your pictures and activities as o Keep personal and business separate. The
well as your friends’ pictures and activities information is directed toward different
4. Becoming addicted audiences
o Set your priorities and stick to them, it is 8. Negatively discussing job or coworkers
very easy to lose track of time o Save the negativity for a phone call or face-
o Be selective on how much and when you to-face discussion, or better yet, skip it all
post information and respond to others together

2. Additional Facebook Help
• Facebook Help
o http://www.facebook.com/help/
• Facebook for Dummies • Facebook Blog
o http://www.dummies.com o http://blog.facebook.com/
Eight Tweeting Suggestions
1. Be positive – avoid negative messages 7. Allow others to know you
2. Be direct • People like the connections
3. Define your purpose • Share with care
• Personal 8. Relax and enjoy the ride
• Business • Twitter can be a great learning and interacting
4. What are you doing right now opportunity
• Avoid the trivial • Take the time to learn this media for the most
• Make it pertinent to others effective use
5. Learn from others
6. Avoid negative work comments
Twitter Help
Twitter for Dummies
• http://www.dummies.com
Twitter Dictionary
• http://www.webopedia.com/quick_ref/Twitter_Dictionary_Guide.asp
Twitter Blog
• http://blog.twitter.com/
Upcoming Players
Focus – Answers to business decisions
• Research topics pertinent to your business Flickr – Share and manage photos and video
o http://www.focus.com/ • Making content available to who you want to
Netparty – Networking for young professionals share with
• Networking events in a party atmosphere o http://www.flickr.com/
o http://www.netparty.com/ Ning – Chinese for “Peace”
Xing – Global networking • Create your own social media site
• Currently Europe and Asia focused o http://www.ning.com/
https://www.xing.com/
Kristy Vetter
Directly Speaking Seminars and Coaching
kristy@directlyspeakingseminars.com www.directlyspeakingseminars.com
http://www.linkedin.com/in/kristyvetter
816-868-8415