Creating your first social media presence can sometimes be a daunting but deceptively simple process. However before you sign up to your first social media site it is important to first understand the official and unofficial rules to ensure you stay safe online. Here are some tips to help guide you through your first steps in the social media arena:
1. Decide how comfortable you are sharing personal information about yourself
If you are embracing social media to push a business interest then it’s a good idea that you share personal information but not private information to as wider audience as possible. If you are only looking to reconnect with old school friends then your target audience will be much smaller and the information you share is likely to be somewhat more private. If sharing information about yourself makes you nervous then compare the difference between personal and private information. Personal information is a book you want to recommend to others. Private is a fight you had with your partner last night over their views of the book.
2. Ask your web savvy friends which social media site you should join first
Firstly I would recommend you join only one social media site to dip your toe in the water. If you join several social media websites you may become overwhelmed by the experience.
If you wanting to reach a very wide audience then you may choose Twitter as it is open to everyone. If you want to search for old school friends then you may choose Facebook where you can ensure your personal and private information is confined to a very small group of friends who you choose. If you are looking to make connections for a future job search then you may choose LinkedIn whose focus is much more business orientated.
3. Once you have selected your very first social media website, search for information and guidance on how to get the very best from the experience
Before you start searching for information about your chosen social media website you must ensure that it does not simply become an excuse for putting off actually joining the website. Learn a few very basic steps on how to effectively use the website. If you do learn these basic steps you will be way ahead of most other people, when they first approach social media. Once you know the basics the best thing to do is learn on the actual website itself. These is no substitute for actually trying things yourself and by far the fastest way to learn.
4. Choose your username very carefully, it is likely in time you will use the same identifier across several social media website
You must remember that whatever you do online can live forever, a scary thought but true. So the choice of your username should be considered very carefully for continued long term use. Hopefully once you have a strong reputation with a particular username you will not want to start from scratch if you decide you now prefer an alternative username.
5. Post a photo of yourself as soon as possible
Ideally you should choose a photo that will work across a variety of social media websites, including websites you have not yet joined.
Ideally the photo should be a portrait picture with you not wearing a hat or sunglasses, allowing people to easily recognise and interact with you online. The photo does not need to be professional, however it should not be blurry and of a reasonable quality. By posting a good headshot of yourself you’re signalling that you’re interested in connecting with people and you’ll be off to a good start on your first social media site.
Now that you’ve read these 5 basic steps, what are you waiting for? Join the social media community today!
