Misconceptions About Facebook And Social Media
There is a notion amongst many individuals that Facebook (or any other social media website for that matter) is designed primarily for kids… and that the only people that use social media websites are teenagers and young adults. But this simply isn’t the case and if that’s what you’ve heard, you’ve been severely misinformed!
Individuals, businesses and organizations of all shapes, sizes, ages and backgrounds are using Facebook to connect with and lead the people they are trying to influence. Author Seth Godin, wine entrepreneur Gary Vaynerchuk, Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong and even the actress Demi Moore have jumped on the social media bandwagon and are using these new online tools to connect with and inspire their community.
Another misconception some have about Facebook and other social media websites is that they are used primarily for the sharing of pornographic or ill natured information that may offend and frighten off new users. But if this is what you’ve heard, you’ve again been given false information.
What started off as a site aimed largely at college students (who do occasionally post photos of themselves drinking at parties or publish comments that their mothers would be ashamed of under normal circumstances), most Facebook users behave appallingly well. And they behave as well as they do because most Facebook users realize that what they say online and the photos they share with their friends can and very well may, come back to haunt them later in their lives.
There is a new transparency happening in the business world right now and it is largely due to the fact that people/consumers/your tribe want to know who they are dealing with. Your tribe no longer wants to deal with a large faceless corporation. Instead, they want to know that the Superintendent of your school district likes Kung Fu movies and goes bowling on Friday nights and is working his or her butt off to make their school district a better place. Trying to hide personal or work related information in the current age of online and offline transparency is only going to hurt your relationship with your community in the long run.
The new age of business is about transparency. The more transparent you can become with the people around you, the more they are going to trust, admire, and look to you as a source of information and support. So keep this in mind as we move forward.
Another misconception about social media, Facebook and the online world is that these social networking sites are a way for companies and organizations to inexpensively pump and prod their tribe into buying, listening to, or spread information that is solely beneficial to the organization itself. But again, this is not the case and if you try and use Facebook in a manner that is beneficial solely to the school district, your users and your community will revolt against you.
The way to use Facebook (or any social media application for that matter) is to think of it as party. When you go to a party, you don’t just show up and talk about yourself, how great you are and everything that you’ve been doing. If you were to do that at a party, people would think you were a real jerk and they wouldn’t want to talk to you for every long. But if you were to show up at that same party and ask questions about the people you met there, complimented their work and the way they dressed and generally worked to build up the people around you, you would suddenly become the life of the party. People would look up to you and see you as someone they could respect and ask for information or advice.
The same is true with social media. You can’t think of it as a sounding board for school district happenings. Instead, you’ve got to think of it as a place to connect, interact and build up your tribe, so that when those people need the information and support you are there to provide, they know how to reach you and most importantly, know that you will be there to offer your assistance.
Which brings me to my next point – the issue of permission.
In the past, school districts would send out paper flyers or newsletters to the parents of their students. When the cost of postage became too expensive, teachers started handing their students flyers, which the students were then supposed to take home and share with their parents. But when it was discovered that 1) the cost of these flyers was still too expensive and 2) most of the flyers were not actually making it into the hands of the parents, school districts from around the world had little clue as to how to get their most important messages home to their students’ parents.
Many schools tried posting this information on newly designed websites, but most parents never checked the schools sites on a regular basis for new information from the schools. Some school districts tried email newsletters, but those too were difficult as each year a new set of incoming names and email addresses had to be managed. Not to mention the various email SPAM laws and regulations that have to be kept up with.
But now, social media sites such as Facebook allow school districts the opportunity to interact and connect with their intended audience in a place that their tribe is already active.
The new online world that has been created and is growing at an ever expanding pace. But this new online world is not about using these free social media tools to pump your tribe with school district propaganda. Instead, it is an opportunity for you to communicated with your tribe when, where, and how they want to be communicated with.
In fact, this is what success in the new online world is really about. It’s about providing your community with the tools to interact and stay informed about your actions in a way that they are comfortable with. It is your job to provide them with the tools to interact. But it is their choice as to how they interact with you… or whether they interact with you at all. It is your responsibility to provide the tools and information… and it is the end user who ultimately decides whether or not he or she wants the information you are dishing out.
Photo by Zach Klein
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