In keeping somewhat on a theme, I set out to learn a little about people’s ideas and perceptions of Netiquette, or Internet etiquette. I specifically asked people to tell me what they thought some basic rules of netiquette might be and what pet peeves they might have. I’m not sure if it’s because many people haven’t reached down too deeply, but I was amazed at how many people wrote back about how people who type in ALLCAPS drove them crazy. I guess somehow this takes precedence over pasting someone’s headshot onto a naked body and plastering it on the web, or spreading rumors about someone’s sexual orientation or even something like a person giving away the end to the Grey’s Anatomy finale episode in a totally unrelated post on Facebook, less than an hour after said episode aired.
It’s a big, wide wonderful world out there and it’s all being recorded for posterity. There are some basic rules for getting along, but as we get more and more into real-time social networking, and mobi, whereby more and more of what we do and say is hanging out there, it becomes paramount that we all learn and use the rules.
To start things off, here are 2 links
http://www.albion.com/netiquette/corerules.html
This link will take you to the Core Rules of Netiquette, excerpted from the book Netiquette by Virginia Shea.
Here is a link to a document called RFC 1855 Netiquette Guidelines, created by a Sally Hambridge back in 1995. http://dtcc.edu/cs/rfc1855.html
And while there appears to be lots of references to netiquette out there, it would seem that much of it is redundant and quite a bit either very basic or very corporate. Very little seems to have changed from when netiquette became the hot topic in the 90’s. Perhaps it’s simply because things are moving so quickly and so broadly, that by the time we’ve established best practices, we’re already on to new practices. Or it could just be that few are willing to offer opinions or perhaps its just that we haven’t really gotten there yet.
Specifically, when you ask about netiquette rules even as they might pertain to twitter alone, hundreds of suggestions emerge, but many of them are in opposition to other opinions. Should I automatically follow? Should I send a direct message to welcome a follower? Who should I follow in the first place? Of course, some netiquette rules may apply to you and not necessarily to others. Apparently there is only one Ashton Kutcher on twitter and even I don’t know why I follow him. I asked my ever vigilant group of friends and associates for their input on the subject and the following represented a good mix of answers I received.
Greg Wilson V.P./ Sales Director for Eagle Television says
Reply-to-all syndrome! Unless the info is pertinent to the whole group, keep the reply to the sender! Punishment idea: 53 unnecessary emails, sporadically hitting the offenders email box over the course of an hour!
I can actually relate to what Greg has to say. Several people I do business with will routinely involve the butcher, baker and candlestick maker in every email, every decision. Not only does this clog up my in basket, but it tends to lead to delays in getting anything accomplished, since often all included parties need their say. Recently I had someone who should have known better send out an email that should have been for my eyes only to around 200 of my colleagues. I’m still ticked off and embarrassed.
Heather Burns Web site designer and SEO consultant at Idea15 Web Design
Do not write in txt msg spk or your own shorthand. Unless you are actually writing a text message, there is no excuse for anyone over the age of 18 to be sending business emails which consist of one long paragraph with no punctuation, grammar, capitalization, LOL at the end of each clause, and so forth. This especially applies to managers and CEOs who use this laziness as an arrogant tactic to make themselves appear too busy and harried to write complete sentences.
If a client sends me content written in txt spk, I charge extra to translate it into proper English.
Respond to emails. Unless it’s a complete con artist or an unsolicited sales pitch, no one is too busy to spend 20 seconds writing a polite decline. This especially applies to people who have personally engaged with you, perhaps asked you to come in and discuss your services and submit a written proposal…and then you never hear from them again, and they ignore your follow-ups.
Sane advice from Heather. I used to pride myself on personally responding to almost every email I received, even if to just say “no thank you.” Unfortunately, I find this is no longer the case, as my emails may reach 500 or more per day. I consider myself lucky when I have successfully managed to separate the wheat from the chafe and avoided getting some business proposal from getting erased as spam. I wonder if others are finding themselves with less and less time for the niceties.
Gianluigi Cuccureddu Web Marketing Strategist
Be integer/honest, always.
Not everyone will/can like you and that is OK.
Interesting piece of advice there Gianluigi, about the fact that not everyone will like you and that it’s okay.
Along those same lines, Ronald Wopereis, CFO at Orde op Zaken, had this to say
Don’t assume all people are like you.
In other words :
- Celebrate the differences between you and the other person
- If the other person thinks differently, don’t say yes or no, instead ask better questions
People seem to think that quite a few folks on social networks are pretending to be someone they aren’t. While we don’t necessarily need to unleash our dark sides upon unsuspecting social networkers, it’s also true that there are lots of people on the prowl with very active B.S. meters. I must admit to falling prey to being an internet cop on more than one occasion, but there are more than just a few folks who appear to be in desperate need of a reality check. Some others probably need a few slaps across the face with a wet washcloth as well. But there are those who think that biting one’s tongue works best.
Loren Hicks, Senior management consultant / tech executive
1. Be polite at all times. Rudeness distracts from what you have to say, and diminishes you in the view of most people. If necessary, pretend to be Canadian.
2. If you haven’t got something positive to say, shut up. You can rest assured that someone else less respectful will say the negative things you were thinking, and if they don’t, maybe you were wrong.
3. Always be respectful. We all have wacky ideas, and some of them we really treasure. There is nothing to be gained by popping someones else’s balloon; there is much to be gained by helping them decide to deflate it themselves.
4. Be merry, but very carefully. What’s funny to you may not translate well, and may be really offensive to someone else. It’s hard to tell in advance, so think before you emoticon.
5. Take a long time to count to two.
Yeah, it’s that whole thing about counting to two that gets me into trouble. And for some reason it just seems so much more natural to want to correct somebody when it’s online as opposed to in-person.
But here’s the thing, aside from netiquette, you will eventually get caught lying online. It’s a whole new world out there. Hey guys juggling more than one girl, what do you do when 2 or more of your “women” try to friend you on Facebook or one of their friends (who is also on your friends list) lets loose with the haps? Or perhaps you take credit for something you didn’t do or fluff up the resume a bit. I’m sure that we all can fill come up with many interesting and possible scenarios..
So aside from being honest (as honest as one can be given the circumstances), what else were some of the other suggestions I received? Other replies included to be as courteous online as you would in the real world. I’m guessing that may be a big part of the problem, seeing as how so many people in the “real world” tend to be discourteous. Lots of folks also suggesting to be yourself or to do unto others… Sure this is good advice, but what about the nitty gritty? What about the stuff that others will interpret as us being noob or boob?
While not addressing the details, we get a pretty good primer here:
Alison K Murray, PMO Consultant – Team Performance, Process Improvement
I use the following to guide my interactions:
How do I want to be remembered? What initial (and continuing) impression(s) do you need to make in order to create a positive recall of that impression?
So my rule: Be true to your personal style and inner voice. Do the right thing by your values so that others will get you.
On responding: Read twice, Seek clarification. Think again if you can make a better point. Construct, spell check. re read again. Write calmly. Separate the facts from the emotive elements.
Don’t expect others to play fairly just because you are good or “polite”.
I’m all for celebrating differences – the more the merry because its one of the things which makes life interesting.
Constructive action by many will see off those who “rape and pillage”. The hard part is telling whether the fin you glimpse for an instance is a dolphin or a shark..
So, extend the hand of friendship when you can. Do your due diligence when it comes to signing a contract for business.
Ask not what your fellow twitterer can do for you ask what you can do for your fellow twitterer, or something to that effect. But I really do think that we can glean a few tidbits from do’s and don’ts central.
Setting up shop and then never coming back doesn’t seem to work. The simple concept of build it and they will come doesn’t apply to conquering the frontiers of this pioneer town. If you list a phone number or email address and remember to keep it current, it may help someone looking specifically for you in a search engine figure out how to contact you, but not much more.
Also remember some playground etiquette from when you were younger. If you’re the new kid and want to get into the football game, then bring the ball. Better yet, offer to buy everyone ice cream at halftime. The more you take interest in others and offer something of value, the greater your stake will increase. Study other people’s profiles and get to know who the “players” are. Figure out good ways to invite people into your world and creative ways of introducing yourself to others. Avoid being cliquish. and be eager to answer questions if you are knowledgeable on the subject and if not ask questions. Most social sites have areas with FAQ’s and best practices and what do if you’re new, etc. , etc. Spend as much time as you can learning the rules and ins and outs for the various sites. Don’t join 23 social networks at once. Work on a couple at a time or maybe just one if your time is limited. Start off inviting people you know very well. Perhaps even send out emails or call your friends and acquaintances and ask them what sites they are active on and which they are avoiding and to give you some pointers.
Perhaps the best advice is to not have expectations. Enjoy the time you spend on these sites and be less concerned with being able to monetize the web. Investigate third party apps and add ons that may enhance your usability or make things easier for you.
And there’s always Google. Thousands of articles, tip sites and other resources are simply a click away.
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