Microblog: The End of Innocence

The Twitter generation has embarked on mission to impart all the tedious details of one’s life to an unsuspecting group of followers. We hear from our friends about the painful bumper-to-bumper traffic on the freeway or they share adorable pictures of their kids or pets. Whatever the occasion, no idea that passes through some people’s head is to trivial not to post.

This begs the question: When is enough, enough? What are the boundaries we should set, socially and in our business environment, to divulge to our followers in the social media arena? The Examiner raised this same question. 

The “TMI” of Microblogging

Microblogging has become a driving force in the world of social media. Twitter counts 140 characters as your tweet and you can update regularly to your followers. So, tweets like, “Hot sale today. Our sweaters are 30% off while supplies last” become commonplace, which is not a bad thing when you are looking for a beautiful winter sweater, but the problem occurs when you are oversaturated with boring and irrelevant tweets that do not inform, or worse, annoy.

Do we really need to know the CFO of our local company is “At the dentist, that tooth popped right out?” I believe this falls under the over-sharing category. And, this is becoming a slippery-slope for some individuals and businesses.

Where do we draw the line with engaging our customer or follower without boring them, or worse, offending them? There is a fine line to walk when you microblog.

Knowing Where to Draw that Line

You must focus on relevant and informative information that interests your followers and develops a dialogue.  Keep these ideas in mind every time you microblog to constantly check yourself and develop microblogging to its full potential:

• Plan Ahead: Like any good business plan, you should have a solid microblog campaign setup that focuses on upcoming sales, updated product launch dates, new store hours, or the unveiling of a new charity campaign your company supports.
• Be Real: Impart information that is honest and informative. Social media works in real-time and with the power of the internet to research it is easier than ever to spot a fake.
• Edit Yourself: Before you hit send each time you must review and ask yourself these questions:

How does this develop my brand?

Promote my business?

Empower my follower?

Increase my market share?

Create dialogue?

Because this is what you want to happen with each microblogging session. Make this tool work for you and not against you. Use sites like Twitter and Tumblr to your advantage. Great microblogging can do wonders for your business and drive your revenues. Just remember what to say and how much to share when you do.

Your Perspective

Please share your perspective or examples of microblogging in terms of what to say and what not to say. Let us know if you have questions on what makes for good content and we’ll be happy to help you get your points across in a way that leverages the true power of microblogging.