5 Things You Should Stop Doing on Social Media Right Now

credit: Brock Dupont/Unsplash

There are a lot of posts out there for brands and artists that miss the mark and some of them are downright cringeworthy.. Here’s a few tips on what NOT to do on social media.

1. Posts asking people to follow you back-Not only is this kind of creepy, if you’re trying to build a brand, you need to do more than ask for a follow, you need to give them something in return. A free piece of artwork, a screensaver, a t-shirt, an ebook, SOMETHING. It’s considered bad social media etiquette to just ask and not give

2. #Too#Many#Hashtags-Aside from Instagram and tumblr, there really is no need to put more than 4 hashtags on any one post. (And on Twitter, I would suggest less). Make sure your copy brings value or is funny or just plain fun first. Then pick appropriate hashtags for the medium. Want more info Read this.

3. Tagging people you don’t know-Constantly “@” people you don’t know is the equivalent of tapping someone on the shoulder everyday saying. “Hey! Look at me! Look at me! Over here! Look!” And if you wouldn’t do that in person, then don’t do it online. If you have a friend or know someone who would genuinely appreciate being tagged in a post related to them, then by all means go for it and tag them, but if you don’t know the person, especially if they are an influencer or a celebrity, don’t do it. (Trust me. I’ve learned this the hard way.) The ONLY exception to this rule is if you are live tweeting a show or movie. (Again, you’re providing value by providing free advertising by talking about an actor or director’s work).

4. Not including a link-As much as possible you need to provide a link to your work or product in your tweet or post. Outside of Instagram there is no excuse for not including a link to your work subject matter. I see completely ineffective posts everyday with an amazing image of art or a book cover followed by a bunch of hashtags and no link to buy the content listed.

5. Only talking about yourself-How would you feel if someone approached you at a party and all they talked about was themselves? That’s exactly what you’re doing when all of your posts sound like “Buy my book!”, “Click here for my art!.”, “You NEED to listen to my music.” When someone simply doesn’t want to take the time to have a conversation with someone online and all they do is jump into groups or DMs with random sales pitches, it gets tiring and redundant (and will get you muted on twitter). There are, however, dedicated Facebook Groups or twitter meet ups that are geared specifically toward self-promotion, so you can seek those out for your sales- related activities.

There’s tons more I could list, but I want to know what you think.What are some of the things that you find really annoying on social media? Please comment below.