Thou Shalt Not Twudge
Posted by Ali Webster in Recruitalicious, tags: Facebook, Halloween, Mashable, social media
Scene One: Winnie the Pooh with dark sunglasses is smoking a cigarette by the window. Man with a girls’ soccer uniform on is playing beer pong. Woman with cheetah ears and tail is dancing to Michael Jackson’s Thriller.
Scene Two: A woman with Uggs on and a colorful scarf appears in the doorway. A girl follows with high-waisted jeans, a turtle neck and sweater vest. I thought to myself, that woman is clearly having a mid-life crisis and I’ll totally lend my September Glamour magazine to this fashion-deprived girl. I try to act natural but almost strain my neck for further analysis.
When unfamiliar people enter a room, no one is quite sure how to behave or what to say. Facebook—a previously, purely personal place (say that ten times fast)—became a professional place overnight. Employers who infiltrated the social network discovered negative comments about their companies or less than glamorous photos of their Employee of the Month. Obviously, hoopla regarding scandalous pictures and rude wall posts are not ideal for PR. The resolution was (and still is) to publish articles regarding an “appropriate” Facebook profile, create company policies about YouTube use, and talk about guidelines for proper conduct online. As a result of this, employees and candidates are afraid to be themselves in online communities because they could get fired or may be disqualified from a position. Being a social media strategist has not exempted me from this fear.
