According to Beloit College’s ‘Mindset’ list many young Americans heading to university this year may think Germany has always been one country, Beethoven is a dog rather than a composer and Banana Republic is a fashion store rather than a politically unstable South American dictatorship.

Times change. If we assume others have a similar world-view to us we may find ourselves faced with blank faces, quizzical looks and wildly different expectations if they dont – all of which can have a huge adverse impact on how we are perceived, which in turn affects our reputation.

Although increasing numbers of us are embracing social media with the intention of having greater and more immediate connection with our clients and contacts there is a danger that in doing so we may actually distance ourselves, and disconnect from the very people we want to engage with.

Hash-tags, bit,ly and RTs (retweets) may be second-nature to you, but if your clients or customers have no idea what you’re talking about, or feel paralysed and unable to respond, you’re more likely to irritate and annoy, rather than connect and engage.

Unless there is a mutual understanding between you and your contacts regarding jargon and etiquette when using sites such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, rather than creating greater engagement you may, instead, not only confuse but also exclude. If they dont use the sites you use, or feel uncertain as to how to respond, you may earn a reputation of making it harder rather than easier to engage with you, and that’s not a good reputation to have.

So how can you win people over rather than alienate them when communicating using social media?

Never assume others are as up-to-speed as you. Educate and inform them as you go in ways that makes them feel positive and included rather than a socialmedia outcast.
Continue to use traditional communication methods such as email newsletters alongside your social media activity.
Make sure your social media identities are spelt-out and clearly visible in your traditional communication tools such as your website, email address, letterhead and so on.
Retain your official website so that it can act as a double-check, or verifier, for your social media identities.
Ensure good old-fashioned phone numbers are clearly visible on your website and social media profiles, unless, of course, you really do want to alienate people who want to actually speak with you rather than use a keyboard!

Perception is reality. If you’re a social media convert but your clients and customers feel excluded or intimidated by your use of it then it would be wise to go out of your way to make it easy for them to communicate with you using traditional communication tools until they feel more comfortable RTing right back @ya!

And if youre hesitant to join the social media bandwagon and think social media is a fad, think again. It’s here to stay in one form or another, so it’s worth getting to grips with it, accepting times change, and reminding yourself that pm may not mean afternoon but private message instead.

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