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(with apologies to Judith Viorst)
The following is a decidedly personal rant, full of vulgarity and sure to offend someone. If this offense puts a stop to any of the following practices, then my work is done. I make no apologies)
Brothers and Sisters,
Now that social media has become widely used by virtually everyone in the event industry, some disturbing trends have developed that threaten to sour our once Utopian digital playground . These practices run the gamut from being simply lazy to extremely inconsiderate to the public at large . All efforts should be made to stop them:
Re-posting plugins for wordpress - once upon a time (i.e. a few short years ago), if you wanted to update your blog and keep your readers engaged, there was really just one way to do it - create new, interesting content on a regular basis. Now, thanks to the wonders of technology, you can sit back, get fat, and delegate the task of updating your website to a slew of new content-management plugins. These tools (no, I won't tell you their names) will automatically cycle through your blog's archives and churn out one of your old posts on a set schedule. Never mind the fact that the post itself is two years old and no longer has relevance to your readers - it's an update, which is sure to appease the Google Gods, right? It's like re-serving frozen old meatloaf when guests drop by - it may have been good once, but now it just shows that you're lazy and disrespectful. Cook something fresh, or stick to carry out. Some might argue that by re-publishing their old content, they're doing so for the benefit of those who may have missed it the first time. However, the vast majority of new readers will dig deeper into your archives if they like what you have to say. So please stop force feeding them your leftovers and get cooking.
Outsourcing the company blog to interns - Interns are a great resource for the event professional. They're young, ambitious, and usually cheap. Best of all, they're ideal for handling all of those tedious but necessary tasks you no longer have time to handle yourself. One of these tasks should NOT include maintaining your company's blog. Do you really want an unpaid, inexperienced intern to be the voice of your company on the web? Yes, they may be extremely intelligent and driven. However, unless they're a remarkably gifted writer, you're placing the keys to a very expensive car (your public image) in the hands of a brand new driver. Besides, if your intern is so spectacular that you feel comfortable handing your messaging over to them, they shouldn't be interns at all. Stop being cheap, and hire them.
Re-Tweet Sycophants - We all know at least one. The Re-Tweet Sycophant is that obnoxious sort of Twitter user who re-tweets EVERYTHING their "idol" puts out there (usually someone they perceive as more influential in the industry). This doesn't simply include their idol's own posts (I can forgive that, within reason), but every link, photo, and musing that they send down the wire. Like desperate children begging for their parents affections, the intent of this practice is obvious...to suckle a bit of favor and goodwill out of someone they admire (or at least, hope will return the favor sometime and increase the sycophant's "stature" among their peers).
Credit where it's due - So, you've just read a brilliant, thought-provoking article from an author other than the one who tweeted it, and you want to share it with your own followers. Instead of simply re-tweeting it, how about tweeting the link out yourself and letting the one who actually put in the hard work writing the damn thing retain most of the credit (rather than the one who simply barfed it out to you)? Although I'm all for re-tweeting a link to someone's own content, I think that there should be a one tweet rule on forwarded links. Then again, the Re-Tweet Sycophants might complain...
Twitter Parrots - Parrots are amazing birds - beautiful, intelligent, and in some select cases, even able to "speak". The thing about them, though, is that they can only say a few things, but they'll say them over...and over....and over. Twitter parrots are much the same way. Usually larger companies and media outlets who haven't quite grasped the technology, they insist on treating it as they would "old media", by regurgitating the same post out on a daily basis ( Follow X for the latest in X, #everydamngroupwecanthinkof). Come on, people...at least make a feeble attempt to REWORD your message now and then.
Hashtag abuse - the online equivalent of talking loudly on your cellphone and ruining everyone's dinner, Hashtag abuse is the practice of carrying on lengthy personal back-and-forths while inexplicably hashtagging your messages, so as to subject an entire Twitter list to your banalities. I understand that you're both professionals, and that you may be talking about a professional matter. But context in Twitter is quickly lost unless you've been following the conversation the entire time. And I hate to tell you this, but that's only the two of you now. So if it doesn't have relevance to the group (even if it once did), bag the tag and take it offline.
Elimination of the aforementioned habits will go a long way in improving everyone's online experience, and save you all from additional rants in the future.
Maybe.
Sincerely,
Your friend at Sytelabs Event Strategies
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