Digital Etiquette For Dummies

Chapter 4

Learning the Language of Social Media

IN THIS CHAPTER

Seeing why social media etiquette is important for communicating

Managing and maintaining your privacy on social media

Mastering the specific etiquette of top social media platforms

Social media allows people to post updates about their lives as well as engage with others via various forms of communication. As a frequent place for all types of people to go for communication, social media is (unfortunately) quite easy to engage in incorrectly — or even maliciously.

In a world that continues to appear more divisive, how can everyone use social media to communicate their ideas and opinions in a way that’s effective and appropriate? Making this question even more complex is the large number of social media platforms and the unique rules of etiquette that govern each one. When it comes to etiquette, people should follow the written (as well as unwritten) rules of etiquette for social media in general and for each platform in particular. There’s also a fine line between eccentricity and inappropriate behavior. In this chapter, we tackle social media etiquette across social media as well as on specific platforms.

Defining ...