Watch your language

Summer is in full swing, but it’s always the season to spring clean your online presence, says Alison Casha, founder of Socialogy

Imagine that you decide to sit down in your favorite armchair one afternoon to read an interesting book that you have been waiting for for a long time and you come across strange incorrect words on the pages. Wouldn’t you feel hesitant about whether to laugh or cry if you thought you wasted money on a book that had all these errors and lost all your trust in the author? How credible would the author or editor be to you? would you read it to the end

Likewise, I feel the same way when browsing social media content. A sea of ​​grammatical and spelling mistakes that are unfortunately and wrongly accepted in the virtual world.

I think it’s okay that social media has created a new modern vocabulary, but it doesn’t give anyone a license to abandon rules of even simple basic spelling, let alone employ good, correct grammar (which, thanks to the spell checker, is easy to are to be avoided). part of every means of communication nowadays).

“An ocean of grammatical and spelling errors that unfortunately and wrongly becomes acceptable in the virtual world”

When a company seeks new human resources for its workforce, tradition sets the bar very high in terms of skills, training, experience and character. It’s all great and that’s the way it should be.

The problem seems to arise when a company tries to take its brand online, especially on platforms like social media. It’s obvious that standards are falling fast; In most cases, getting an employee to “play” with the company’s social media accounts is taken as lightly as if it were their own personal profile.

Businesses need to understand that social media is an equal communication channel for a call center, customer office, website presence or physical store. It’s an extension of your brand, a reflection of the image you’re trying to portray. If these physical and virtual locations are not professionally staffed, the business will not grow and its reputation will be tarnished.

The same goes for business social media pages – if they aren’t managed by professionals who spend the majority of their time studying digital marketing and have expertise in the digital world, the impact can be disastrous.

As a professional with a special interest in editing and content creation for managing business accounts, what pains me most are grammatical errors, which are a clear sign of the shallowness or incompetence of the person entrusted with the keyboard. If the brand isn’t sensitive enough to communicate with me at a high level and with attention to correct language, what should I think of that brand’s overall attitude towards customer service and communication?

brand reputation

As we emerge from a pandemic in a race against time to save our lives and livelihoods, online media is taking the leap of faith to shape our current and future consumer behaviors. The problem arises in this rush to make up for lost time, lost finances, and the madness to come to terms with the past while forgetting the reputation that may be built on long years of service.

We can’t let the fast paced world of social media harm our brand. It’s about credibility.

etiquette

Being innovative and modern in a digital world does not exclude old-school techniques and etiquette. Do your research, be open to public opinion, take the time to create content, share content at the right time instead of just planning it to make your life easier (I’ve seen so many posts related to the wrong time, in terms of conflict with opposing world news). But above all, mean what you write and write it well. Give up automations, they are a thing of the (more recent) past.

Social media is great for showing the human side of a business, but always remember the respect you owe your large audience. So personal opinions of the content authors should remain personal even when they interact with users.

Influence

Companies that expand their presence into digital media have a responsibility to shape us and future generations. Not only with their products or services, but more importantly with the content they create and generate, potentially impacting hundreds and thousands of followers.

Let’s all do our part to respect languages ​​and keep them alive and in good condition.

Trust the right person with the necessary experience to manage your social media presence.

PS: And by the way, did I mention how annoying restaurant menus are when they’re full of typos?

Alison Casha, Founder of Socialogy – an early female marketer with a 20 year career and hands-on experience – believes in social media as one of the most important marketing/customer engagement channels for any business that values ​​customer satisfaction and real-time engagement.

Socialogy, The Art of Social Marketing offers cost-effective and sustainable social media marketing for SMEs and marketing agencies on a European scale.

Whatever the job, sociology will always show maximum respect to our planet.

socialology.eu