Consider protecting your tweets
A tweet could limit your opportunities
The great thing about Twitter is that you can share your immediate thoughts with lots of people very quickly. That is also the very dangerous thing about Twitter.
Too often people tweet something off the cuff before they have had time to really reflect on what they are saying. Add to that the challenge of trying to really explain what you mean in just 140 characters, and it is no wonder that the news is so full of outrage about tweets made by politicians, sports stars, and celebrities.
To build a strong personal brand, you need to be as careful about what you tweet and who you allow to read it as those politicians and celebrities.
An example of the 'Privacy Settings' dashboard on Twitter
Social Check™ Recommends:
1. Protect your Tweets
If you are prone to posting inappropriate content or photos without thinking, Social Check strongly suggests you protect your tweets, to ensure only those you approve are able to see them, minimizing risk of lost opportunities. To activate this setting, select the cog in the upper right hand corner of your Twitter page, select ‘settings’, and then view ‘security and privacy’. Beneath Privacy, titled ‘Tweet Privacy’ is the ‘Protect my Tweets’ option. Simply tick the box to activate.
2. Think before posting on Twitter
It's easy to over-share on Twitter by posting every detail of our day, from work successes to purchasing new items. Whilst building a professional online brand is about expressing who you are, your strengths, accomplishments and area of expertise, selling yourself 24/7 will only damage your personal brand.
When posting on Twitter remember:
- There needs to be a healthy balance between what you share about yourself and what you share about your industry.
- Your words should always be aligned to the professional brand that you are trying to build, this goes for all your publicly visible posts online, including comments that you make on other people’s posts.
- It’s important to ensure that people are left with a strong first impression of you, receive great insight into your area of expertise, and feel confident that they can get in touch with you
- If you are worried that your tweets may be damaging your personal brand we suggest protecting your tweets and completing an audit of your account. i.e. removing inappropriate content.
- Publishing inappropriate photos on Twitter is one of the easiest ways to ruin your personal brand. Your profile photos are viewed more than others, and it won’t work in your favour if an employer, colleague, client or recruiters were come across an inappropriate one.
How to Protect Your Tweets
Further Reading
If you would like to learn more, Social Check recommends visiting:
Public vs Protected Tweets
Protecting and Unprotecting Your Tweets
How to Make Your Twitter Account Private
Want to protect your online personal brand from potential career derailers? Social Check's Digital Coaching service can give you the knowledge and confidence you need to build a compelling online personal brand and prevent reputational damage. Click here to find out more
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