Digital Etiquette For Dummies

Conducting yourself online can be challenging. It sometimes seems like the web and social media is tailor-made to cause upset and anger. But, with the right guide, anyone can learn how to be a beacon of civility and politeness online. In Digital Etiquette For Dummies, a team of online communication experts share their combined insights into improving your presence on social media, writing emails that exude positivity and clarity, behaving correctly in virtual meetings, and much more. You'll become a paragon of politeness as you learn to apply the timeless rules of etiquette to the unique environment of the web, social media, email, Zoom, and smartphones.

In this book, you'll also:

• Learn near-universal etiquette rules for email, social media, cellphones, and more
• Discover ways to make sure that your polite attitude isn't being lost in the text-only context of a business email
• Avoid common social media pitfalls and digital faux pas that can trip up even the most careful communicators

A great handbook for anyone who uses digital communication in business or in their personal life (so, pretty much everyone), Digital Etiquette For Dummies also belongs on the reading lists of those trying to improve their online interactions on social media.

Eric Butow has written 41 books and is coauthor of Instagram For Dummies and Instagram For Business For Dummies, 2nd Edition.

Kendra Losee is a digital marketing consultant and professor of social media marketing.

Kelly Noble Mirabella is a social media and chat marketing consultant and YouTube content creator.

Introduction 1

About This Book 1

Foolish Assumptions 2

Icons Used in This Book 2

Beyond the Book 3

Where to Go from Here 3

Part 1: Etiquette Guidelines 5

Chapter 1: Defining Etiquette in the Digital Age 7

Coming Up with Some Definitions 8

Netiquette 8

Etiquette versus online ethics 8

Seeing Which Situations Call for Etiquette 9

Social: Chatting with others 10

Meeting: Behaving appropriately in a small group setting 12

Corporate: Behaving professionally in the workplace 14

Business: Conducting yourself properly among colleagues 17

Eating: Shielding meeting participants from your eating habits 19

Telephone: Paying attention to the conversation and your behavior 20

Chapter 2: The Legal Ins and Outs of Etiquette 23

Laying Down the (Communication) Law 24

Looking at federal laws 24

Parsing the state laws 25

Setting Company Policies 29

Specifying your terms of service 29

Banning spam from your company toolset 31

Conducting your business online 34

Looking at specific industry regulations 35

Adhering to country and regional laws 37

Honoring Boundaries 41

Communicating with people during work hours 42

Communicating with employees in general 44

Communicating during off-hours 47

Centralizing Messages 48

Choosing the Best Medium for the Message 48

Identifying the message 49

Understanding your culture 49

Picking a delivery method 49

Chapter 3: Minding Your Online Manners at Any Age 51

Seeing How Etiquette Varies for Different Audiences 52

Adults: Being up front about behavior and modelling that behavior 52

Students: Interacting with classmates and being serious 54

Teachers: Presenting information to students 56

Kids: Being flexible for kid behavior 58

Common Rules for Everyone 59

Dress appropriately 60

Eliminate background noise, if possible 60

Be respectful 61

Part 2: Social Media Etiquette 63

Chapter 4: Learning the Language of Social Media 65

Defining Social Media Etiquette 66

Why you should care about social media etiquette 66

Recognizing bad social etiquette 67

Being mindful of your audience 67

Managing your online presence for different purposes 68

Posting publicly versus privately 69

Knowing the Culture of Each Platform Before You Become Involved 70

Understanding the etiquette of each platform 71

Applying etiquette to the specific social media platforms 73

Chapter 5: Sharing Your Thoughts in Posts and Comments 81

Looking at Followers versus Friends 82

Differentiating between social media as an individual concern and as a business 83

To friend or not to friend 83

Knowing when to unfriend, unfollow, or block 84

Posting as an Individual 85

Knowing when you’re posting versus commenting 85

Determining who can see your posts and your comments 86

Knowing when to post on social media (and when to keep mum) 87

Commenting on someone else’s posts 88

Recognizing the importance of tone 89

Creating meaningful discussions 90

Reserving judgment 91

Avoiding certain topics 91

Respecting the person’s page you’re commenting on 92

Giving credit when credit is due 92

Posting as a Business 93

Verifying content ownership 93

Promoting your business in a spam-free fashion 94

Refraining from posting if it doesn’t align with your company’s values 95

Being genuine as a company as well as a person 95

Going the extra mile 95

Chapter 6: Handling Negative Comments and Reviews 101

Understanding How Comments and Reviews Differ from each other 101

Defining negative comments and negative reviews 102

Recognizing the difference between comments and reviews 102

Reading between the lines: Tone versus intention 103

Don’t become defensive when responding to criticism 104

Dealing with negative comments 105

Knowing when to delete comments 106

Knowing when to ignore comments 107

Letting your audience do the talking 107

Knowing when to respond 108

Responding to Negative Reviews 109

Developing a response strategy 109

Avoiding a bad review in the first place 112

Handling Positive Reviews 113

Chapter 7: Going Viral: The Good, the Bad, and the Unintended 115

The Consequences of Going Viral 115

Enjoying the good consequences 116

Tolerating the bad consequences of going viral 116

Managing the unintended consequences 117

Staying Sane When The Situation Goes Off the Rails 118

Knowing your options 118

Planning your actions 120

Having a Plan in Place 121

Responding to positive feedback 122

Avoiding plagiarism 122

Managing a crisis 124

Knowing whom to trust to help out 127

Chapter 8: Group Decorum 129

What Exactly Is a Social Media Group? 129

Recognizing the importance of online groups 130

Categorizing online groups and communities 131

Being Respectful (and Respected) 132

Group posting etiquette 133

Commenting etiquette 134

The rules of the group 134

Avoiding Common Mistakes in Social Media Groups 135

Posting at the wrong times or to the wrong groups 135

Making false claims about yourself or others 135

Trolling and harassing in social media groups 136

Spamming 136

Being a Good Moderator 137

Assuming the role of the moderator 137

Growing your group 138

Setting expectations and rules 139

Handling issues in your group 139

Chapter 9: Being Likeable During Livestreaming 143

What’s a Livestream, Anyway? 144

Going Live 145

What you need to know before going live 145

What you need to know while you’re live 146

What you need to know after you’ve been live 147

Being a Gracious Host During a Livestream Interview 148

Set up your guests for success 149

Respect your guest’s time 149

Make the visit worthwhile for your guest 150

Following the Guidelines for Being a Great Guest 151

Show up on time 152

Be prepared 152

Avoid the takeover 153

Avoiding Embarrassment 153

Adhering to the Etiquette of Watching a Livestream 154

Respect the broadcaster 154

Respect the other audience members 155

Benefiting from actively participating 156

Part 3: Email Courtesies 157

Chapter 10: Email Best Practices That Won’t Let You Down 159

Emailing for Personal Use versus Emailing for Business Purposes 159

Keeping things personal 161

Emailing for business 162

Writing with a Clear Purpose 163

Picking the right communication tool 163

Context is everything 165

Chapter 11: Spam, the Law, and You 169

Reckoning with CAN-SPAM 170

Looking at Platform-Specific Terms of Service (ToS) 172

Establishing Business Policies 173

Drawing up an acceptable-use policy 173

Creating effective social media policies 173

Managing Your Public Relations 175

Devising a crisis plan 175

Owning up 176

Watching your communication 177

Following Industry Regulations 178

HIPAA and privacy 178

HIPAA and your employees 179

More Social Media Regulations to Know 180

California’s Consumer Privacy Act 181

GDPR: Data protection and privacy in Europe 182

Canada’s CAN-SPAM laws 185

Part 4: Virtual Meeting Manners 187

Chapter 12: The Basics of Virtual Meetings 189

Charting the Rise of Virtual Meetings 189

Choosing When to Use Virtual Meetings 191

Evaluating the benefits of virtual meetings 191

Determining the true purpose of virtual meetings 193

Designing More Productive Virtual Meetings 194

Choosing the right format for your virtual meeting 196

Taking advantage of technology 197

Looking at the Downside of Virtual Meetings 198

Avoiding Virtual Meeting Burnout 199

Chapter 13: Leading a Virtual Meeting 201

Doing the Prep Work 201

Answering the why, where, and when of leading virtual meetings 202

Knowing who needs to be there 204

Defining meeting expectations so that attendees know what to expect 205

Creating an agenda that works 207

Conducting the Meeting 208

Creating connections 209

Moderating the meeting 211

Wrapping up the meeting 212

Handling the Meeting Follow-Up 213

Chapter 14: Making an Appearance at a Virtual Meeting 215

Attending a Virtual Meeting 215

Knowing the company culture 216

Being prepared for different types of presenters 217

Participating in a virtual meeting (via phone, video, and chat) 218

Being prepared 221

Being on time 222

Understanding the purpose 222

Knowing the technology 223

Conducting Yourself in a Virtual Meeting 223

Presenting yourself 224

Knowing when to mute your audio 225

Knowing when to turn off your camera 225

Handling sidebar conversations 226

Sticking to the agenda 227

Respecting the time 227

Not taking over the conversation/meeting. 228

Chapter 15: Webinar and Online Event Proprieties 229

Determining the Goals of Your Event 229

Knowing who your audience is and what’s in it for them 230

Recognizing the difference between webinars and virtual events 231

Mastering the Do’s and Don’ts for Hosting a Successful Webinar or Live Event 233

Knowing the technology 236

Respecting people’s time 236

Presenting best practices 236

Preparing slides or resources ahead of time 237

Practicing so that you’re prepared 237

Reading slides is for amateurs 238

The Etiquette of Engaging the Audience 239

The art of the Q&A session 239

Post-event tips 240

The Etiquette of Attending a Webinar or an Online Event 241

Not sharing your login/registration information 241

Asking questions in the chat box 242

Introducing yourself to others 242

Not hogging the conversation 243

Not spamming 243

Staying engaged with the content 243

Asking questions during Q&A time 244

Downloading any resources right away 244

Part 5: Mobile Mien 245

Chapter 16: Context in Messaging and SMS 247

Texting: The Better Way to Communicate 247

Putting Yourself in the Recipient’s Shoes 250

Considering the Context 251

Noting the Importance of Tone When Texting 252

Being Brief but Clear 253

Avoiding Miscommunication with Others 255

Being More Mindful of What You’re Typing 255

Chapter 17: No One Wants to Hear Your Phone 257

Following Etiquette When Using Your Phone in Public 257

Deciding when to pick up (and when to put down) your phone 258

Keeping the conversation going (and keeping your phone in your pocket) 259

Turning off notifications to avoid distractions 259

Realizing that the world doesn’t need to see or hear your conversation 261

Keeping other phone uses in mind 262

Dealing with the Poor Etiquette of Others 263

Knowing When It’s Time to Take a Break from Your Smartphone 265

Telecommuting and the Phone Etiquette That Comes Along with It 266

Chapter 18: When and How to Use Text Messaging SMS 269

One-to-One Text Messaging 269

Introducing yourself properly 270

Responding in a timely manner 271

To text or not to text 271

Using emojis and photos correctly 272

It’s a Party in Your Phone 273

Knowing when to use group texting 273

Adding people to a group text 274

Replying to a group text 275

Avoiding SMS missteps 275

Not introducing yourself 276

Excessive use of emojis and pictures 276

Not keeping an eye on tone 276

Indulging in lengthy texts 277

SMS that should have been a call 278

Blowing up someone’s phone 278

Not cleaning up your voice-to-text 279

Knowing What Not to Send in an SMS Text Message 280

Not sending unsolicited content 280

Keeping your messages spam-free 280

Chapter 19: Pleasant Direct Messaging 283

Exploring the Differences: Messaging App versus SMS 283

Comparing Messaging and Email 284

Knowing When to Use Messaging 285

Evaluating the More Popular Messaging Apps 287

Facebook Messenger 287

WhatsApp 288

Telegram 289

Slack 289

Following Best Practices for Personal Messaging 291

Respecting other people’s time 291

Not treating messaging apps as though they’re Google 292

Avoiding the overmessaging temptation 292

Including the context from the get-go 293

Keeping Messaging Professional 294

Staying professional at all times when using messaging apps 294

Skipping the unsolicited spam or sales pitches 295

Being sure to respond promptly 296

Checking messages throughout the day so that nothing slips through the cracks 296

Managing Group Messaging 297

Adding people to a group chat 298

Respecting the intention of the group 299

Respecting other people’s time 299

Notification overload: Managing the noise 300

Knowing when to leave a group 300

Don’t take offense if people leave 301

Part 6: The Part of Tens 303

Chapter 20: Ten Good Manners to Follow 305

Respecting Others 306

Watching Your Language 306

Using Humor and Sarcasm with Care 307

Giving Credit When Credit Is Due 307

Dotting Your I’s and Crossing Your T’s 307

Being a Proper Emailer 308

Keeping Other People’s Private Information Private 308

Keeping Your Facts Straight 309

Refraining from Oversharing 310

Knowing That to Err Is Human, and to Forgive, Divine 311

Chapter 21: Ten Bad Behaviors to Avoid 313

Capping Everything 314

Leaving Your Mistakes for All to See 314

Putting Yourself at the Center of Everything 314

Being Inappropriate No Matter the Occasion 315

Being Argumentative 316

Invading Others’ Privacy 316

Being a Spammer 317

Leaving Others in the Lurch 318

Talking as Loudly as Possible on Your Cellphone 318

Texting While Talking with Others (The Wrong Kind of Multitasking) 319

Index 321

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