The Five Do's and Don'ts of Facebook Posts

Whether you are new to Facebook or have been on it for a few years, there's always something to learn about this popular social media site. The unspoken etiquette of social interactions online constantly changes as the Internet evolves and new generations (the oldest and youngest users) begin to populate Facebook. There are certain unspoken rules you should try to avoid breaking if you want to keep your friendships intact, however! Here are five do's and don'ts of Facebook posts.

1. Don't post private things in public spaces.

If you're wondering how your best friend's UTI is progressing or you want to know why your uncle deleted you as a relation on Facebook after a seemingly relaxed Christmas party, don't go straight to their wall. Instead, choose Facebook private messaging if you can't get your message across through a more personal medium like email, a phone call, or a face-to-face conversation. Posting about private matters on their wall will only escalate any situation you're in.

2. Do call people before you post big news.

Whenever you have a big piece of news like a family death, marriage, or baby, you should call your family and close friends before announcing it to the Internet public. It's not very courteous to let your sibling find out their new niece's name on Facebook! Before you post big news, make sure everyone who is close to you already knows.

3. Don't post without thinking.

Facebook friends are often distant colleagues, relatives, acquaintances, and grade school buddies. They may come from different religious or class backgrounds, hold different political views, or have different jobs. If you post that status about how useless tech support people are, your friend in tech support might feel a little hurt and think you're trying to passive-aggressively talk about them. Before you post something, quickly think about who might react to it and be prepared to deal with the reactions rather than just deleting their comments. Be careful about your tone and use emoticons to make sure people understand what you mean.

4. Do answer questions and comments.

When you post a status or photo and someone answers it, it's only courteous to respond – even if you're just liking their response. If they ask questions, this goes double. They will be waiting for an answer, so don't make them wait for too long! People who never get responses will stop interacting with you or even looking at your posts, because it looks silly to be talking to a wall instead of a person on the other end.

5. Don't stalk everyone's posts.

You might be addicted to scrolling through your news feed, but answering every post a friend makes is seen as a little obsessive. In particular, referencing every post someone makes in a conversation afterwards or always liking new photos is a little weird. Not every post someone makes appears on your news feed, so commenting on everything makes it seem like you're visiting someone's profile daily to check them out!

Facebook is a difficult medium to master if you aren't accustomed to the social etiquette associated with it. A little time and practice will make you a social media etiquette expert, but remember to keep up with the times so you don't get out of the loop when new features are released.
source The Five Do's and Don'ts of Facebook Posts