You would have to be living under a rock to not see and read all of the posts, tweets and messages being blasted through Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and other social channels regarding this election. Critics of one candidate or the other are voicing their opinions. Friends are being removed as friends, followers are being unfollowed, walls and filters are coming down and people are very stoically voicing their opinion. Here are just a few pieces of advice when it comes to social media and your business during this post election frenzy.
1. Do not engage-If someone you know or a business you work with writes a comment or adds a politically charged meme or photo, walk away.
Do not engage. Do not voice your opinion. Leave it alone. You have a business to run so keep running it. If you need to download the newsfeed erradicator on your Facebook to turn off all the noise, do it. Turn it off in a couple days (or weeks) when all of this commotion dies down.
2. Stick with the facts-Stick with the facts and with what you know.
Talk about your business, talk about your amazing clients, add value and share with your audience nuggets of wisdom you have recently discovered. Do not talk about the election. Do not talk about party affiliation or the future of our nation. Just stick with the facts. Stick with what you know. People will be grateful for it.
3. Keep it light-there is enough negativity and arguing going on right now.
Bring some positivity into the picture. Share a success story, a client testimonial, share what you plan to do this weekend, but keep it light. There is enough darkness right now.
4. Unplug-this whole social media scene could get worse before it gets better.
Why not unplug from it all for a few days and spend times with the ones you love. Schedule your posts on Facebook scheduler. For your business this would be at least 1 post per day. For Twitter, schedule at least 4 tweets a day for the next few days. You can do this via Buffer , Hootesuite , Sprout Social , or Sprinklr . And then take a deep breath and unplug. It will all be there when you plug back in.
Social media is quick and fast paced. One comment today is gone tomorrow. However, your words will follow you and will be socially imprinted. Your statements, good or bad, will impact your business. Choose your words carefully and when in doubt, don’t put it on social media.