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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:
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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