How to join the conversation with social media

Posted by Anton on Aug 1, 2011 in Social Media

Say you are at a party, you have just met someone and start talking immediately with one another.  The conversation is flowing and you have just made a new friend.  It feels as though the rest of the party is not even happening.  You are connected, engaged and energized.  While you are talking with your “new” friend, someone interrupts your conversation and starts talking about the weather.  The moment is suddenly lost and the flow is broken.

This also happens on social media channels such as blogs, forums, Twitter, or on Facebook to name but a few. A strong conversation is under way and someone interrupts and start commenting off the subject, or without reading and analysing the conversation from the start, and then starts talking about things that have already been covered.

Simple rules to join the conversation

There’s just a few simple rules to join a conversation with social media.  Firstly, read the conversation that has already gone before.  Make sure you know and understand what has been said before and the flow of the discussion so far.

Secondly, never join a conversation unless you have something to add to the discussion. This also happens in the offline world as well – you listening to a great discussion and you feel you should say something, so you open your mouth and start blabbering straight away.

So, the bottom line, think first about what you are going to say.  It could be you have great insight into the subject or that you have a very good question to ask, in which case it could be good to jump in, but if your question is not on the subject of the discussion or if it has been asked earlier in the conversation, then you are not going to be welcomed, so think carefully.

Summary of rules to join the conversation

• Make sure your response is going to move the discussion forward
• Make sure your contribution is not off topic
• Read the conversation that has gone before

By following these simple rules you can become a valued and trusted member of the social media conversation.