The importance of thinking before you Tweet!
The last few weeks have brought up some timely reminders to think before you Tweet.
On one hand, we had the story of youth Police and Crime Commissioner Paris Brown. The 17 year old stood down just six days after taking up the position following a newspaper story which revealed offensive tweets she posted between the ages of 14 and 16. Unlike the spoken word, what you publish on the internet is visible and tangible, and you can’t necessarily make it go away. Even if you’re able to delete something, that’s no guarantee that someone hasn’t managed to grab a screen cap or two.
Old rants and mistakes coming back to haunt you aren’t the only pitfall associated with social media. After the recent death of Margaret Thatcher, when passions were running high, we saw quite a number of Tweets made by people who seemed to have temporarily forgotten they were supposed to be the mouthpiece of a business. Sharing opinions and taking part in discussions is an important part of social networking interaction, but going too far can affect the reputation of your brand.
