Proper Facebook Etiquette – Keep It Classy!

I’ve been using Facebook for at least the past 8 years. I spend a lot of time on the site managing a few business pages and my personal page. I’m really amazed at the kind of things that people post over there and really…it has gotten out of hand. Grant ya, its mostly the younger generation that is posting these inappropriate things, but I’m also seeing older adults doing it too.

Here’s some of what I have observed and why it irks me off so much!

1. Death Announcements: I understand that sharing death announcements on FB has its purpose. There may be extended family members & friends who don’t live nearby. However, I’m really sick and tired of seeing death announcements being slapped up onto FB within minutes of a beloved family member or friend passing on. Give me a break…you need to wait until all of the important people in that person’s life have been notified before you slap up that kind of information on the site.

2. Bedroom Romps: I don’t want to read about what you’re doing in the bedroom nor the particulars of your sex life. I was brought up to be classy and that kind of information should be kept private and not blasted out on a public forum.

3. Couple Spats: Seriously? Like your followers want to read about your latest fight? Argument? Who’s cheating on who? Who’s spending too much time with the next door neighbor? Who’s spending too much of the household’s money? Who can out curse the other? Really? We don’t want to read about it and we don’t care. Enough Said.

4. Business Spam: Stop posting business spam onto your personal FB page! For one, its against their TOS. If you’re pushing products, come join my team, and other business crap…you need to set up a business page or group. It’s okay to occasionally mention business messages on a personal page, but it should be rare and far in between.

5. Constant Bragging: Your FB friends get sick and tired of the constant bragging! We’re tired of hearing how perfect your life is. How clean your house is. How you have the perfect marriage with children who get straight A’s in school. While we do want to read about your family life…constant bragging is a no-no. Be real, be honest and your friends will respect you more!

6. Extra-Curricular Activities: We all share information about the things we do outside of our home, the places we travel to, life experiences, etc. However, some people take it too far. I’m glad you had a nice weekend out partying with your friends at XYZ, but I don’t want to hear about you throwing up in the car on the way home, urinating on yourself, sleeping on the floor in the garage, etc. That’s way too much information!

7. Debbie Downer: It’s okay to share occasionally when things are stressing you out or depressing you. But let’s face it…no one wants to read depressing “cry me a river” posts day after day, after day. We all have enough stress in our lives. Post more positive things on your page and you’ll see more “positive” things coming your way.

8. Profanity: My mother always taught me that you should never use profanity out in public or in front of other people. In my book, its part of having good moral values. Why is it that people sitting behind a computer screen and using a keyboard feel the need to use profanity on a public social media website? Keep the trash talk to yourself please!

What kind of things do you see over on Facebook that get under your skin? I would love to hear all about it!