Things to avoid on Social Media.

It may be very important to know the kind of things you should be doing on social media to give you the best returns on your effort, but knowing what not to do will also stand you in good stead as sometimes, social media can be very unforgiving.

Social media is very much a part of life for many of us and the way we use it is being adapted to how we currently live our own lives, it is being designed to fit in with our everyday agendas. What we must remember though that unlike us being down the local bar and gossip taking place that remains within the four walls,what happens on social media doesn’t stay on social media unlike in the popular city of Las Vegas. Thinking on the business side of things, the right message can travel far and wide and increase brand awareness, but so can the wrong message and with it can come not only negative comments and a drop in following, but it can devalue your brand and even land you in legal issues.

So, what type of things should we look to steer clear of when using social media to make sure that we stay on the positive and safe road of social media. * I would add, that there are those of us that are very clever and work on the basis of using negative PR to gain the necessary brand awareness, but for the rest of us:

  • Confrontational Topics. The usual suspects of religion, politics and football should be topics you may need to think through thoroughly before either starting or getting involved with on social media. Though each of the topics are freedom of speech, they usually can become heated and rarely conclude as people always have different opinions and like to express their thoughts. Nothing wrong with any of the topics above and with a thought through approach, you can make new connections and new friends, but be warned that even if you have the most sincere of opinions, it is still likely to offend someone, somewhere.
  • Copyright content. With more and more people using social media, the search for unique content increases as does the temptation to use content already out there done by someone else. Make sure that when you do use the likes of images, videos or blog content, that you have either permission from the original creator or that the content is listed as free to use (you can search Google for content that has given you permission to share and for commercial re-use).
  • Private conversations. Make sure that you keep personal and private conversations away from social media or at least, use direct messages instead. It may be obvious, but avoid firing people, stating people’s salaries or when they are on holiday, direct complaints or feedback to person and using bad or hard language. Remember, that what you place on social media not only can be seen by your followers, but has the potential to be seen by the followers of your followers, ie it can go viral.
  • Spamming. We should all know by now that spamming in any form is not a clever way of doing marketing and should be left to the SEO companies based in India. Though many of us reject spammers, lot’s still use social media in a similar way without realising they are doing so. Avoid direct messages which as merely urging people to click links or take up offers, do not simply post updates which as sales only and try not to tempt people in to clicking on a URL with a catchy update only to direct people to a sales orientated page. Think 80/20 rule when promoting your products and services, 20% is considered a recommended amount of your overall updates to be sales focused.

Christopher Walkey

Founder of Estate Agent Networking. Internationally invited speaker on how to build online target audiences using Social Media. Writes about UK property prices, housing, politics and affordable homes.

You May Also Enjoy

Home and Living

War over bin blunders as legal expert reveals what you can actually do

Rows over rubbish are bubbling up, with fed-up homeowners losing patience over neighbours who refuse to bring their bins back in. Now, a legal expert has revealed the simple steps you can take before things spiral into a full-blown neighbourhood feud. Natalie Peacock of Rogers and Norton explained that while it might be tempting to…
Read More
Breaking News

The UK’s best place to be a buy-to-let landlord in 2026 – and it isn’t London

Manchester tops the list with an average property price below the UK average and an annual rental return of 6.4%, beating all 32 London boroughs. Newcastle upon Tyne ranks second and is the only area in the study to deliver an annual return of more than 7%, while Blackpool places third. New research ranks 310…
Read More
Home and Living

Don’t Let Dirty Windows Cost You a Sale

You’ve spent months preparing your home for sale. You’ve decluttered, repainted the hallway, replaced the kitchen handles, and had the carpets professionally cleaned. But have you looked at your windows lately, really looked at them? Dirty windows are one of the most overlooked deal-breakers in property sales. They’re also one of the easiest to fix.…
Read More
Home and Living

Home longevity spas tipped to become the next must-have in prime property

Longevity expert has noticed a huge influx in home spas from investors Country and Townhouse reported that wellness is expected in luxury homes Ralph Montague discusses core shifts he’s seen over the past two years Once, cinema rooms, wine cellars and home gyms were considered luxury home features. Now, the next major trend in prime…
Read More
Breaking News

Nationwide House Price Index for April 2026 – Thoughts from the Industry

House prices increased by 0.4% between March 2026 and April 2026. This was a weaker rate of monthly growth compared to the previous month (0.9%). Annual growth sat at 3% in April 2026, with this annual rate of growth increasing from 2.2% versus March 2026. The average UK house price now stands at £278,889.  …
Read More
Breaking News

House price growth remained resilient in April

UK annual house price growth picked up to 3.0% in April, from 2.2% in March House prices were up 0.4% month on month Headlines Apr-26 Mar-26 Monthly Index* 554.8 552.7 Monthly Change* 0.4% 0.9% Annual Change 3.0% 2.2% Average Price (not seasonally adjusted) £278,880 £277,186 * Seasonally adjusted figure (note that monthly % changes are…
Read More