For the past few years facebook has been all the rage. To be honest it took me a while to warm up to facebook. I had a profile but for no apparent reason I
just wouldn’t get on Facebook to communicate… until recently. It wasn’t until I got involved I mean actually involved with a group that I began to have an inkling of the power of facebook.
A recent study about facebook revealed results that were both surprising and dramatic. These results can teach you about communicating better and being more memorable.
Background on the Facebook Study
- Check out the study. Researchers at the University of California, San Diego and the University of Warwick conducted this study.
- Learn surprising results. They found that Facebook status updates were remembered one and one half times better than sentences from books, and two and a half times better than faces. That’s equivalent to the difference between healthy memory and amnesia.
- Resolve any doubts. The findings were so remarkable that the scientists went back to double check the factors that could have interfered. The results were the same, even when they made sure people weren’t just paying more attention to their own friends than to strangers.
- Consider the additional findings. The study also found that headlines are remembered better than random sentences. Reader comments make the most lasting impression of all!
Let Facebook Teach You How to Communicate Better
- Write quickly. Our brains are wired to prefer effortless, casual conversation. You may get better results trying to write faster. Sometimes it’s good to just jot down your thoughts as they come.
- Edit less. Think twice before you edit. Depending on the context, it may be okay to sound less formal. People may connect with that writing style.
- Organize your thoughts. Always convey a coherent and complete message. Outlining is a great strategy to implement because it helps the flow of your writing!
- Read more comments. Spend time reviewing online comments. Reflect on the word choices and insights that make them striking or funny.
- Write more comments. Practice writing comments. People like to receive feedback, and you’ll sharpen your writing skills along the way.
- Make time for culture. Literature, philosophy, and science place more demands on our brains than just looking at our friends’ photos. Becoming more cultured gives you more topics for online commenting and discussion. Read and take courses to broaden your culture and your mind!
Let Facebook Teach You How to Protect Your Online Image
- Know your company guidelines. Social media mistakes can have long-lasting results, so protect your career by following your company’s rules. Ask for a written copy of the rules if you don’t already have one.
- Separate your personal and business accounts. Express your private views on your own time and through your own channels. Use a disclaimer when publicly stating an opinion at work!
- Project a positive attitude. Readers usually respond better to postings with a positive tone. When you’re online, people can see only your words. Be precise and matter of fact with your word choices in posts, so they cannot be misinterpreted by others. Save the more sensitive subjects for face to face discussions!
- Think before posting. Clarify your purpose before making any posts. Do you believe that others will find it helpful or entertaining? Is the content something you feel comfortable sharing with the general public?
- Minimize dubious content. Remove any text or photos that you are unsure about. Ask others to do the same if they have posted content about you that could be questionable. If all else fails, post more neutral or flattering information until you push the debatable information away from the first pages of search engines.
- Monitor your online presence. Keep track of how you look online. Review your profiles and what others post about you. Set up a Google Alert with your name and check it regularly!
Facebook has become an important tool in the personal and professional lives of many people. Your interactions on Facebook can enhance your communication skills if you can learn to write in ways that people connect to and understand and appreciate.
Remember to use good judgment and be professional in order to become memorable while also protecting your online image.
I have had a personal Facebook account for several years. I was a teacher for some of those years so I have always had to be minful of things I posted (and still am as I never know if or when I will return to the field). I remind my teen constantly about posting things–once it’s out there, it always will be.
Yes teens especially have no idea of the lifelong potential good and bad that can happen as they post on facebook. All that looks private or personal is not private or personal. Best to send someone a personal email if you need to say something that not everyone will appreciate now or in 20 years. Thanks for sharing.
I am so glad I read this. Thank you for giving such good suggestions. I tend to want to read books from writers who write in a conversational style. It appears this also applies to facebook.
Would you please tell me how to set up a google alert for my name? Thank you again. 🙂
Hi Pamela
If you simply go into https://www.google.com/alerts you can set up an alert on any name or anything for that matter. You should always set up one for your name to see when it’s mentioned and by who.
When you go to the site it will be pretty simple to add the alert for whatever names you choose. Let me know if you need more help with this.
Good luck and thanks for sharing.
Linda
What a startling statistic! I love staying connected to friends and family on Facebook and have been pretty active for about 5 years. Originally it was social-only for me but now I have business friends, too, which is fun.
Gretchen
It took me a really long time to warm up to facebook. I can’t tell you why but I felt out of touch with it. Now It’s all I can do to say out of it all day.