No matter whether you’re using Twitter, Linkedin, Facebook or another tool as your primary social channel, “tagging” others when appropriate is a good habit to get into.
- It’s a friendly gesture
- It builds camaraderie
- It helps ensure they see it
- It can start (or continue) a conversation
“Tagging” someone is putting the @symbol in front of their name (on Facebook and Twitter) and a +symbol on LinkedIn.
Here’s an example from Twitter.
TechSmith responded to a question I asked them via Twitter. You can see my name highlighted. That way I see it in my “mentions” on Twitter. If they’d just answered the question without mentioning me, I probably wouldn’t have seen it. Besides, the tweet wouldn’t have made any sense.
You can do the same thing.
When you tag someone in a post, you’re calling out their name in a crowded room and saying “Hey”. You could be asking a question or simply acknowledging them in some way.
If you share someone else’s post on Facebook you can tag them in the status. Let’s say you see Beth’s post in your Facebook feed and you want to share it. You can acknowledge Beth in your status update by saying something like “Thanks @Beth xx”, As soon as you type @ and start typing her name, her name will pop up and you can choose the right person (or business).
If you’re genuine about your acknowledgements, people will appreciate it and reciprocate. The idea of social media is to have a conversation and build relationships. You can’t do that if you don’t participate or simply “post and run” (when you post and don’t come back for days or weeks). Share other people’s stuff. Comment on it. Use their names when appropriate.
Caveat: Tagging on Facebook can be Tricky at Times
You have to be friends with the person or have liked the business. That’s true whether you’re on your personal page or your business page. If you’re tagging from your business page, you can only tag another business page—not an individual (at this time).
And finally, it doesn’t work 100% of the time from my iPhone. (I know I’m not the only one).
If you’re new to tagging, try it from the computer first. It can be a lot easier there.
Who will you tag today?
