04 December 2013 boxchilli How to use Social Media around the Holidays Should you post holiday greetings from your work Twitter account? Do you want to ring in the New Year with an update to your company Facebook page? Will the pictures from your work Christmas party improve your SEO? As with all social media, there’s a line you shouldn’t cross and finding it can be painful. We’ve got tips to help you stay on the right side! 10 Tips for a Great Social Media Experience this Christmas Plan ahead. Decide which holidays you’re celebrating, and how much you want to do. Perhaps a simple Tweet on Christmas Day is enough, or maybe you want to decorate your site for the holidays. Some things should just be fun. Don’t try to cram a bit of SEO into every festive message. It’s fine to post something that’s purely joyful. Some things should just be work. You don’t have to sign every email from mid-November with ‘Merry Christmas’. It’s fine to carry on as normal. Be genuine. People are very good at spotting what they consider to be phony. If you’re not celebrating yourself, don’t pretend you are. Instead, simply wish anyone who is a joyful time. Remember that not everyone celebrates Christmas. There are many reasons not to celebrate, from being a different religion to simply not liking the holiday. Keep your messages brief. Its good advice any time of year, but especially as the overwhelm starts. Remember not everyone will load images. If you’re sending a work Christmas e-card, a festive newsletter or posting on your Facebook page, add a bit of text so you’re not relying on the image to do all the work. Choose images carefully. Photos should be high quality and ones you have permission to post. Schedule messages ahead of time. You don’t have to be working on Christmas Day to post a message. Schedule your greetings ahead of time, and they’ll be delivered at the right moment. Don’t drink and post! With so many people accessing work accounts from their smart phones, it’s easier than ever to post a personal message to a work page. We dread to think what that would do to your SEO. Why Business, Social Media and the Holidays are a Great Mix For most people, the holidays are a time to kick back, relax and forget about work. However, if you run an independent business or are in charge of SEO and online marketing for a larger firm, you’ll know that Christmas, and other celebrations, are a great time to reach out to your customers. While most Brits now shop or research purchases online, many find it a sterile, somewhat soulless process. Using social media as a business gives you a way to interact with your customers more directly, to put that personal element back in. We certainly don’t want to rob the holidays of all feeling in a quest for ultimate SEO mastery, but there is a good business case for sharing a little bit online. Celebrating the holidays or discussing current events shows your customers and online visitors that your site is active and current, not simply pre-programmed or rehashed content. It’s a friendly, sociable thing to do that will probably make your website or Facebook page more fun to use. This translates into a more interesting business page, one people are more likely to visit or linger on, and makes them more likely to turn into customers. Back to blog list About the Author boxchilli