I found this article on Linus Ruzicka’s blog and wanted to add a couple of points about tagging people in a welcome message on Facebook. Do this right and you will stand out from the crowd for all the right reasons, like Linus, but get it wrong and you will still stand out but for reasons you don’t want.

This is a practise that I use and I have seen other people use as well. A simple welcome video where you introduce yourself and say hi is fine as long as you don’t spam.

Now if you read the article it’s obvious that the guy may have had this type of thing done before but with links to websites etc. I have seen people who tag you in a video and when you click the link it’s a promotional video to their business.

Not cool guys, you know who you are!

So I can see why this person who Linus tagged in a welcome video may get a bit annoyed, but hang on a second. Would this person of preferred it if Linus had written out the video into text and posted that as a welcome message on his wall? What’s the difference?

So if you are going to tag someone who is not in a video and use it as a welcome message please follow these do’s and don’ts.

  • DO NOT add any links to blogs, website lead capture pages or anything. You are reaching out for the first time, just say hello!
  • DO NOT leave the video up for days on end, 24 to 48 hours is fine.
  • DO NOT sell, pitch or promote anything in your video.
  • DO add a text message which will appear at the side, but no links.
  • DO make the video with you in it, not your company website.

These are just some of the basic’s, and to be honest it’s not that difficult to get right, however it would appear that some people just can’t help themselves and will take every opportunity they can to pitch their business to you.

Just like everything with social networking, this is a small part of building  relationships with people.

I have around 1400 friends on Facebook and have used this to greet all of them and have had only one person who did not like what I did. I have  around 30 people who have click the like button and have had around 100 positive comments.

So just because one person may not like what you do, don’t be put off. This technique lets you stand out from the crowd, dare to be different.

Thanks for reading.

Tristram Lodge