I found this article very relevant to all of us as we subconsciously, or even consciously, think about how we appear to people and filter what we say and how we behave to others depending on our level of comfort and understanding about them. Not only is it marketing, it is also human nature.
It raises so many interesting questions: How similar are our online selves to our offline selves? Are we integrators or segmentors? To what extent does how we want to appear to others affect our online actions? Do we aim to impress or express?
It was interesting that research findings indicated that being more of a segmentor, which involves separating our professional and personal lives, is more favourable to our social image. This “creates online relationships that mirror the tailored nature of offline relationships”.
For example, the bestselling book “Boundaries in an overconnected world” discusses setting limits to preserve our focus and privacy. It reminds us that it is important to protect ourselves online from possible cyber crime while still maintaining meaningful relationships.
However, it is challenging to be hyper-organized and maintain various social media profiles to serve different needs and engage others in different types of information, personal and professional.
Furthermore, this is closely related to what was discussed in class – how we would deal with the challenge of language being hijacked and diluted. Our personality and communication skills are supposed to connect people to the personality of company or brand which we represent. Deciding the kind of interaction and collaboration that we want to engage in to build meaningful interactions that provide value to contributors affects whether we achieve our goals of impressing or expressing ourselves. Sometimes, the tradeoffs of authenticity, connecting with others on a personal level, are presenting online relationships that “mirror the tailored nature of offline relationships”. Interaction, collaboration and consistency build meaningful interactions that deliver value to contributors.
Personally, I am more of an integrator, often building bridges between my personal and professional life. I am also more of an expresser, more concerned with being seen accurately by others and trying to understand others through social media in a more personal manner. I even keep a personal blog which is open to the public. This article has allowed me to gain insight into the strategies that I select to maintain more of my privacy and segment my Linkedin VS Facebook audience.