Tero International, Inc. Your Elite Training Team
Tero International, Inc. Your Elite Training Team
Netiquette is an informal blend of two commonly used everyday terms, namely "net" and "etiquette". Simply put, netiquette refers to social, personal, and public etiquettes while communicating on digital channels or through the internet (Etiquette technology). It is defined as "the set of professional and social etiquettes practiced and advocated in electronic communication over any computer network... This term was first introduced in posts of the satirical 'Dear Emily' news columns in 1983, but it originated before the World Wide Web" (Technopedia). The objectives of netiquette are to know proper manners, project professional image, and to understand what are suitable methods of communicating over network channels.
In the 21st century, communication through network channels has become a pervasive part of our society. Computer technology has revolutionized and transformed how we receive information, build relationships, and conduct business. Internet technology has led to the proliferation of multi-media platforms for the masses to express opinions, comments, and messages. Some of the most popular digital means are emails, blogs, posts, video channels, and messaging apps. In the United States, Facebook leads social media sites with 42.1% of the population using it, followed by YouTube, Twitter, Reddit, Snapchat, Pinterest, Instagram, Tumblr, LinkedIn, Yahoo Answers and Yelp (Statistics Portal, 2016).
According to the MIT Technology Review, "The Internet is the decisive technology of the Information Age, and with the explosion of wireless communication in the early twenty-first century, we can say that humankind is now almost entirely connected." In this network society, online communication is the most popular means of communication across various age groups. Statistics support this fact, showing that 68% of all women and 62% of all men in this country use social media sites. Nearly two-thirds of American adults (65%) use social networking sites. (Pew Research Center, 2015). In 2015, 79% of teenagers used instant messaging, 72% used social media, while email was used by 64%, video chat by 59%, and messaging apps 42% (Statistics Portal). This trend indicates that the online or network communication will continue to increase in the years to come.
Compared to other types of communication, internet communication is fundamentally different. Online communication is global as information spreads to all parts of the world in a few seconds. It has a long-term impact. With just a few clicks, information can be easily archived and retrieved. Communication is mostly nonverbal. Writing and reading online text does not allow seeing facial expressions, gestures, body language, or hearing the tone of voice. Devoid of visual cues and frame of reference, messages can sometimes be missed, taken out of context, and misinterpreted.
Therefore, online communication poses multiple challenges. The fundamental question is how to use it appropriately, judiciously and without violating ethical, professional, societal and personal standards. How do we minimize mistakes, not offend others, or spoil one's reputation through online communication?
All these challenges need comprehensive policies and procedures. Although internet communication is still going through unchartered territory, it is a good idea to look at professional suggestions and rules for constructive internet communication.
Netiquette Rules
The proliferation of internet usage has led to the publication of multiple books and articles on how to conduct oneself in the online world. Virginia Shea provides comprehensive guidelines in her book on Net Etiquette. Steinberg and Brown have thoroughly covered this topic in this book: Netiquette Essentials: New Rules for Minding Your Manners in a Digital World. Some of these netiquettes can be summarized as follows:
Treat your readers with dignity and respect. Be very clear, concise and respectful in your message. Do not use language that is rude, offensive and impolite. Remember that aggressive and belligerent comments online may come back to haunt you for years to come. Multiple incidents are compiled by news media to show that people lost their jobs because of what they wrote online that was perceived to be disrespectful to employers, coworkers, and colleagues.
Be careful in sharing views on social, political, and religious ideologies. It is a common belief that you can write whatever you want on your social media profile and no one will notice it. Think about those prospective employers, colleagues and your friends who look at your profile to know your values and interests. Whatever you write or "like" on the web is broadcasted to the rest of the World and has long term repercussions.
Respect others' privacy. Do not put information, photos or news about others without first obtaining their permission. This netiquette particularly applies to all photos. Just remember that photos can be taken at their face value. Context is lost, or situations can be misinterpreted. The same caution applies to sharing confidential or personal information about family members and friends.
Provide acknowledgment where it is due. This definitely applies to copyright material or quotes from others. Without proper recognition, you are breaking the copyright laws. If you would like to share information or material from others, just ask permission from proper authorities and link the information to its source.
To protect your communications, familiarize yourself with the privacy and public settings of social media where you like to put your views, opinion, and comments. Make sure to check the settings for private or for public use. Understand that various online communities have their own rules of conduct, values, and guidelines.
Since we are living in the information age, respect other people's time and bandwidth. Do not send too many detailed messages and images at one time. People usually do not like to read lengthy and long descriptions.
Learn to project a professional image through your writing. Online communication is mostly nonverbal; therefore, it is important to check spelling, punctuation, and grammar mistakes. Carefully select your words and read your message multiple times to make sure it conveys what you want to express. A vague written message can be misinterpreted or taken out of context. Informal expressions and abbreviations such as "u," "lol," or "ttyl," or the use of emoji are not considered professional.
If you really want to attract viewers to your site or to your point-of-view, learn how to project your expertise to attract readers, clients, and viewers.
Keep the "flaming" under control. Do not resort to any kind of bullying, hostile or insulting tactics over the internet. Avoid posting comments on sites without factual support.
Do not hack or use others' passwords to read emails or personal information. If you are a system administrator or other worker who has access to others' confidential emails and others, this does not give you the privilege to broadcast this information.
Online and digital communications, or communication through social media, are vital parts of the information age. People feel liberated as they think that they can post their views, express opinions and post comments on any issue. However, it is a misconception that readers will not know who wrote those views. Writers can be identified. We tend to forget that whenever we post a message or comment, we leave technical trails and those can be followed.
Internet communication is here to stay and will be ubiquitous in the years to come. The only way we can enjoy and make online communication work for us is if we learn and follow netiquettes just as we follow code of ethics in our day-to-day lives. Using netiquettes is the best way to enjoy the fruits of the internet and make productive use of our communication skills.
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