As I write this, I am still reeling from the news that a lone gunman opened fire on a nightclub in Orlando in the wee hours of Sunday morning, resulting in what is reportedly the worst mass shooting in U.S. history. I have never been to Orlando and I do not know any of the people who were killed and wounded, but as a lesbian and as a human being, I feel rocked to my very core – and not in a good way. The fact that this happened when much of the LGBTQ community is honouring Pride this month is not lost on me. My heart is with everyone who has been impacted and affected by this, and my thanks goes out to the first responders and everyone else who is helping in whatever way they can.
When catastrophes like this occur, my heart is so frequently warmed when I see social media being used for good. Lately, my Facebook and Twitter feeds have been filled with negativity along the lines of bigots running for president and college students not receiving appropriate punishments for committing violent sexual assaults, and this horrendous crime certainly has the capacity to keep feeding that steady stream of negativity – but what I have been watching instead is my community, my LGBTQ brothers and sisters and our allies, coming together to support one another and using social media to disseminate the most important information – such as where and how to seek emotional support should you need it, and where to make blood donations.
Another recent example of social media uniting a community – one that also hits very close to home for me – is the wildfire raging in Fort McMurray, Alberta. I lived in Alberta for 14 years before I moved to Ontario, and was glued to my phone while I waited to see if all my friends and colleagues in the Fort Mac area were all alive, safe, and accounted for. Again, social media was used to bring us together, to provide support, hope, information and, in many cases, shelter and supplies.
The united communities and their related movements that rise up from social media during times like these are a very unique sort. I consider them sacred, in their own way. As entrepreneurs and business owners, we must tread delicately and respectfully when we reference them in our own social media posts. They are not to be high-jacked in order to spread our messages. They are not to be manipulated to achieve some sort of self-serving end. Our businesses are frequently the pillars of the communities in which we serve, and this shouldn’t change simply because a community’s (our own or one nearby or one a world away) tragedy has become a trending topic on Twitter.
In November, 2015, during the coordinated terrorist attacks on Paris, France, many businesses “went dark” on social media, in order to prevent the most important information from getting clogged up with other content that, let’s face it, the world had absolutely no need to see at the time.
I feel this needs to happen more often.
I’m not saying that as a business owner you shouldn’t get involved in these movements. Far from it. What I am suggesting is that you consider very carefully how you choose to become involved.
In our automated world, “setting and forgetting” our social media content has become a bad habit. By maintaining a social media presence, you are accepting a mantle of responsibility – one that includes being accountable to your personal community of followers by providing them with timely, relevant, and respectful content. This means doing things like keeping a finger on social media trends at all times and making sure that anything you’ve planned is appropriate for the time it has been scheduled. You may be too busy to do this by yourself – in which case, it’s time to enlist the support of a Social Media Manager.
As a business owner, you are also a leader in your own community. People watch you very closely and look to you for leadership. Join these movements that rise up from social media of it makes sense for you to be involved – but do it for yourself and as yourself. Community coming together, no matter the reason, is a good thing – a beautiful thing. Don’t cheapen it by trying to make it about your business.