Can anybody give vital financial advice in 140 characters or less?
This may have been a question asked by a number of different finance-related businesses before opening a Twitter account. In the case of Experian, I discovered recently that they have tried to do exactly that, and I can now count myself as one of their 15,000 or so followers. The Twitter feed itself is a mixture of conversation starters about finance, company announcements and links to other social media content, and this is how they seem to have managed to get around the 140 character limitation to give people advice about making smarter financial decisions.
I actually find this refreshing in an age when other businesses seem to be obsessed with trying to dictate "chapter and verse" over a series of tweets – "1/5" on the end of a tweet (i.e. tweet 1 of 5) is hardly making the best use of this social media platform that was designed for brief and chatty points of view.
I have discovered for myself in the past that good social media etiquette for businesses is all about managing the customer’s expectations, and Experian have put a prominent notice at the top of their Twitter feed to let their followers know when they are available to reply. Their "opening hours let me know the best time for me to tweet a question about credit reports in general, and they point out on a regular basis that they are available to answer any questions that their followers have about how credit reporting works in general. Luckily, I didn’t make the mistake of asking anything overly personal in nature, and I see that other followers get in touch with general questions frequently.
If I had to specify the single social media habit that irritates me above all others, I would have to say that it is when businesses do not share relevant content from the wider internet with their followers. I noticed that Experian are more than happy to post links to other interesting stories about managing finances, such as this piece about secret spenders. This is a regular feature of the Experian Twitter feed, and it helps to prevent me from thinking that social media is just another form of advertising for them.
My online time has a number of different websites battling it out for my attention and readership, and therefore I appreciate it when authors display the key facts in a clear and concise manner. Infographics are great for keeping things "short and sweet", and this image about plastic card fraud opened my eyes about how serious the problem has actually become. Reading the attached blog has equipped me with more information about how I can be proactive against this on a personal level, and the Experian Experts have also shared another infographic explaining about the real cost of a new TV. I have always known that retailers love to push accessories with a new piece of living room hardware, and the "retailer profit" on this pie chart speaks volumes about why I am often bombarded with offers of cables, stands and extended warranties while I am browsing.