36 Rules Of Social Media: Your Social Media Plan [Infographic]

Social media is so different now compared to a few years ago. I remember back in early 2009 people were just starting to get the hang of it all. Twitter was such a small community of friends back then compared to the monstrosity it is now. Then in 2010, some of the social media influencers starting establishing rules for how certain sites were supposed to be used, and for the first time really, people started putting together a serious social media plan for themselves. Then most of us realized that following “social media rules” cramped our style and creativity, so in 2011, there was an overall feeling of acceptance of all different social media styles. The only rule in 2011 was that there weren’t any rules.

In 2012 things have evolved even more. With the emergence of so many new social media sites, it’s no longer about just managing Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. Now many of us are managing a whole handful of social media sites daily (Pinterest, Google+, YouTube, etc.), and our time is more valuable than ever. Having a social media plan is not just a luxury like it used to be, it’s become a necessity. The social media buzzword in 2012 seems to be “optimize,” and that seems to be the new goal. Optimize your time, your content and your social media plan.

Fast Company recently asked some of social media’s most savvy users what their best practices are when trying to manage it all. They took the most useful 36 answers and compiled them to create this colorful, fun infographic. The answers are all in the format of bite-sized chunks of information that you might find very useful as you continue to fine-tune your own social media plan. Fast Company also invites people to continuously add to the list, and you can submit your own piece of advice by clicking over to The Rules of Social Media. My favorite one on there is “Don’t follow just to get followed. It’s slutty.” This little chart is great. Enjoy!