OT: Forum Etiquette - Page 1

Forum etiquette

NETWORKING is the art of building mutually beneficial long term business relationships. These relationships thrive on professional courtesy and mutual respect. Note: this is not the same as friendship. Many of those in your network will never be seen outside of the office but may be suppliers or freelance consultants or members of internet forums that your know through correspondence only. Occasionally, a member of your network will become a friend, as a general rule, however, a network is more stable when each member is respected for the quality, amount and professionalism of their work as well as their knowledge of the field in general. Simply: Good Manners Are Good Business.
by N-etiquette.com


Internet Forum Etiquette

Keep in mind the six rules of business etiquette as you go through this lesson and you will see that participation in forums is an excellent way to fulfill your primary networking goals:

1)Always acknowledge others
2)Time is money.
3)Practice making it look easy.
4)Lend a helping hand.
5)Develop a "business" sense of humor.
6)Maintain your skill levels

Read the rules of the forum* that you have joined - and abide by them. For each forum that you join, know the rules and follow them.

Forums have a purpose which involves shared knowledge. For that reason, it is counterproductive and therefore rude to reply privately. This denies the answer, and perhaps more importantly, the development of the answer to other members. It can also be rude to link to other forums in your answer or in your signature as it tends to confuse people as to where they have posted their questions. The information is easily posted to the forum, rather than directing others to a completely different website to read one post.

Most forums have both an HTML option and a range of emoticons or Avatars for the use of their members. This does make it easier to show stress points in a sentence (using different colors, bold font, underline, etc.) and eliminates the need for capitalization to make a point. A message that is delivered in capitals is considered "shouting" or "flaming" on the internet and is considered extremely rude.

While your post to the forum is available to the group as a whole, you should generally use the name of the person to whose comment you are responding for two reasons.

1) It makes a better impression. You are trying to expand your network as well as perfect your skills.

2) It focuses you on the fact that there is a real person on the other end of your message. Too often, we feel an anonymity on the internet and respond in ways that we would not respond person to person. If anything, we need to be kinder on the internet. It is fast paced. We tend to forget that once it is written - it is always there.

Many who belong to forums save or bookmark posts as little tutorials. Many belong to more than one forum. Do not clog the forum with repetition, subjects that are not pertinent, long personal anecdotes, or inappropriate language.

Lend that helping hand.

Many forums call for critiques from members on a particular project. This is a wonderful learning tool if handled properly. Remember, this is a learning process and criticism must walk a fine, polite line. If criticism is too harsh, someone may be dissuaded from presenting their project for criticism. If criticism is not honest, no one will learn. Both extremes defeat the purpose of the forum.

If you are being critiqued: Do not take criticism personally. Evaluate it and decide if you can use it. If you can't, then put it totally out of your mind.

If you are critiquing: Unless you can offer an improvement or substitution that you feel would benefit the p

Are you the NEW   moderator  of this forum?