20 ways to be awesome on the Internet

Shy Rosenweig is the co-founder and COO of Meetey, bringing social networking to your neighborhood.

You’ll find tips and tricks everywhere online and some of them are actually very good. The problem many people have is TMI (too much information).

They get overloaded by so much information from so many different places, it becomes hard to process what’s priority. So here’s a list of 20 things you need to remember online, the most important things, all in one place so you’re sure you don’t forget anything!

1. Keep it real

You know that guy who wears sunglasses indoors? That “cool” guy everyone secretly despises? Don’t be that guy. Don’t try to be “cool,” don’t try to be something you’re not or try to talk to a crowd you know nothing about. You’ll stand out like a sore thumb.

2. Be your audience

I wanted to say “know your audience” but it’s really more than that. You have to know them at a level where you can create a perfect picture of who your audience is. You have to be them to know how to approach them, market to them, and not piss them off.

3. Know your industry

Stay updated with the latest news, follow competitors and see what they’re doing and follow anyone your audience seems to be attracted to or talking about. You have to know what’s going on in an industry you’re planning on dominating.

4. Forget ego

Whether you like it or not, not everyone is going to like you. I’m not talking about trolls or senseless bashing, but people who simply don’t like what you’re offering or don’t agree with what you have to say.

Accept their criticism, talk to them politely, and understand that they help you become better! Don’t let your ego blind you from being awesome.

5. Stop repeating yourself

It’s a great feeling when something you post gets shared hundreds, even thousands of times. Try to understand why it worked and how you can repeat the result.

Pay attention – repeat the result, not the content! Don’t tweet the same thing over and over again – it will get on people’s nerves and will ultimately make you look unprofessional and annoying.

6. Be original

Information is everywhere, everyone is sharing their ideas and stories online… it’s really hard to be original. That being said, you don’t have a choice.

You have to be original or you’ll get a “meh” reaction from people who come across your content or product. Give them something they’ve never seen before.

7. Make it memorable

Whether it’s content, a product, service or even a method of doing something – make it memorable. Either give it a name or create it in a way people will never forget.

Think of it this way, if they want to talk about your product with a friend – how will they describe you? “That guy who talks about that method for doing things online” is bad. “The YOURNAME method” or even “the guy with that cool blue and green spider logo” is better.

8. Be useful

Solve a problem. Find a problem you can solve and provide a solution. A real solution that works with proven results is obviously ideal.

Even if you’re writing a recipe – don’t just write how to make apple pie but talk about the difficulties people usually encounter when attempting to bake and how to solve them.

9. Love what you do

If you’re not in love with what you’re selling, you’ve got a problem. If you can’t convince yourself, how are you going to convince the masses?

Even more so if you’re running the show – if it’s your business make sure you are head over heels for it because that kind of passion is contagious and people will notice. Think Steve Jobs.

10. Stay updated

The online world is an ever-changing medium of craziness and you have to stay up to date with everything. Sign up to newsletters and magazines, follow top technology companies in the marketing and advertising industry and stay updated with whatever can help you market your product.

11. Write epic content

Content is king. Yes, you’ve heard it before. That doesn’t make it any less important. Don’t just be original, don’t just solve a problem, but writing amazingly epic content that will make people say “wow.” Otherwise, you’re just another username among millions online.

12. Tell people what to do

This will sound like a “duh” tip but you’d be surprised how many forget/ignore it. When you create a landing page, website or even an article, there’s a goal behind it. You do it because you want people who see it to do something.

Internet people have zero patience to guess your intentions. If you don’t tell them what to do, where to click, who to call, etc., they’ll just go away.

13. Tell stories that get a point across

People understand things more when they can relate to it and stories are easy to relate to. You can write what a product does and even show excellent proof of how amazing it is, but sometimes people just won’t get why they need it.

Try giving them a story, a case study or example of a situation in which you product helped and how.

14. Join a pack

Don’t go all lone wolf on us. It’s a big world out there and you’re a tiny little nobody among millions. You really think the best approach is to go at it alone?

Talk to people in your industry, get to know bloggers or marketers who do what you do and make friends. Not because you need something from them, but because being around people like you, people with the same goals and ideals, is going to help you be successful.

15. Don’t be a douche

Unfortunately, there is an endless number of ways for someone to be douchey online and if you’re a douche I doubt this will change anything but it’s worth a try. Don’t use black hat techniques, don’t shove things in people’s faces or try to trick them into doing something. Be polite even if someone is bashing you and just try to be honest and decent.

16. Get the lingo right

This goes with understanding your audience. Once you know who you’re talking you, you have to know how to talk to them. A lot of people will tell you to dumb your content down, but if your audience consists of scientists and people with PhDs, that might not be the best approach.

Then again, if you write content full of tech-speak for the elderly… you get the point. Know the lingo in your industry and get a feel for how to talk to your peeps.

17. Be consistent

A lot of things can change – even your logo and website design, though it’s not recommended to do that very often. What you should refrain from changing is your brand language.

Your brand voice needs to be consistent in your content and customer service. It looks more professional and helps people remember you while creating an image that feels more realistic and approachable.

18. Don’t freak out

Things happen, it’s just the way of the world. But the planet will keep spinning and you’ll get over it. What won’t help for sure is freaking out and making rash (often irrational) decisions. Don’t ever make important decisions when you’re emotionally unstable. You need a cool head for that.

19. Be visual

People find it easier to remember images than words, not to mention seeing an image takes a second as opposed to reading a 500-word article. Try to design things, even images in your articles, in a way that will convey the overall message and “vibe” you want your audience to get.

20. Be awesome

You’re you, which makes you uniquely different from everyone else. Embrace that, be comfortable in your own skin. Find your strengths and weaknesses, find your comfort zones and see what happens when you step out of them. You’re already awesome just for being unique – all you have to do is be comfortable with that so it reflects in everything you do.

Are you ready now?