When is it appropriate to cross-post or double-post articles, statuses, photos, or anything else on social networking sites? With the introduction of Google+ to the crowded field of social networks it’s becoming increasingly difficult to keep up with any social network without something giving way. Seriously–who has the time to browse, update, and keep up with five or six different networks on a daily or weekly basis?

It can be argued that cross-posting eliminates the need to create new content on each social network site because it is effortless to post the same content using the +V and +C (Ctrl+C and Ctrl+V in Windows) command functions. In addition you may have content to share with people on two different social sites because your social circles vary between network and your visitors may miss out on something extraordinary that you might say.

But when cross-posting is only meant to repost the same information again from one network to another, friends using both networks may be able to view your profile page on both sites and may find the same content twice. What is bothersome about posting the same information on both networks is that it makes your profile boring because of the lack of new and varied content.

Think of this analogy: AP, AFP, and Reuters news articles are published everywhere on web. You can find the same article written by the same author either on MSNBC, CNN, Yahoo News, Google News, or your local newspaper website. Same content, different location.

The answer to the question I posed at the beginning of this entry is: it depends. First, you may want to make different flavors of content specific to each network. Alternatively you may be posting content to a larger audience and need that reach to be as big as possible without much effort. It is possible to rework your posts slightly so that each network has site-specific content. For example, CenturyLink (formerly Qwest) would post on their customer help service Twitter page with a salutation such as, “Hey tweeps, it’s time to call it a night. Thanks for letting us help!”  Other site-specific posts can include language like, “Hey Facebookers, check out my STC Atlanta 2009 travel photos on my Flickr Album.”

The second “it depends” reason is if the content is great enough to be shared across networks. It can be justified as being important enough that users on two or more networks might find interesting. For example, I posted content on Google+ and then reposted it on Facebook because I thought it was cool enough for others to see.

Original Post on Google+

Cross-posted article from Google+ on Facebook

It all falls under the fact that people on social networking sites want to see new information being shared, not the same thing from both sites. Cross-posting and double-posting are lazy excuses for using social networking sites and it doesn’t make anyone’s social network a rich experience. The best guidance is to avoid it if possible, make posting site-specific if it contains the same content, and find great reasons for posting the same information across different sites.

Are you one of those types of people who posts something positive about your life on one social network site, then thirty minutes later rant about something else on another site? Do you post something irrational on one site and something professional on another? You may have bipolar social networking skills.

Not to worry, many users do it because people use different social network sites for different purposes. Such as Twitter is great to use for blasting out rants with 140 characters or less. It may be known to users that nearly anyone can read publicly made posts and anyone has the ability to subscribe to  posts via text message unless the user changes his or her privacy settings. Facebook on the other hand is great to share pictures with, connect with friends and family, and invite people to attend events. Then there is LinkedIn, which is the professional network that showcases accomplishments, current employment status, and other professional activities.

I’m guilty of having split personalities on various networks. Is it a good thing to keep certain aspects of everyday life on different sites? I believe doing so shows how dynamic my social network is because I’m not broadcasting the same exact message five times over five different social sites. It can get boring and redundant to see the same story posted on Facebook that was originally on Google+ or Twitter. But it depends on what my social networking goals are and how large my social connections are on each site. I may use one site for more photos, one for advice, and another for my silly and sarcastic posts. It really depends on what my purpose is for posting on one site over another.

You can find, then add me on these social networking sites and compare how I use them! Please be aware that each network has its share of different online personalities.

Google + – http://profiles.google.com/roger.renteria
Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/roger.renteria
LinkedIn – http://www.linkedin.com/in/rrenteria
Twitter – http://www.twitter.com/torridence