As you know, social media offers businesses and brands enormous potential to reach out to people, grow leads and retain customers, but it can also be a mine-field for young people and their parents as they try and navigate new networks and the latest social media crazes.
For many of us who went to school in the days before Google, the opportunities technology now offers seem phenomenal, but with issues such as cyber-bullying, online pornography and social media crazes such as Nek Nominate it can actually be a daunting world online.
From the Paracetamol Challenge to #nomakeupselfies to Nek Nominiate, social networks are awash with crazes and trends that come from nowhere to take the internet by storm. Some of these are for good causes with lots of people getting involved, but others are more dangerous and seem to appeal especially to young people.
Whilst playing dare and pushing boundaries is nothing new among teens, the speed at which things travel online coupled with the feeling of peer pressure to get involved can mean that more and more young people get involved without really being aware of or thinking through the consequences.
I went on BBC Radio Nottingham recently to talk about these issues and share some of the best tips and advice to help your teen stay safe. Key to all of this is communication – talking to your child and finding out about their online experiences, asking them what they think will happen if they do or don’t get involved (rather than just telling them) and listening. Their online experiences will be different to ours and it’s important to understand this as much as possible.
Safer Internet Org recommend the following as a starting point to approaching this with the children and young people in your family:
- Have ongoing conversations with your children about staying safe online
- Use safety tools on social networks and other online services, eg Facebook privacy settings
- Decide if you want to use parental controls on your home internet
- Understand devices and the parental control tools they offer through their Parents’ Guide to Technology
They also issue some really useful safety guides to the various networks, which you can access here.
Most social networks offer a degree of control in terms of privacy, but this becomes a moot point when it’s friends and peers sharing these stories. A few crazes to be aware of:
The Paracetamol Challenge
Young people dared each other to take excessive amounts of the over-the-counter painkiller with potentially fatal consequences. The evidence is then shared online.
Game of 72
Game of 72, also known as “24, 48, 72”, caused mass panic in France earlier this Summer when teens in the country dared each other to complete this dangerous challenge and post the results on social media. The aim of the game is to disappear for three days – 72 hours – in total without being found.
Nek Nominate
Arguably the most well-known social media craze, Neknominate was headline news in 2014. People would film themselves drinking dangerous amounts of alcohol before nominating someone else to continue. Sadly, at least five people died from the game.
The Kylie Jenner Challenge
In an attempt to emulate the famous pout of Kylie Jenner, many young girls tried placing a glass jar or bottle around their lips and sucking in until the air vacuum made their lips swell up. The resulting look was not what they desired, with results often lasting much longer than anticipated and causing online ridicule and embarrassment. Celebrity status and the media pressure on young girls to achieve a certain look takes its toll.
By Kate Tyler
Kate Tyler is the founder of Shake Social and our long time social media expert. A regular speaker at events, Kate offers consultancy and training on a range of digital marketing topics, in particular safeguarding and using social media in an educational setting.