For most institutions of higher education, social media is a lot like the Wild West—a few legendary cowboys blazing the trails, possible danger lurking beyond each river bend, ghost towns aplenty and the seduction of wide-open possibilities. Unfortunately, colleges and universities are journeying into the frontier with no map and inadequate supplies.

How do you avoid becoming the skeleton in social media’s desert? In other words, how can historically slow-moving institutions of higher education be expected to maintain meaningful and coherent social media presences? By avoiding the following pitfalls.

Ignoring your social media profile

Don’t let your profile or your page become the online equivalent of an abandoned building. Months between posts communicates to visitors that either nothing of note is happening, or that you have no pertinent information to share. You, more than anyone else, know that’s not the case.

Over-posting

Your followers and/or friends don’t want to see you surfacing in their feed more than a couple of times a week. Post only the most timely and relevant information and leave the “Just ate some sugar cookies and now it’s time to go to bed” posts to the rest of Facebook and the Twitterverse.

Losing your institutional voice

Just because all the kids are doing it doesn’t mean you get to say “radical” and “cowabunga” and drop other sure-to-be-dated coolisms to show you’re young, hip and relevant. Retain your institutional voice—your friends and followers will thank you.

Expecting everything you do to go “viral”

Even typing “viral” in this list makes me a little queasy (it’s a much-abused word by people in creative meetings who more often than not really just want a strong, non-print creative solution). But that’s beside the point. For every viral sensation racking up six million views on YouTube, there are roughly 10 million (my estimation) attempts at “viralness” that fail to infect. Even those viral videos that do “succeed” find themselves in the company of waterskiing squirrels. Be realistic about your expectations for your social media presence and the projects you promote therein.

Ignoring your friends and followers

When someone comments on a blog post, Facebook status or Twitter feed, be sure to respond in a timely manner. Your social media presence should be just that: social. Don’t preach from the mountaintops and then disappear into the clouds while your friends and followers attempt to engage you at sea level.

Failing to participate in the community

Joining a social networking site is a lot like joining a neighborhood. Good neighbors participate in the community, help each other out and are courteous to one another. Bad neighbors only come to the door when they’re selling pizzas for their kids’ fundraisers or when they need a cup of sugar. Don’t be a bad neighbor. Comment on other blogs, and connect colleagues at other institutions with helpful resources. In other words, play an integral role in your new community.  

Diving in blind

Carpenters have a saying: “Measure twice and cut once.” When colleges and universities fail to develop a social media strategy, they are left in the dark—unsure of the efficacy of their efforts or their desired outcomes. Before you build a social media presence, make sure you have clearly defined goals in place.