Twitter is my favorite social media platform. Itβs so powerful, and is a never ending stream of information, knowledge, and memes.
People share everything on Twitter – from their favorite blogs to how they feel about the Packersβ loss (happy, by the way!). And itβs all done in just one sentence. 140 characters or less, to be exact.
Did you know that even one sentence when broadcasted on a place like Twitter can leave you in desperate need of a lawyer?
I have been researching this subject for a while now.
Iβm not a lawyer – it just fascinates me. This post should not be considered as legal advice, but I do recommend that you take note of what I call βThe 7 most common βTwitfallsββ.Β (Thatβs Twitter + pitfall, by the way. Cute, right? I know. Anyway, letβs get started!)
1. Sharing An Image You Have NotΒ Paid For
Iβm sure youβve heard that using photos on Twitter isΒ the easiest way to drive clicks and engagement up.
But the photos you choose to share on your Twitter account can get you into big,Β expensive troublesΒ – if youβre not cautious.
Recent statistics show that over 85% of the photos used online are subject toΒ copyright infringement.
If you use someone elseβs photos online without permission, the owner can sue you andΒ demand a statutory damages award in a sum of $750-$30,000 – without proving any damages.
So next time you see a pretty photo on Google images, ask yourself:Β βIs using this for Twitter worth a $30,000 penalty?β
With so many free or cheap resources for licensed photography, you really have no excuses for stealing images.
My personal favorite resources include:
-
UnSplashΒ – free high-resolution photography for any commercial use
-
CanvaΒ – stock photography starting at $1 per photo.
-
DepositPhotosΒ – my go-to stock photography website.
Great info here Meron! Thanks for sharing. I will be sharing this broadly. Scary stuff.
Thanks Michelle and we here at Social Quant appreciate you sharing it greatly. We agree, scary stuff indeed. ~ Mike
Getting kudos from a lawyer about this really made my day! Yay for detailed research π Thanks, Michelle! I hope this helps your community, too!
Yeah. And the writing. Bringing all that research together like that. Awesome work.
Michelle, I shared it with an important client and when he wrote back to thank me, he said the same thing “scary stuff.” It is. Meron did everyone a great service here.
Great info here Meron! Thanks for sharing. I will be sharing this broadly. Scary stuff.
Thanks Michelle and we here at Social Quant appreciate you sharing it greatly. We agree, scary stuff indeed. ~ Mike
Getting kudos from a lawyer about this really made my day! Yay for detailed research π Thanks, Michelle! I hope this helps your community, too!
Yeah. And the writing. Bringing all that research together like that. Awesome work.
Michelle, I shared it with an important client and when he wrote back to thank me, he said the same thing “scary stuff.” It is. Meron did everyone a great service here.
Clipped to Evernote! Awesome info, thanks Meron.
Thanks Leah for stopping by Social Quant. Agree, great content Meron put together here. Glad you enjoyed ~ Mike
Mike, Meron brought me to Social Quant. I’m just getting acquainted. – Leah
Thanks Great Leah. Let us know if you have any questions
Have an Awesome week.
My pleasure! Glad you liked it. Any of the above surprised you?
Nothing surprised me actually Meron. Since the original Magcast forum, I’ve had the best copyright verifier in the world at my side, Norm MacLeod in Madrid.
It’s the way that YOU pulled it all together – awesome stuff.
Thank you, again!
Clipped to Evernote! Awesome info, thanks Meron.
Thanks Leah for stopping by Social Quant. Agree, great content Meron put together here. Glad you enjoyed ~ Mike
Mike, Meron brought me to Social Quant. I’m just getting acquainted. – Leah
Thanks Great Leah. Let us know if you have any questions
Have an Awesome week.
My pleasure! Glad you liked it. Any of the above surprised you?
Nothing surprised me actually Meron. Since the original Magcast forum, I’ve had the best copyright verifier in the world at my side, Norm MacLeod in Madrid.
It’s the way that YOU pulled it all together – awesome stuff.
Thank you, again!
Lovely information, and great emphasis on character! Thank you:)
Couldn’t agree more Cheryl. Thanks for visiting Social Quant
Have an awesome week.
Thank you, Cheryl! It boils down to being a good person on Twitter and off Twitter, right?
It certainly does!
Lovely information, and great emphasis on character! Thank you:)
Couldn’t agree more Cheryl. Thanks for visiting Social Quant
Have an awesome week.
Thank you, Cheryl! It boils down to being a good person on Twitter and off Twitter, right?
It certainly does!
Of course, unreasonable lawsuits by a big company would be very bad for their bottom line in the long run, considering damage to reputation and all that, but you never really know.
Agree. If something is avoidable I’d much rather go down that path. Thanks for visiting Social Quant π
I actually tried to avoid the “unreasonable” cases when I prepared this article π
Of course, unreasonable lawsuits by a big company would be very bad for their bottom line in the long run, considering damage to reputation and all that, but you never really know.
Agree. If something is avoidable I’d much rather go down that path. Thanks for visiting Social Quant π
I actually tried to avoid the “unreasonable” cases when I prepared this article π
this goes for facebook, blogs, instagram, tumber, frankly anything you say or do online (and some places off line) not just twitter.
Very true Connie, definitely applies to many other channels. Thanks for stopping by Social Quant today.
We can change the title once SQ provided Instagram & FB growth tools too π
So true
In fact, I think that the risk on other platforms might be even greater. It’s easy to get into trouble with 140 characters, and even easier when there is no limit! 
this goes for facebook, blogs, instagram, tumber, frankly anything you say or do online (and some places off line) not just twitter.
Very true Connie, definitely applies to many other channels. Thanks for stopping by Social Quant today.
Good info Meron. Great advice for twitter users.
Thanks for stopping by Social Quant Benjamin and agree Meron did a great job providing awesome value here. Happy Holidays.
Thanks, Benjamin! Happy holidays!
Good info Meron. Great advice for twitter users.
Thanks for stopping by Social Quant Benjamin and agree Meron did a great job providing awesome value here. Happy Holidays.
Great job!! I worked in TV for 12 years and know that you must craft your message with care – and ALL images and music must be licensed. It’s the standard in broadcasting, but I bet a majority of online marketers haven’t considered this. Thanks for putting it out there. Don’t commit a #twitfall π
One more thing…On Sharktank last night – the bowtie guys were name dropping NBA players who bought their product…What are your thoughts there?
Would definitely think it would be smart to get agreements in place before if you’re using someone’s name to monetize & increase your brand. If used or implying an endorsement, agreements should be in place. You never know. What do you think?
I totally agree. I think it’s pretty risky to name drop without permission. It opens up an opportunity for the purchaser to get defensive and bad mouth the product if they’re unhappy.
Too bad there isn’t a “LIKE” button here, Mike & Lasso! Good stuff
Thanks, Lasso! Since I come from radio and never worked in TV, I’d love to hear more about the processes that you had in place for messaging. You must have some jaw-dropping stories to share
Great job!! I worked in TV for 12 years and know that you must craft your message with care – and ALL images and music must be licensed. It’s the standard in broadcasting, but I bet a majority of online marketers haven’t considered this. Thanks for putting it out there. Don’t commit a #twitfall π
One more thing…On Sharktank last night – the bowtie guys were name dropping NBA players who bought their product…What are your thoughts there?
Would definitely think it would be smart to get agreements in place before if you’re using someone’s name to monetize & increase your brand. If used or implying an endorsement, agreements should be in place. You never know. What do you think?
I totally agree. I think it’s pretty risky to name drop without permission. It opens up an opportunity for the purchaser to get defensive and bad mouth the product if they’re unhappy.
Out of interest, what happens with images that get pulled through from the url of blog/article you are tweeting about? Always wondered about those.
You mean the preview images on Twitter / Facebook etc automatically generated for links you paste?
That’s the ones.
Just wanted to check.