Social Prom Dos and Don’ts

by Olivia Collins

Prom is a huge event for teenagers, and considered one of the most important nights in high school. This can be a very tricky time when it comes to social media, but if used correctly social media can help enhance your experience. Here are some dos and don’ts when it comes to social media and prom.

​Dress Shopping:

Do - Utilize School Dress Pages!

Similar to many schools, my school has a private Facebook page where all the girls can post their prom dress in order to avoid matches. These pages are extremely useful to help avoid the awkward ‘who wore it better?’ question that comes along when two girls wear the same dress. They’re also extremely helpful when it comes to finding a store to buy a dress. Upon posting a photo of their dress, girls typically say where they bought it and their experience at the store. This was also the case with finding people such as makeup artists or seamstresses. It really takes the pressure off finding someone and having to worry about quality when your peers are recommending them.

Don’t - Post Dress Pictures Before Prom

As tempting as it may be to show off your dress before the big day- don’t! There’s an extremely big difference between posting a picture on your school’s prom page for a select amount of girls to avoid duplicates and posting one on Instagram for everyone to see captioned about how excited you are for prom. It’s even pushing it to post pictures the morning of with your hair and makeup done up all nice before you put your dress on. If everyone is updated throughout the whole process, nobody will really care when the photos of the final result are posted.

Prom Night Picture Posting:

Do - Post as Many Glam Pictures As You Want

There’s nothing worse than people who complain about others posting prom pictures. Prom is really expensive, and people attending earn the right to post as many pictures as they want after funneling hundreds of dollars into one night. I’ve seen a few tweets that say things along the lines of “all these prom pictures are getting annoying” or “can people stop posting pictures”, and honestly that only makes the person tweeting those things look jealous and bitter. Besides, most people (including myself) love seeing everyone’s pictures; so don’t let the fear of looking annoying hold you back.

Don’t - Post Partying Pictures

Although this may seem like common sense to many, posting post-prom pictures with alcohol is insanely dumb. If you’re going to prom there’s a good chance you’re underage (and if you are 21 or older going to prom you should reconsider your life choices), so if you post pictures of yourself partying you’re basically flaunting illegal activity. Colleges or future jobs can see this, and risking your future to look cool really isn’t worth it.

Everything Else:

Do

• Expect lots of comments from relatives you haven’t seen in years when you post your pictures
• Post about how excited you are leading up to the big day!
• Post silly pictures along with serious ones. It’s fun to let loose!

Don’t

• Keep a count-down the month leading up to prom. It’s good to be excited but nobody needs to know how many days leading up for a month.
• Spend too much time focusing on capturing the moment and forget to live it. Put down the camera/phone once in a while and dance!
• Feel upset when your friends who went to prom aren’t jumping to like and comment on your photos. Chances are they’re caught up with posting their own photos.

Prom is a much-anticipated big deal, and you want to be sure it’s a night to remember – in a good way. Following these simple tips will ensure you have a great time at prom on and offline!

IMAGE CREDIT: SEAN MCGRATH