My Friend, Social Media
Merriam-Webster definition of Social Media: forms of electronic communication (such as websites for social networking and microblogging) through which users create online communities to share information, ideas, personal messages, and other content (such as videos). First-known use in 2004.
Where was I in 2004, when “Social Media” entered the global lexicon?
I know that I wasn’t deep into the online world that spawned the term in 2004, nor was I really even aware of social media for a long time – until around 10 years later, actually.
But times change and social media is now my friend. Not my best friend, though. More like an annoying acquaintance that I’m forced to lunch with for business reasons.
Until I went into part-time consulting and project work with nonprofits, I hadn’t considered serious social media as necessary. Yes, I found texting, messaging, websites, etc., useful, but I disregarded Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook as things I didn’t need to bother with.
I still had not embraced social media when Karen’s Absurd Art (KAA) began to take shape last year. I figured we would just throw up a website, and the people would come. Amusing, right?
KAA teammates Soo and BJ quickly pointed out that with both an e-commerce Store and a Gallery, we would need a long relationship with social media to gain attention online. So I entered the Instagram and Facebook world, but flat-out balked at Twitter. There’s only so much time in a day.
I grudgingly accept that texting, messaging, and chatting through Facebook are faster methods of communicating than talking face-to-face and reduce personal (i.e. time-wasting) phone conversations. Maybe it’s just me, but I fondly remember those days at my first job when I communicated by yelling over the heads of others in the 40-person newsroom and got a shout back from a surly editor.
The thing is, we use most social media because it cuts to the chase. It’s an instant means of connection – no flipping through yellow pages, no digging through drawers for instruction books, no waiting for friends to fix you up with a nice guy/girl. We are all busy, and social media saves time.
So, I have restructured my day to spend more time with social media, like:
- Constantly searching for photos and text for Instagram to support the art vs. commerce mix on Karen’s Absurd Art. My posts seem a bit random to me and don’t represent what KAA is, and I like things to make sense. So I’m not happy with the results yet.
- Trying to stay on a regular blog schedule, shooting for a weekly post that supports Karen’s Absurd Art while also allowing me time to dawdle drinking coffee in the bookstore. I haven’t achieved a balance here either, but I like to write, so it’s not a stressful failure.
- Worrying about whether I have too many drawings on the web Gallery or not enough, and whether captions make sense. And, are there enough choices in the Store? Are the choices fun? Do they help draw attention to the absurd – but important – world of insects, especially bees?
- Questioning whether people who stop at the website to look at the art might be confused by the T-shirts for sale, and vice versa. And everyone probably wonders why the cat occasionally appears on my business Instagram feed. I’m not sure. He’s pushy.
But to me, the biggest annoyance of social media is that I almost let it get under my skin.
For newbies to the social media world, a picture posted on Instagram can attract “likes,” which are noted by the visitor clicking on the heart, which turns red. The hope of a business post is that those visitors will also click in as a regular “follower” of your future posts, which could lead to more traffic on your website. Many people post the number of followers on their website and the popularity of your business can be judged by how many followers you have.
I began to notice a few weeks ago that since social media has become my friend, I check Instagram way too frequently to see who likes my posts and how many people are following me. When the number goes up it is oddly satisfying, and when it falls it’s a bit of a downer.
I began to question my choice of posts. Why can’t I get past 85 followers when people with six pictures of their iguana have 1,200? It became obvious to me very quickly that I was paying way too much emotional attention to this.
So I mentioned the fluctuating followers to my 20-something co-worker, Caressa, who is a social media whiz, and lamented that despite my best efforts to post Pictures of Interest, gaining stable followers was slow going.
“You do know,” she said, “that there are some people who buy followers? That’s why some people quickly have thousands and others, who are earning them slowly and honestly, have 84.”
Whhhaattt???? People can buy followers??!!?!??!
Well, that put a whole new light on things. Why was I worried about earning the Scarlet Social Media Letter of Shame for having a stalled Instagram account when apparently some Instagram users had found a way to cheat?
But wait – cheat against what? Is Instagram a competition? I feel like I’m back in junior high, where kids bought candy to share at lunch so others would like them.
I thought about the point of Instagram, which I believed was two-fold: for some it is just to share photos. Period. For others, it’s to share posts that we believe others will enjoy, with the hope that those who “like” them will come to our websites to also like what we are selling or promoting.
In other words, Instagram allows you to share with like minds – if only for an Instant. It’s not really meant to be a contest, and no-one should be buying candy to make themselves look popular.
Fortunately, the opportunity to cheat doesn’t means that everyone does. I’m sure there are 1,200 people who really do love that iguana.
So, I took a New Age cleansing breath and made myself a promise – to let go of Instagram angst and not worry about proving popularity to others. But, because I like a challenge, I allowed myself to set a goal of obtaining 100 true followers, regardless of how long it takes. You know, not compete with others – just a little personal competition. No need to buy anything … only need 16 more followers …
But, what have I really, truly learned from all this? Simple – that one should always cultivate cordial connections with the current younger generation.
They know things that can help you get a grip … put life in perspective … it’s probably the cat … no more cat posts … deep breath … shut off the phone.