Social media has become a big part of my life. And here is how that all went down.
The truth is, I started going online in early September of 1997. It was my 35th birthday, and Princess Diana had just died. I was not a big fan of hers.
This does not mean I was actively hostile or even uninterested. It was more that I was not a royals watcher. And I am still not much of one.
Whatever Harry, Meghan, Will, and Kate are doing is not much more fascinating to me than what the Kardashians are doing.
That is, not much at all. But I digress.
I was shocked to find people (this was on MIRC) who had whatnot to talk about. Now, this was not a great swath of highly intellectual jargon. And I was not making deep, long-lasting friendships.
But I was finding out that there were people out there with something to say. And, I was learning that I, too, had what to say.
Then Came the Early Years
I switched over to the New York Times’s forum, Abuzz, in maybe 1999. There, I found more intellectual discussion but also a lot of silliness and a lot of heart. The friendships were deeper.
In fact, I am still friends with some of the people from that time.
When Abuzz finally folded, Able2know.org was born. This continued the smart talk but it also opened up less intellectual talk.
Facebook
I joined Facebook on October 5, 2008.
And when I first got there, it, too, was a more geeky and almost intellectual place. But that changed.
At some point, Facebook converted to a more egalitarian site much like it is today.
Shama Hyder Kabani’s prose style is engaging and direct. Furthermore, if you go to her own website, the way she writes represents an obvious reflection of the way she really speaks. Major points for authenticity.
Three Main Sites
Shama says that the three main social media areas/sites you should focus on are LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter. Forget most others.
However, this part has changed and is out of date, for I would argue to swap out Instagram or even Snapchat (depends on demographics) for LinkedIn. That is, unless your audience is mainly business people.
Or maybe TikTok.
In addition, your should present your company (and, by extension, yourself) on all three with a kind of what I like to call professional intimacy.
That might sound like an oxymoron. However, the idea is, be genuine and sincere but also hang back in terms of too much sharing and togetherness.
Your customers want to know about your company and your product, to be sure, but a little personalization works (and, in fact, can help to build trust). But too much personalization does not work.
Your prospects and customers really do not wish to hear that you’re going in to have a root canal.
ACT
So Shama’s three points come under the ACT acronym:
• Attract – bring the prospects and customers in with good, lively (and up to date) content
† Convert – turn your prospects into customers (and this may take several visits by them before this happens) and
• Transform – turn successes into magnetic forces of attraction
Attraction is your brand, your outcomes, your differentiators. And Social Media marketing is extremely good for this. Clarity of communications is key.
However, Social Media remains a less optimal tool for converting strangers (prospects) into clients (paying customers).
However, it is good for converting strangers into information consumers, which can often be a major step in moving them along the path from prospect to client.
Transformation
Transformation involves social proof, e. g. we’re more inclined to do something if we see others doing it.
Therefore, you have to do a good job, and use your success in order to attract more successes. That is, ask your clients if you can retell their success stories.
Make it easy to buy and pick your tactics (means of marketing) last – you need to get the essentials (such as theory) in place first.
Strategy is the big picture. Tactics are the when, the where and the how.
Blogging is also key. The idea behind blogging is three things:
† Educate – use your blog to add value by giving away good information.
• Market – make it attractive to buy and
† Sell – make it possible to buy.
Shama Hyder Kabadi is Walking the Walk
The book is a brisk read. Of particular interest are the testimonials in the back. As you go along, you realize that Shama practices what she preaches on every page of the book. And, it worked, didn’t it?
Because if she got you to buy her book and check out her website, then she’s already converted you to a client. And all she needs to do is sell you her services and she hits 100% of her target.
Finally, the most amazing thing is, even after you realize how much you are being marketed to, you just don’t seem to mind any more.
This book was required reading, as a part of my Community Management class at Quinnipiac University.
And it made for an excellent read.
For Kerpen, a lot of social media success comes from listening to, and then surprising and delighting customers and potential customers. Are your posts what they are interested in? If you received this post, would you bother clicking on it?
Case in point for surprise and delight
In May of 2015, my husband, parents, and I went to a Mexican restaurant in my parents’ town. We had eaten there before, but not so much that they knew our names or our usual orders or the like.
My husband and I don’t visit my parents too often. And he visits them even less than I do. To the restaurant, even if my parents were repeat customers, my husband and I surely didn’t look like repeats.
There was a short wait until we got our food. Without prompting, we received a little appetizer, which mainly consisted of little breaded and fried mashed potatoes, configured a bit like sticks. There were three bits of sauce in different colors.
The potatoes and sauce, most likely, were leftover odds and ends. It may have taken the chef all of ten minutes to make the dish. I didn’t see anyone else getting the appetizer. We thanked the server. The appetizer tasted good.
We were served our food, and you’d think that would be the end of it. But it wasn’t. We didn’t order dessert. But we received a plate of flan and four spoons anyway. No one asked us; we just got the flan (it tasted really good). We weren’t charged for either little extra.
These twin activities impressed us, so much so that I’ve even linked back to the restaurant. Win-win!
Surprise and delight your customers. Or, as I’d like to say, where’s their flan?
Being Likeable
By no coincidence, Kerpen named his company Likeable Media. From its positive name to its obvious association with Facebook, the book and the company are all about creating positive and meaningful experiences for customers and potential customers.
Kerpen begins with listening and with careful, accurate, and specific targeting. E. g. not all women in their 50s have the same interests. He strongly urges marketers to dig deeper.
He also encourages them to have empathy for their customers. Is a post interesting? Would it be welcome to the customer base?
The first fans should be preexisting customers, with perks for the really rabid fans. Another skill to master: engaging in a true dialog.
This means not just accepting praise, but also effectively and expeditiously responding to complaints. It also means owning up to your mistakes when you make them.
Honesty
Kerpen advocates authenticity, honesty and transparency in dealings, and promoting an exchange by asking questions, which goes right back to listening. From listening, comes the surprise and delight.
Did the restaurant hear us complaining about slower than normal service? Possibly. The appetizer and the flan certainly helped to quell those complaints and win us over.
Because he’s talking about social media (and not restaurant service), Kerpen’s flan moment doesn’t just cover coupons and offers. It’s also the sharing of stories as social capital.
Some of this includes stories of the company (e. g. how a product was invented that spawned an industry). But it also encompasses the stories of the customers themselves.
Imagine being a soft drink company and asking customers who drank your soft drink during their first date to share their love stories? Attach this promotion to Valentines’ Day and maybe even ask about a couple’s future plans….
Finally, rather than hard selling, Kerpen exhorts marketers to simply make it easy to buy. Good products and services will always have customers. Generally, you don’t need to massage demand. But you do need to make it easier for customers to open their wallets.
Essentially, what Gary Vaynerchuk is saying is, little bits of content and engagement which reach your potential customers are the setup for the big finish (which is not really a finish, actually) of a call to action and an attempt to make a sale.
The other major premise of the book is that all platforms have their own native quirks and idiosyncrasies. Therefore what is reliable on Pinterest, might fall flat on Facebook.
What is killer on Tumblr might get a shrug on Instagram. And what is awesome on Twitter might bring the meh elsewhere.
But that all makes sense, as these are somewhat different platforms. Their demographics are different. They have differing user bases and numbers of people online at any given time.
Breaking Down What Went Wrong, and What Went Right
So, the most powerful part of this work was in the analysis and dissection of various real-life pieces of content on the various platforms. Why did something not work?
Maybe the image was too generic or too small or too blurry. Or maybe the call to action was too generic and wishy-washy, or the link did not take the user directly to the page with the sales information or coupon.
Or maybe there was no link or no logo, so the user was confused or annoyed.
While this book was an assignment for my Community Management class, the truth is, I can also see it as applying to the User-Centered Design course at Quinnipiac.
After all, a big part of good user-centric design is to not confuse or annoy the user. Vaynerchuk is looking to take that a step further, and surprise and delight the consumer.
Give people value. So, give them what they want and need, or that at least makes them smile or informs them. In the meantime, show your humanity and your concern.
And then work your tail off.
A terrific read. Everyone in this field should read this book.
Ten Years Later, What Do I Think?
Well, I think that the points Gary V makes are exceptionally valuable for the purposes of marketing. If the user has no idea what you want them to do, then they’ll just do nothing.
So, what do you want them to do? Download an app? Leave a review? Click on a link? Make a purchase? Share a post?
This is why virtually the best buttons you see on any website are the only that just say Click or Buy Now. Nobody writes War and Peace on those. Hell, you just plain can’t! The same should be true for any place where you’re putting a call to action.
This is vital for writers as well, and not just for the marketing of their wares. If you want to evoke sadness in the reader, then you had better make it clear that the characters have experienced, or they are experiencing a sad event.
Show the first with crying or depression or the like. And then show the second with a truly sad event: a death, a divorce, losing a job, failing a class—you get the idea.
This book and its contents have never been more relevant. My review and rating still stand.
Rating for a Right Hook…
5/5 Stars
Want More Book Reviews?
If my experiences with book reviews for social media and writing resonate with you, then please be sure to check out my other book review blog posts.
Check Out Book Reviews on Social Media, SEO, Analytics, Design, and Strategy
White Space is not your Enemy by Kim Golombisky and Rebecca Hagen
I read White Space is Not Your Enemy on my own, and then for class.
White Space is not your Enemyby Kim Golombisky and Rebecca Hagen is a beginning design book. And I purchased it because I definitely need assistance with design. While I (at least I think I do) have something of an understanding of which color goes with which, it is sometimes difficult for me to make something look good. Seeking some inexpensive professional help, I turned to this book.
Practical Help With Your White Space and More
So apart from the obvious title, the book offers tips on color combinations, font selection, focal points and even how to prepare a document for a professional print job. And the chapter on design sins really resonated with me.
I have seen poorly designed advertisements (both online and offline) and websites, and have never really been able to adequately articulate just why they were so hideous. So now I can.
Exercises
The exercises in the back of each chapter seemed, I thought, somewhat superfluous. However, I did find myself beginning to look at designs with a more critical eye.
For example, I noticed a print advertisement where the background photograph was of varied colors. Some were light, some, dark. The print, however, was pure white, and cut horizontally along the middle of the photograph.
Hence this would have been fine, except the copy crashed straight into a white space, so some of the print was invisible. Which part? The company’s name. Epic design fail.
Foolproof
Another extremely helpful chapter: the one on the “works every time” layout. This layout is all over the Internet and all over print media, and for good reason. It is, essentially, a full width photograph or other graphic across the top third of the screen or page, with the remaining two-thirds divided into two vertical columns for text.
A cutline (caption) goes directly underneath the visual (if appropriate; some visuals don’t need a cutline), with a more prominent headline directly below that.
Break up the columns into paragraphs and beware widows and orphans (one or two short words on a line). Place tags (these aren’t Internet meta tags), which are the logo, company name and small nugget of information such as the URL or physical address, in the lower right-hand corner. In addition, round it all out with generous margins all around. Voila! An instant beautiful (albeit somewhat common) layout!
If nothing else, that chapter has a greater value than the price of admission.
Learning Creativity
Creativity cannot, truly, be taught. But the peripherals around it can, such as how to gather ideas and nurture them, and how to place those ideas together in a coherent format. It’s like teaching pottery and smithing but not cookery: you get enough so that you can set the table, but not nourish anyone.
For that, you need to be an artist. And that, sadly, no book can ever teach you.
Check Out These 5 Ways for Charities to use Social Media
First of all, before anything else, here are 5 ways for charities to embrace the modern and use social media to help them. Because I still love an older great blog post on five possible uses for social media for charities.
While I think these were good ideas (the TwitterTwibbon was one of them), I suspect that charities could go even further. After all, much of social media is free. And free is one of charities’ favorite words (along with cure, and donation, I suppose).
The social media landscape is always changing, so charities should continue to think creatively. As with businesses, listening to and observing their donors would be a good idea.
Some Ideas
So, how about using Facebook and LinkedIn to promote charitable events? While these RSVPs are often unreliable (a yes often really means maybe, a maybe means “I might get to it if nothing better comes along” but at least no still seems to mean no), this could serve as a way to get the word out.
Or what about keeping donors informed of totals by tweeting them? Hence if a $1,000,000 donation total is desired, how ’bout keeping donors informed on how it’s going by using X (Twitter)? See, this would be in place of an old thermometer bar.
So could volunteers check in with a locative app like foursquare and get badges? Uh, why not? Seriously, I’d love a blood donation badge. So long as it wouldn’t be an emergency, well, why not?
How About Another 5 Ways?
Maybe. It certainly makes sense to try to reach people where they spend a lot of their time.
I’m sure there are plenty more where that came from. Got any ideas of how charities could use social media? Toss ’em here, if you like.
If my experiences with non-platform-specific social media resonate with you, then check out my other articles about navigating our social media obsessed world.
Another Look at Groundswell by Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff
This is something of an updated review of Groundswell by Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff as, by the time I got to the ICM 522 Social Media Platforms class at Quinnipiac University, I had already read this seminal work.
But no matter. Because this is still a terrific work by Josh Bernoff and Charlene Li, and it remains more than a little relevant.
And in fact, I think I understand it better than I ever have.
Changing the Way You Think about Online Marketing for Good
For Li and Bernoff, the online world is a rich and diversified community. And in that large umbrella community, there are several smaller communities. But unlike in the case of the classic Matryoshka (Russian nesting dolls), there is an enormous amount of overlap.
Above all, they put forward the idea of a system called POST. And if you read nothing else, read this part of not just my review but of their book itself.
• Personae – who are your potential buyers? Who are your readers? And who makes up your audience?
† Objectives – what do you expect to get out of going online, and continuing online, or going in a different direction online?
• Strategies – how will you implement your ideas? What comes first? In addition, what must wait?
† Technologies – which platforms will you use? How will you use these differently as your strategy begins to click into place?
So the last time I read Groundswell, I suspect that I did not really understand POST.
And now I know never to start a social media campaign without it. So thanks to Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff! This work is a classic for a damned fine reason. It really is that good. Because you need this book in your social media library.
Thirteen Years Later — are Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff Still Relevant?
Social media platforms come and go. Fads rise and fall. Yet through it all, the lessons of the POST strategy, and why it’s so vital? Those are a rock, an anchor in an online world that sometimes feels like just so much jello stuck to the wall, ever sliding downwards.
Ew, sorry for that image, folks.
But never mind that for now.
I think the biggest and most vital part of POST is the first initialism, the P. The buyer persona is someone who we should be thinking about all the time. Not just sometimes, and for God’s sake not just when there’s an exam at school or the boss comes around at work.
It is even a vital concept in a place that you would least expect it — a personal blog. And even in our own social media postings.
For if we are flinging those pixels out to the universe, then we are expecting an audience. We are wishing and hoping to be read!
But if we don’t take that buyer persona into account at all (even when we aren’t selling anything and not expecting anyone to ever want to buy anything), we should still account for our audience.
Social media is exceptionally performative. We curate our photos and our words and our stories and our snark. If we want any sort of a reaction, then we have our audience in mind. Even if that’s subconsciously.
Being offensive is bad. Being unfunny is worse. But being unread? Quelle horreur! That is the worst.
I am EJ Roberts, the reviewer for A Drop of Ink Reviews. So let’s sit and talk about what all of this entails and how it affects the indie author.
First off, I’ve been reading since I was four. I made my family teach me how to read when I couldn’t get anyone to read to me often enough to keep me happy. And I have been devouring books left and right ever since.
I honestly can’t get enough of the written word. Though it wasn’t until about 2009 that I began to have an inkling that such a thing as an “indie author” even existed and could be viewed in a good light.
Writerly Ambitions
I used to think I wanted to be a writer.
Welcome to EJ Roberts of A Drop of Ink Reviews!
And I have some skill at putting words together, but the idea of exposing yourself as an author and facing the rejection and judgement of others – that scared me to death.
I eventually came to the realization that I could use my skills in writing for something else entirely.
I frequented a writing group on Facebook that featured mainly indie authors. There were a few traditionally published writers in the group, but not many. However, their lament was all the same. They couldn’t get reviews for their books. So, in 2015, A Drop of Ink Reviews was born.
Why Reviews Matter
Reviews are incredibly important to an author, and more so for an indie author than one traditionally published. The reviews tell other potential readers that someone took a chance on this unknown author. The more reviews there are, the more the book gains recognition.
Indie authors don’t have advertising and marketing budgets. They have to do all of the work themselves, so each and every review is precious. It’s free marketing and helps propel their book further.
How She Got Her Start
Until that moment, I’ll admit I’d never written a review. I looked at a lot of review websites out there to see how others were doing them. I then created my own idea and ran with it. Before authors would trust me with their books, I had to essentially audition for the right to read and review them for free. I started with a few books I had on my shelf and off I went. It wasn’t long before I was swamped with requests for reviews.
How to Get a Review
Most indie book reviewers will do this free of charge. The only thing being they are given a free e-book. Each reviewer will have their preferred genre, so it’s always important to pay attention to their submission guidelines. Think of it as trying to get an agent. You have to pay attention to their guidelines or your book will be tossed aside.
Personally, I’m quite open about what I’ll review. I do avoid horror, LGBT, non-fiction, poetry, and erotica. I joke that I’m a prude and don’t even want excessive scenes in a book. If they’re important to the storyline, that’s one thing. If they’re thrown in for shock value? Please don’t bother. I’m also fond of Young Adult and Middle Grade books. A lot of reviewers won’t touch those, so it’s important to pay attention.
The Indie View
But how does one go about finding these elusive reviewers? There is an excellent list out there called The Indie View. They sponsor a list of active book reviewers. They also list what genres the author will and will not read so you can eliminate a lot of guesswork. This is not a comprehensive list as indie reviewers must submit themselves. I was on there at one point, but have since been removed.
That’s okay though as I have a steady stream of people still interested.
It’s Just an Opinion (from EJ Roberts or Anyone Else)!
One super important thing to remember about a book review. They are all the opinion of a single person. Once, I posted a 2 star review on my site. I rarely post those, but I was one of the few of hundreds of people who’d read it and gave it a low star rating. I figured the readers of my blog would still be interested and it could bring more readers to the author.
About four people told me they were going to buy the book and read it themselves. That was until the author approached me about removing the review from my site and I made the mistake of doing so. From that moment on, an entire wave of people vowed to never read anything that author ever wrote.
While your feelings might be hurt by a review, let it stand. Don’t say a word. You never know when that negative review will actually bring readers to you.
The Joys and Occasional Downsides of Being a Reviewer
Being a book reviewer I’m put in a unique position. I’m handed someone’s pride and joy and they wait anxiously to hear my opinion. I take this position seriously. My greatest joy is when I can put a 4 or 5 star rating on the book and recommend it to everyone I can think of. I have actually come across a few authors that I will buy their books as soon as they’re released because of my review site.
Unfortunately, along with the fun of discovering a great new author comes the pain of having to tell an author their book wasn’t ready for publication. I do not review those. I quietly give the author a review in an email and point out the flaws. Then there are the books I cannot read for whatever reason. That hurts the most.
Though I believe there is an audience for everyone, sometimes I’m just not it. I am not in a position to review the book if it wasn’t written for me.
Pet Peeves
As I continue to review, I am finding I’m growing a small list of pet peeves. I’m fairly lenient because I still dabble in writing on the side and I know I have my own flaws.
However, the longer I dwell in the indie book world, the more I’m finding less excuses for what are obvious errors. One being not taking the time to proofread your book. A ton of typos drives me nuts. The author cannot see them. He or she has been looking at the book too long. It requires another person to do it. Have a friend who’s picky as all get out help you. Your other option is to pay someone.
When faced with this decision, keep in mind you are investing in the future of your book. I have had the privilege of watching a book blossom from a new cover and editing services. It went from being dead in the water to netting the author a decent little income. Never underestimate the power of editing and cover art.
One Book, Though …
In the past year and a half I’ve been reviewing, I have come across a single book where I could get past the fact it wasn’t edited. A single book. I have 77 reviews on my site. I have read over a 100 books. Only one book. Think about that.
The storyline was so incredible and amazing I could overlook the typos, and there were a lot. Do not think your book can do that. Do not make that mistake. It takes an incredible author to pull that off and they’re a rare breed.
What’s Next for EJ Roberts?
I love what I do. I love reading new books and sharing my opinion with others. And I love that I can shine a light on unknown indie authors and convince people who’d never think to look at an indie author to give one a try. Indie authors break the rules.
Sure, there are a lot out there who will still follow the same worn paths as traditionally published books, but the rule breakers are here. The ones that are carving out the new genres are alive and well in the indie world. I’m glad to be a part of it.
Thank You!
Well, Hello There
It’s me again (Janet). Thank you to EJ Roberts! Please check out A Drop of Ink Reviews when you get a chance.
Just about seven years later, the need for reviewers is still huge! Indie writers need reviewers. And readers need them, too.
We have never actually seen each other, in person. He is not even on the same continent as I am. Yet I wrote the article all the same. It was on an article called Food Addictions and Treatments.
Now, did I expect fame and fortune from all this?
Well, I would be lying if I said it wouldn’t be nice. But did I honestly think that empires would rise and fall based upon my one little article?
Of course not.
Karmic Wheel Spinning
But I think it illustrates the point I have made about collaboration. That is, sometimes you just up and do something for someone. And you do it because you just, well, want to do something for someone.
So that ends up a reward unto itself, is it not?
I think the article is the kind of thing that people have got to write about. And it continues to shock me that other writers would not touch the subject matter with a ten-foot pole, as if it would give them the adult equivalent of cooties to talk about addiction.
As if being at all sympathetic with people who are ill would, somehow, mean they were condoning those lifestyle choices or admitting that they, too, were imperfect.
Hey, I will shout it from the rooftops – I’m imperfect!
And if I am not mistaken, the sky did not just come crashing down.
Go forth, and I hope you will collaborate, and do things for others. And then the karmic wheel will turn for you, too.
So here’s the scoop. An attorney named Sean Conway wrote a blog post, about a perceived injustice going on in the Florida courts. According to him, “Judge Cheryl Alemán was asking defendants whether they were ready for trial only about a week after their arraignment”.
Okay, so far, so good.
Except Mr. Conway decided to use inflammatory language in order to get his point across. However, he did go through normal channels initially and got no satisfaction. Because the problem with the one-week prep lead time is that the lead time, apparently, is normally some four or five weeks.
Hence Mr. Conway felt there was an injustice being perpetrated, e. g. the right to a speedy trial.
Over the Top
In addition, he apparently referred to the judge (who is now deceased), as follows:
• “evil, unfair witch”
† “seemingly mentally ill” and
• “clearly unfit for her position and knows not what it means to be a neutral arbiter.”
Now, let’s see. I can go along, perhaps, with unfair as a descriptor, particularly if other defendants, perhaps in other area courts, were being given more lead time. However, after that, Mr. Conway, what the heck are ya doing????
Seriously. So why did he have ever believe that this sort of overly inflammatory rhetoric would be acceptable, at any time, ever? Now, I am not, specifically, suggesting a Bowdlerization of language, or of using softer words to describe hard actions. But we’re not talking about genocide here!
Furthermore, we are not describing babies being pummeled or any other awful image you’d like to conjure up (I leave this to your own devices, Gentle Reader). Rather, it is a difference in lead prep time of three to four weeks. And it’s nothing more.
Yet is it a Civil Rights violation? Possibly. I’ll even give him that one, although neither he nor I are the arbiters of same (er, that’s why we have courts in the first place). Rather, the over the top language is just, well, it’s a very, very bad idea.
Alternatives to Social Media Seduction
Because surely he could have made the point with far less negativity. Conway feels that the invective was necessary to get the point across.
According to the article, “[t]he Florida Bar, however, concluded that he had violated five ethics rules, including Rule 4-8.2(a) (making false or reckless statements regarding the qualifications or integrity of a judge) and Rule 4-8.4(d) (engaging in professional conduct that is prejudicial to the administration of justice). However, Conway argued that his actions were protected by the First Amendment, but the Florida Supreme Court rejected this. Finally, in the end, Conway acquiesced with a public reprimand and a fine of $1,250.”
The Real Issues
No one said he couldn’t talk or write about this. It’s just the overly inflammatory rhetoric, truly, at issue here.
Although, by making the statements, possibly without too many supporting materials, he could’ve still been dinged on Rule 4-8.2(a), the “false or reckless statements” clause.
However, truly, the very stuff that he added to try to make his post stand out (e. g. the over the top statements and name-calling) were, most likely, the very things that made the Florida Bar not only sit up and take notice.
Those statements probably also made the Florida Bar ding him an amount that, for some people, equals close to one month’s worth of mortgage payments. It’s not a huge sum, but it’s not a small, one, either. Because clearly the Florida Bar was less than pleased.
So, what have we learned here? To my mind, it’s two things. One, we’ve got Free Speech! Yay! Awesome! And, two, that doesn’t mean we should be reckless with it.
Because, certainly, if we’re gonna make accusations with our free speech, we might want to do some research and back up our statements well.
Seduction and What it Can Teach Us
Oops, we’ve also, I hope, learned a third and fourth thing as well. Three, Social Media is actual speech and it’s pretty dang permanent.
Therefore, we might wanna think twice before putting stuff out there. And four, yeah, we’ve got free speech (yay!). However, it doesn’t mean we have to be jerks about using it.
Want More About Social Media?
If my experiences with non-platform-specific social media resonate with you, then check out my other articles about navigating our social media obsessed world.
The future? Well, more specifically, I mean the future of the Lonely Writer website.
Wait, What?
So as some readers may recall, I started that website as my capstone project at Quinnipiac University. I needed the project in order to graduate with a Master’s in Science in Communications (social media).
Well, graduation happened in August of 2016. However, I had paid for the domain until the end of March of 2017. It seemed silly to try to cancel early.
But now it’s March of 2017.
Changes
Hence I want to change things up. My life has gotten considerably more busy since I graduated. I currently hold down four part-time work from home jobs, all centered around various tasks having to do with blogging. I also podcast every month and I blog for that podcast and for its parent podcast. Furthermore, I still blog about social media and even about fan fiction.
In addition, I still write and still work. I always try to get more of my work published. As a result, I just plain don’t have the time for yet another domain. Most noteworthy, I’d also like to save a few bucks. This project does … okay. Yet Adventures in Career Changing does better.
Therefore, I realized: I should combine the two.
What Will Happen in This Future?
The Lonely Writer YouTube channel and Facebook groups will both live on. And the Twitter stream won’t be going away, either. They do not require as much work as a separate blog. Plus, they are also free of charge. I am only talking about the other domain and those particular blog posts.
So, where did they go? Why, they came here!As a result, the blog URLs changed, and the blog posts themselves were removed for later re-posting. I changed them up, too, so they would be more up to date. That’s all. So don’t worry, okay? That advice and that work will not go away.
It all just moved here, down the street. I was excited about the move. I thought it would help to freshen up Adventures without losing the focus, which is altering my career and also embracing social media. And the writing-related posts, of course, would give that more of a writing bent. That’s all.
Thank you so much for reading.
But then…
Greetings from the Future!
It’s 2024 as I update this post. So, here we are, seven years later. Still no flying cars.
Just kidding.
But in all seriousness, combining the two blogs was a good idea but it also wasn’t. Because the God’s honest truth is, like for so many blogs out there, this site has too much content. And, the content’s focus is often scattered.
So, how do I fix this? One way is here, by updating things. Another is by deleting (or, rather, unpublishing) a ton of stuff. But then that runs into issues with other posts pointing at the stuff which is no longer live.
Of course, I can stop pointing at them. Which… is more work.
I swear, I have the ambitions of a full SEO team for this blog, and the team is just, well, me. Heh.
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