Dear Friend –
This time, I’m talking about my efforts to become an accomplished social media user.
When social media came along, I thought I’d be a natural. Earlier in my career, I learned to use desktop publishing for newsletters as part of my responsibilities. I mastered a formerly widely used, complex software program in about one hour of tutoring and hours of on-the-job training. Media part, check!
I enjoyed interviewing people to turn their stories into features for my monthly organization’s newsletter. During over ten years as a journalist, I interviewed hundreds of people for news and feature stories. Sociable part, check!
Fast forward to more recent times. Eager to build my books’ audience, I decided it was time to explore new options. New for me, anyway. A new program called “Calli” somehow wound up in my inbox. It puts “Influencers” together, consensually, with Authors. My thought was, “Wow! That sounds good. Reaching new readers with proven leaders.”
I signed up and then the “fun” began, none of which is because of Calli. My contact at Calli provides timely responses to questions from me and other authors. No complaints there.
My issue is where the Influencers insert their 10-30-second video creations. I need several social media accounts I don’t have.
I never signed up for TikTok, since I heard they might be closed down or sold off. Instagram required photos and videos, which were not my most prolific content. I write, with strategically placed graphics, which I usually have my webmaster place for me, so they work well for both my website’s blog column and my email list.
(Well! Look at that! Jargon which never existed earlier in my life!)
To open accounts for both social media accounts I figured, maybe 30 minutes each? Figure again.
Tiktok came first. I entered my bio. There were only 80 characters allowed. That took a lot of whittling down! The problem was, no matter what I did, I couldn’t get the program to accept my image. No, I didn’t break the program with my image! It gives no dimensions or pixel limits. I made the image as small as my program could, ten, but with the circle defining what would be included, I still cut off my chin and everything above my forehead. In all, I must have tried twenty times or more to make this work.
Also, TikTok didn’t like my password. I tried several times and finally found where they showed what could be used. The special characters were limited. It didn’t like my use of the exclamation mark! This was a frustrating time waster.
A half hour to set this up? More like two hours and I still don’t have a photo posted. RESULT – Major Frustration. And I don’t have a video to put up, so I figure I could get a presence by commenting on other people’s videos.
Instagram–again a lesson in frustration. Just getting over the password issues, exasperating. When the interns who helped me with social media for my film festival set up my accounts, they handled it with my suggestions and copy ideas for the posts. I had no idea what the password was since we closed the festival several years ago. I repeatedly asked Instagram for a new password. If Instagram couldn’t resolve that, I wouldn’t be able to use the platform. After many attempts, I finally wound up with a password and username, but too tired to learn how to use Instagram’s features. The sponge is definitely full.
What strikes fear in my heart (sorry about the cliché) is the fact that Calli plans to add additional social media platforms. Why am I fearful? Because, if I’m to check in with the platforms (which frequently require attention, at least initially), when will I be able to accomplish my writing? I want to offer books to my readers!
Am I running toward, or running from these approaches to building a readership?
And more social media platforms to join, oh no! (As in The Wizard of Oz, when Dorothy says, “Lions, and Tigers, and Bears, oh my!)
If anyone reading this blog has preferences of where they like to find their authors, I will absolutely pay attention. Contact me at my email– shelley@shelleysommers.com – I’d love to share a conversation, at your convenience!
Thank you!
PS I love being sociable.
Hugs,
