Social Media

Well, lbobians, it's been a while.  I'm back, and with more than just a video to take up your time.  That's not to say I'm not writing this with WEEKS worth of work on my desk from photography, school, and my "real job."  So anyway, I just wanted to get some feedback on something I've been thinking about for a while.....

First off, it seems these days everyone is claiming to be a social media guru.  I am not.  I don't even know what a Digg means.  I used to have that "Sexy Bookmarks" plug in, but then when I opened up the preferences on my Wordpress blog, I had a conniption and didn't know what any of it was, so I deleted it. 

I've heard a lot of people lately saying, "I'm just ready for something that will integrate ALL of the social media options into one easy to use thing.  So I can just do that instead of Twitter, tumblr, Facebook, flickr, LinkedIn, etc.  Because right now, I'm just so tired of using all of that!"  While I can understand what they're getting at, here's my hesitation about all of that:

Why would you want to combine all of those?  Those are separate outlets of the same species.  Variety is what breeds originality, if you will.  That's like saying, "I just can't wait till ESPN, Nickelodeon, ABC, FOX, and Discovery Channel all make one mega channel.  It's just too much of a hassle to push that stupid button to go from SportsCenter to Shark Week."  Each one of those channels is a means of viewing/advertising, but that doesn't mean they negate the need for each other.

I use my Facebook personal profile to connect with friends from school, students in my ministry, clients I've connected with, and family from all over. 

I use my Twitter account as an outlet to hopefully bring some humor to people, as well as interact with photographers that inspire me, challenge me, and sometimes make me feel inept by the work they produce.   

I use my Facebook Photo fan page to advertise different blog posts I have, and also just have a way of letting my clients give easy references and referrals to me.  As the adage goes, "It's not true until its Facebook Official."  Sure, that's used in teenage language mainly to refer to relationships, but it's becoming more and more true about other things.  If it's not on Facebook, it doesn't exist.  I want my art and work to exist.

I have my wordpress blog to post work to show off for clients.  They can send the link to their friends and family to show the work, and it gets me business.  That's not news.

I use my Tumblr page for not much, to be honest.  I just opened it.  Sometimes I have these thoughts that I know aren't appropriate for my blog.  Not that they're dirty, they just aren't relevant.  Usually, things like that go to tweets, but often times 140 characters wont cut it.  So I got that.  Right now, I think there may be only two posts.  I plan on using it as something just to have.  If no one ever sees it, fine by me.  Almost like a journal......because I'm a dude, and dudes dont have diaries.



All that to say, I'd lose my mind if I rolled all of that into one.  Each one, though social media, has a distinct and separate purpose and role.  Am I crazy for thinking making it into one is counter productive?  Sure, things like the Flipboard app are great, but having that doesn't make it in to one social media outlet, and it doesn't mean I don't check Facebook or log in to TweetDeck. 

Sometimes I'll put something on facebook and later tweet about it, sure.  People may get annoyed by my tweets, but they don't have to follow me.  My business, my self esteem, and my success don't depend on the number of followers, friends, or stalkers I have.  And to those who say they get tired of updating all of their social media accounts....stop?  You don't have to if you don't want to.  Put your big boy or big girl pants on, and if you don't want to do something, don't. 

So...rant/outpouring of my soul is done.  What are your thoughts?  Do you WANT to see a mega-social media combination?  Am I way off course here?


Oh....and since a post of mine wouldn't be complete without a video or two...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DxGuig7pxvw 

Or for the more musical among us...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMtZfW2z9dw