Too Much of a Good Thing…Social Media Overload….
Now that we have Google’s G+ on the scene, I find myself being spread too thin and my social media engagement time is taking over my day. With Facebook, Twitter and now circles, hangouts, huddles in G+, plus blogging….when do I fit in eating, sleeping, and oh yeah, a life….I think it’s time to step back and don’t buy the hype. As a marketer, we have to advise our clients as we do ourselves, moderation is key. Do what works best for us. If you find that you have great conversations, connections in one area, stick with it. Don’t let the cool kids pressure you into the latest, greatest fad and run off to join it. Stop the madness and look at what you are doing. Is it valuable to your message and vision? Is this really getting you the best bang for your buck so to speak?
In my case, I have made the best connections on Twitter. Why? For me, it’s the instant feedback, it’s the mutual conversations that organically have grown from a quote, a thought or a great chat that I attend. From there, it’s inspired a blog…hence…this one. There is so much knowledge that is shared within the bowels of Twitter if you truly dig deep enough that I found the best use of my time was to keep at Twitter. No…I don’t have 40 gazillion followers….I have a quality group of amazing, gifted and talented followers whom engage with me and I with them. It’s a mutual “circle” that really provides me with a great network to gain valuable knowledge and great ability to network with on various marketing, leadership and life topics. It works great for me. That’s the ticket with social media; you have to work the media to what works with you. Don’t get caught up with the new, the happening hangouts and use the social media outlet to your needs, be you and let it fly.
Hi Jennifer, thanks for publishing that post. Overload, overwhelmed – that's how a lot of people might feel. As long as we don't have some kind of system to organize our activities among social media platforms – then it will consume a lot of out time
Hi Jen, I totally agree with you. It's just become overwhelming lately.I prefer the immediacy of Twitter, the instant connection you make and the conversations that come from those connections. That's where you'll find me, not on G+ trying to figure how to classify people into circles. Awesome post.
Hi Jennifer, Saw Sherree's tweet on this. Have hesitated to jump into Google+. Not sure I will but I'm keeping an open mind. I agree that at times, too much is too much. Yet…like Scarlet, "I'll think about that tomorrow." Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
Thanks, Sherree for kind comments. I agree with your notation on circles, I do find it difficult to segment my connections. Twitter seems to have the best avenue for engagement and conversations. Additionally, having to segment my friends into circle leaves the door open to offend. I’m a bit concerned that if I put the wrong person in a circle that I will to explain why they are not in another circle. Facebook’s network and groups options had the same effect as well. I can understand why you want to not have your employer or business network bombed with conversations that perhaps are not engaging to that the audience, but that’s why you have a website, blog or twitter.
Hi Helen. Scarlet O' Hara is truly my idol, so happy to see you quote her. It's good to keep an open mind, I jumped into G+ and just for me, I found that I do not spend enough time to set up and engage properly as I do on Twitter, where the engagement and the connections have truly been the best for me. Thanks for your comments, I appreciate them greatly.
Thanks, Klaudia. Organization is key to managing your social media time, I agree. You control the time and not let it control you. I'm grateful for your comments and appreciate your input.
Thanks Jen for writing this post. This is something every small business owner should concern themselves with, and look for alternatives to deal with overload.
I think I speak for many when I say I do get overwhelmed at times when trying to be on several places at once (social media). What I have done is take time to see how each social media site will serve a purpose, and stick to that purpose alone for the site.
For example: I am using Google Plus to learn from the greatest minds in the world. So most of my circles are made for people I have never met in my life. There I mainly ask questions and comment on different posts. Facebook I only use because my friends are there and not on G+. Once they start making the move, I think I will say goodbye to FB.
Twitter I am using to follow my favorite brands, as well as a feed for all of my Internet activity. If you notice, I follow very few people; most of my follows are for company which products I use/enjoy.
LinkedIn I am setting up for industry discussion and as a clear communication wave for potential clients / partners. I will not be connecting with childhood friends on LinkedIn; I have Facebook set up for that.
Currently I am working on setting dates for me to work on each media outlet, so one doesn’t go over the other. Personally, I think G+ will become the backbone for many entrepreneurs’ marketing strategies, but that will come at a much later time.
Thanks, Juan. I really like your strategy for social media platforms. More folks need to employ this design. So many do it willy nilly. It’s as if they throw a dart and hope for the best. For me, I’m focus on Twitter and Facebook at this point. My best ROE (Return on Engagement) has been with the active participation on these platforms. Twitter still gives the greatest audience for my brand and message, I’ve yet to see any platform produce as much engagement to date. Perhaps it’s the participation in tweet chats as well as my own efforts to engage others.
I find that if you engage your audience where it’s located, that’s where you should spend your time wisely. To just be on a platform for the sake of being able to put up a logo isn’t effective. As for Google + – I generally do as you, I have a circle of folks whom I respect and the conversations are about topics that are specific. I don’t necessarily have clients there, but rather, peers where I can get more into a longer conversation. I try to find post up blogs and articles that relate to that audience. LinkedIn is where I connect to network with those whom I’ve been in business with in the past or want to engage into a deeper relationship. To me, that platform is for having conduit to individuals where you can stretch out and get more acquainted. The groups within LinkedIn have been an interest to me as well recently.
I see Google + with features being more robust for those who need more functionality than Facebook can offer at the present time. Facebook seems to be more ad focused, engagement is still a factor, however, I see folks that want to take the conversations to the offline more and more. Perhaps that’s just my experience with Facebook at this point. My personal profile is still my private friends and family.