by 
Updated on August 27, 2022
I thought I’d look at my social network usage as it now stands, versus the last time I wrote in-depth about it.
Facebook’s the dominant social network; however, for myself, it’s mostly secondary to Twitter. I mainly use it because my family and online friends use it, plus its sheer dominance makes it impossible to completely ignore.
That said, I don’t get much site traffic from my Facebook page. That’s partly thanks to Facebook’s algorithms artificially throttling pages, basically making the network “pay to play.” As such, my Facebook page is more of a token effort these days.
Twitter’s my most frequently used social network. All of my followers can see my tweets, I can see all of the tweets of those I follow, and it ties more into my hobbies and interests than Facebook does.
Granted, Twitter’s problems, like Facebook’s, are infamous, particularly its lackadaisical attitude toward trolls, harassment, and misinformation.
Google+
Google+ still draws some traffic to my site, but almost nobody I know online uses it. I’ve also fallen off on using the few communities I did join. Thus, my Google+ profile’s nowadays just for posting links to new blog posts. If it weren’t for the site traffic Google+ generates, I’d consider just shuttering my profile altogether, as it’d mean keeping up with one less social network.
I still use Instagram for posting new photos. A few online friends, family, and relatives also follow me on the photo-sharing service.
Other networks
YouTube
Of course, I regularly use YouTube to watch various videos. It’s only listed here since some consider it a “social network.”
I do maintain a YouTube page, but it’s just a few old unboxing videos and a basic promo I made for the blog. While I’ve been asked a few times if I have a video podcast (or an audio podcast), I’ve got no plans to start such. (Hearing my voice recorded for my voice mail alone’s bad enough…)
I still occasionally update my LinkedIn page. However, it hasn’t been a top priority, given LinkedIn hasn’t helped me actually gain work. LinkedIn does serve a use as a digital address book for contacts I’ve met at some functions.
As I wrote last fall, I’ve stopped updating my Pinterest page, though the page itself is still up.
Tumblr
Unlike my Pinterest page, I’ve not only stopped using Tumblr, but also shuttered the page I had up. Between a lack of site traffic generated, a drop in interest, the fact I already have a blog running, and Yahoo‘s problems, it seemed easier to just delete it entirely.
Conclusion
As things now stand, my main social media presence is on Twitter and Facebook. I make occasional use of Instagram and LinkedIn; meanwhile, Google+ and YouTube see limited usage.
Given Facebook and Twitter’s constant algorithm changes, ongoing problems, etc., some bloggers and website owners are rediscovering the virtues of email for sending newsletters and new blog post notifications. And of course, good old RSS is still around. As I previously mentioned in my post on blogger promotion alternatives to Facebook, RSS and email are open standards that anyone can freely use.
Image by Thomas Ulrich from Pixabay
