This Class

This class has taught me so much about social media in this day and age. I plan on doing some sort of social media work for a company after I graduate (preferably at Free People) and I truly believe that this class has really helped me to better understand just how social media works. I feel that I have a better understanding of my audience - I can predict what they will respond to in a positive manner. 

I also feel that I have seen the positive and negative affects of a society so focused on social media. The lack of human connection in public places and the need to post about life 14/7. I will be much more aware of the way social media is used in my everyday life thanks to this class. 

With nearly everyone on some form of social media platform, it's hard to imagine our lives without it. I hope that social media will remain a useful tool rather than becoming a way of life.

You didn't post about it, so did it actually happen?

So you went somewhere rad, you were having such a good time that you didn't post about it - did it actually happen? Stupid question, but I am definitely guilty of this. If I'm going to a highly anticipated concert or to some cool event, I feel that need to post about it, whether I'm posting selfies or play-by-play tweeting about it. As a photographer, I truly feel the need to photograph important events in my life a lot more than the typical human being. I post about everything from my morning coffee to the part I was at last weekend. 

But lately, I've been trying to a little less posting and a lot more living. It's quite freeing to be able to simply live in the moment rather than worrying about having wifi to post or having good light to take a photo. While it's nice to be able to share a moment with 1,000 of your closest friends, it's also even nicer to live in the moment with whoever you're with. You guys can always tell people about it later. This is something I like to remind myself if I'm ever feeling remorse about not taking any pictures.

I promise, it happened even if there is no photographic evidence.

Live a little

The Disconnect (Part 2)

Today my boyfriend and I decided to unplug and go for a walk in the woods. Like many people, we are both pretty "plugged in" most of the time - me with my constant social media posted/checking and him with his video games and TV. He just moved to a new team at work and I'm in the middle of finales so with such beautiful weather today we decided that it would be a good day to just completely unplug. 

We left out phones at home. I brought nothing but a little cash, my charlie card, and my camera. We took a walk in the Fens. It was an area that he had never been to and I was very familiar with. We took along the water past the blooming trees and grazing geese. Nothing but each other and the sounds and sights of nature.

It was refreshing to be able to do this. It is rare that the two of us get days off like this. We're hoping that we can do something like this at least once a month. Everyone needs the opportunity to unplug and recharge every once and a while.

Social Media Networks

That small boutique that posts about its sales on Instagram; that transportation system that tweets about its delays; that photographer with the gallery on Facebook.

All these social media outlets make it possible for the public to interact with these businesses, services, and people. The public can ask questions, leave comments, and even make connections. 

I have personally made a lot of connections through social media. My very first networking experience came to me when I was 17. Tiana, a local photographer that I really admired reached out to me about modeling for her. I was so excited that she wanted to work with me and ended up meeting up with her later that same week. What was supposed to be a few hours of shooting turned into an all-day hangout. We had a lot in common and became fast friends. Today, I can't imagine not having Tiana in my life. If it weren't for Facebook, we would never have met!

In a similar situation, Free People Boston reached out to me about a job opportunity through Instagram. The store's current hiring manager, liked my Instagram content and decided to hire me. Today, I've been with Free People for a little over a year and a half and I currently run all of the Boston store's Instagram content.

Having an account on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram can be the difference between a customer saving on a certain item, an employee being late to work, or even making a new friend.

My Tinder Journey

I remember when I first heard about tinder. It was my freshman year of college and I was pretty new to Boston. Meeting guys (especially when you attend an all women's college) can be trickier than one would imagine. Although I was living in a city full of college students, finding ways to meet people organically without seeming like a creep. 

I was 19, so not old enough to go out to bar, but old enough to go to frat parties. I discovered very early on that this was really not my scene. The brother only let you in if you were a hot girl or a friend so I got over that kind of exclusivity pretty quick. 

I started playing around on Tinder, never actually going out with any of the guys I was matched with, but talking to a few here and there. I soon got sick of it and deleted the app. I was still pretty stuck on trying to meet someone naturally.

It wasn't until my junior year, that I seriously started to use Tinder. I went a couple Tinder dates, all duds. Meeting up for a Tinder date is probably the most awkward experience...ever. 

Just when I was going to give up on the app and try to meet someone the old fashion way, I "Binge Tindered" - meaning I sat in my apartment on a Friday night with my roommate and just kept swipping right. I talked to nearly all my matches that night. Only one of them really stuck though. His name was Andrew and was quite the sweetheart. We met up the next day and we've been dating ever since.

Don't worry ladies, it is possible to meet a good guy on the internet. They're not all complete duds. You just have to be persistent sometimes. 

My Yik Yak Experience

I decided to download Yik Yak about two weeks ago. We had our discussion in class about anonymity on the internet using this app as an example. I heard about Yik Yak through a friend of mine that goes to the University of New Hampshire (a Yaking hotspot) and figured it was about time I tried it out. 

At first I was shocked just how honest people were. There were those crude bathroom and sex yaks, but there were also a number of just plain friendly yaks and genuine confessions. While scrolling through the feed, all I could think was "There is noooo way anyone would ever tweet that..." No one would ever talk about how their life is in the bedroom or in the bathroom if their name is attached. 

I must say it was pretty addicting the first day I tried out the app. I even yakked a few times to see just how much "yakkarma" I could get (I currently have 1034 after two weeks of yakking.) It is truly a refreshing form of social media.

Happy yaking! 

Fandom

When thinking about fandom, one big one comes to mind for me - the Twilight fandom. This is one that I was personally a part of. I read all the books when I was 14 and my group of friends at the time were all fans of the series as well. We would hang out at school and talk about the books. At that time, Twilight was somewhat of a cult phenomenon so there really were not that many fans. 

My friends and I considered ourselves an "alternative" crowd. At that time the fandom of Twilight - their members called "Twihards" - was mainly female ranges between the ages of 12-25. 

Being one of the first fans of series, I watched the fandom take off. First with fan fiction website and fanart and then with chat rooms and forums about the series. To me, it was always funny to see just how involved some people could get with fictional characters. Many of these fan-made works involved an extended story for the books. Many involved the relationship between Jacob and Renesme, Edward and Bella's daughter. 

Twilight fandom seriously blew up as soon as the making of the movie was announced. Fans of the seriously began to expand. Everyone and their mother was reading the Twilight books (literally, my Mom AND my Dad read the entire series as well.) 

Today, even after the last movie in the series has been released, Twilight fandom still exists. There are still those die-hard fans that continue to write their fan fiction expanding upon the story that touched so many individuals world-wide.

The Disconnect

A few weeks ago, I packed my bags and got on a plane to the Virgin Islands. I stayed in a tent on the beach, with very limited internet access. Accessing the Internet required paying $9 per day. I held off for a couple days, reminding myself "You're on vacation, who cares what they're doing back home?" But it was less about caring what everyone else was doing and more about my wanting to share what I was doing.

I wanted to share all of the photos I had been taking and all the experiences I was having. A couple days into my trip, I caved and paid to use the wifi. I don't think I have ever zoomed through content so quickly. I scrolled through my Instagram feed and answered my emails like there was no tomorrow. 

I felt slightly ashamed of myself for giving in, but extremely satisfied. I built up so much to share on the Internet that once I was finally given the opportunity to post it, I was able to lay back on my beach towel and soak up those rays. I felt like I could relax.

I honestly could have lived without access to social media for a week, but it was just nice to be able to share what I was doing when I was doing it.

Strictly Visual

Over the past few years I've noticed something about myself. I found that I would initially start reading a blog that looked interesting, I would follow it for a while and then I would stop. They were all fantastic - full of interesting content and photos. But many of them were text-heavy. I found that they only blogs I seemed to be interested in were the ones that were visually interesting. I needed visual stimulation - photos, videos, etc. - to keep me interested. 

This has helped to shape my own blog as well. My personal blog is very photo-heavy. So much that I even go so far as calling it my online "photo diary." I do make it a point to write a short blurb about what I'm posting about so there is a bit of context. But for the most part, my blog relies mainly on visuals.

The same goes for social media. When it comes to my use of social media, I find myself more drawn to platforms like Instagram because their whole reason for being is visuals. I respond better to a photo of something posted on Facebook rather than a status update about it. This is probably the root of the reason why Twitter and YikYak have never really intrigued me. These platforms focus more on writing rather than visuals. 

Feedback

Leaving and receiving feedback has become easier than ever with Web 2.0. People can rate and leave feedback on everything from service they received at a certain restaurant to their experience with a particular professor. And in a similar way, these ratings and reviews can be viewed by anyone including the restaurants and professors in question. This information can make a real impact. In can decide whether or not a patron decides to get dinner at that restaurant or whether a students decides to enroll in that professor's class. 

This feedback can be used by those being evaluated to reexamine themselves and see what they can do to change in order to better serve the community. For instance, say several customers leave a comments about a particular server at a restaurant and how rude they were. That restaurant may have to consider approaching that server about their attitude in order to keep their positive image. 

Feedback is powerful whether it is left anonymously or not. It is out there for the whole Internet to see.

Leaving feedback can even trickle down into personal use of social media. Receiving a large amount of likes on a post on Facebook or Instagram can lead to Internet fame and such, which can be extremely beneficial for users looking for sponsorships. But leaving destructive, hateful feedback could be deemed cyberbullying. 

Social Currency

In our world today, social currency often times lead one further than actual currency. Social currency is defined as a level of popularity that can be used to their advantage.

When I think of people who are rich in social currency, I think of those people who have millions of followers on Instagram and Twitter. These people manage to gain followers in various ways and usually receive sponsorships from companies. The free mercy these people receive are given in the hopes that they will post about it. For these companies, this is a great way to gain customers through a platform they may not have thought about. 

When thinking of those who are poor in social currency, what comes to mind first is cyberbullying. Negativity in cyberspace can really get into the heads of those with that negative social currency. 

Social currency can help you or sometimes it can hurt you. The best thing to do is to know where to draw the line.

slow and steady wins the race

This chapter felt like Inception. While I was reading the section where Rushkoff discusses how our brains fly through large amounts of information in order to grasp the gist of it. While I was reading this I found myself doing exactly what he was describing. I found my eyes darting around the page trying to condense as much information as I could into my mind as fast as possible. 

I've been running around nonstop (physically and mentally) since my plane finally landed in Logan Airport early Tuesday morning. For me this was a sign. Slow down and smell the flowers. 

We're always in search of ways to collect large amounts of information in short periods of time. Rushkoff talked about how that information is not fully processed in a short amount of time. He used the example of studying for an exam days in advance rather than the night before. All the info being crammed into the brain during an all-nighter is less likely to stick in the brain than if one start studying earlier, and actually has time to process the information fully before having to take an exam. 

I think the most important lesson to take away from this chapter is to remember that as cliche as it might sound - slow and steady wins the race. While it may take a little more time in the moment, in the long-run (no pun intended) more data will be processed.

Free People & Digital Spreadiblity

Not to sound biased, but Free People does a great job designing for digital spreadability. 

Social media has really helped their brand take off. I was hired because the hiring manager at my local Free People liked my Instagram account. They keep all of their platforms (particularly their Instagram) updated daily.   

Every store, has their own Instagram and Facebook accounts that they update regularly. This makes the brand seem localized and really helps them connect to their customers.

They launched a community just over 2 years ago called "FPme" which is a place for Free People lovers to post and share how they style their Free People product. Since it's creation, the community has really blossomed. Now there are thousands of users from all around the world! This community can be accessed on their website or through their mobile app.

Their website is updated weekly with new product and lookbooks to inspire their customers. 

Free People makes it so easy for customer to engage with the brand. Whether its by downloading their mobile app or by scrolling through the 

Predictions for Journalism

Reyhan Harmanci talks about the current state of freelance work. According to Harmanci, freelance writers are now being pooched and primed to become staff writers. She paints a picture of what being a freelance writer means - begging for pay checks, pending deadlines, and pitching story ideas to no avail. Harmanci preaches that soon the world of freelance will be dead and staff writers will be the norm. This I can agree with. I believe that the time for freelance writers has passed. No one wants to deal with those issues mentioned above. Unless you're someone who needs freelance - family life, travel, fluidity, etc. - being a freelance writer provides very few benefits. Staff writers typically receive benefits including healthcare, retirement, etc. while freelancers do not. New sources and other medias are looking for voices they can rely on for the long haul. They need to consistency. Freelancing sucks 

Jacob Harris talks in-depth about the rise in the amount of "PR data." Nonsense information from companies like Starbucks that claim that the sales of the PSL lift the American economy each fall, BS info that is created to increase sales and create an overall positive image for a particular company. Harris discusses the amount of unnecessary info circulating the web these days. How do we sift through all the BS? I suppose step one would be to not allow this information sway your opinion or decision to buy into that company. As a PR-Marketing student, I feel that this is valuable information for me to understand.

Felix Salmon discusses Facebook's shift from desktop to mobile. His article touches upon the majority of Facebook's users becoming strictly mobile users - so much so that Facebook is not considered a "mobile company." I can really relate to this. The only reason I even check my Facebook page anymore is if my phone sends me a notification. I never feel the necessity to check my news feed on my laptop unless I'm really, profoundly bored. 

These three articles were extremely insightful. My reasons for choosing each of them were their relevance to my own use of the internet and social media. They also touched upon issues that I found impact me directly. 

Evolution of Facebook

Just scrolling through my Facebook feed, I find my mind wandering. Gone are the days when I put aside hours and hours of valuable time to spend on Facebook. These days, Facebook has become just something I check on every now and then when I'm bored. I very rarely post any original content (photos, status updates, etc.) unless I'm posting a link to a new blog post.

Categorizing my 100 posts, I found that the majority of my feed consisted of content from my high school teachers. Odd, but after graduation, one of the first things most of my classmates and I did was friend our favorite teachers on Facebook. Many of them have moved on my old high school and gone on to get married and have kids/grandchildren. I found the majority of the posts were photos of children or grandchildren. 

It's true, what used to be a teenage wasteland, has become social media for our parents and teachers. 

I find that about 50% of my feed consists of reactions to anything in the news - hard or soft. Today, there was a lot about the Oscars on my feed. Particularly in the Simmons sphere about Patricia Arquette's speech. This past week there was a lot of grumbling (complaining) about the MBTA.

I also noticed that there were a lot less status updates than I would have seen a few years ago. It looks to me like most people have figured out that status updates are what Twitter is for. 

Looking through my Facebook feed, it feels off to think about how attached my generation was to this social media outlet just a few years ago. It feels good to know that I am no longer as dependent. 

State of my "feed"

I use social media for a number of different reasons - social, to gather inspiration and to pass the time. I sometimes feel that I am a bit too attached, but I know that if I were ever to cut it out of life, I would merely be cutting myself off from society. 

My use of social media involves a lot of visuals. I always have my iPhone or my Nikon D51000 on me. I'm constantly snapping and sharing photos. I use Instagram and Tumblr the most out of every social media outlet. I even managed to find my current job through Instagram. I currently run Free People Boston's Instagram. So having to use it for work has certainly made using social media second nature to me. I use these two outlets as a way to gather inspiration for all aspects of life - style, food, trips, etc.

Social media is now the norm. It's how we connect with our friends and family along with big time corporations. How else would we know who Julian Edelman slept with or ISIS' latest attack?