Shift happens
Just Another Day in Social Media. 🤪
After Her Majesty the Queen passed away last week, many brands tweeted their condolences. This sweet tweet from Paddington Bear is one of my favourites (the Queen and Paddington starred in a sketch together for the Queen's Jubilee celebration). However, there were many other brands that just came off as awkward. Here's a list from the Huffington Post. Lesson: You don't have to tweet.
Here are today's top stories:
The biggest culture shift in social media is happening on...LinkedIn
Instagram will begin testing a new repost feature
And this article about kids and memes has me wondering about the future
Dare to Share
Five years ago, if you asked someone what they liked to post on a specific social media channel, we all knew Instagram was for sharing beautiful images and an ideal life. We knew Facebook was for connecting with friends and family. And that Twitter was for sharing info and staying up to date on the news. But now, everything is shifting. And one of the biggest shifts I've seen is on LinkedIn. That's right — the professional network is becoming a place where we share not only our successes, but also our vulnerabilities.
Getting Vulnerable
LinkedIn, which was purchased in 2016 by Microsoft, has long been known as the "professional" network. For years, we were warned to stay away from controversial posts, such as those related to politics and religion. And to keep posts about our personal lives and pets over on Facebook. But over the summer, I began to notice an interesting trend. Many in my network were starting to share obituaries and death notices for friends, family and pets. I have been seeing these death posts so often that I decided to do a test. Before writing this article, I logged onto LinkedIn to see if I could find a death notice. It took me about 20 minutes, but there it was — posted by former Ontario premier Bob Rae.
And then another one popped up — this time from Nina Purewal, an entrepreneur, author and mindfulness coach, talking about the death of her father. "While I typically save my vulnerability for Instagram, I thought it was a good opportunity to get out of my comfort zone here..." she writes in the LinkedIn post.
Why The Shift?
As for why LinkedIn: In the past, we may have walled off our posts — preferring to keep our most personal life events on Facebook. But now, the platform and its reputation as a home for misinformation and hate may mean not everyone feels comfortable sharing there. In comparison, LinkedIn tends to be more of a supportive platform. And unlike the shift on Instagram, which is trying to move us away from photos and towards video, this shift seems to be happening organically.
And being vulnerable in general is something researcher/storyteller Brené Brown has been encouraging all of us to do since her famous 2011 TED Talk: The Power of Vulnerability. It seems that more and more people in the business community are starting to listen, and it could be paying off (people connect with people, not products). Or perhaps after two years of a deadly pandemic and missing personal connections we’re just looking for any way to connect with our community.
What This Means
Whatever the reason, being vulnerable on LinkedIn (and social media in general) does take some care and thought. In August, you may have heard about the "crying CEO", also known as LinkedIn marketing expert Braden Wallake, the CEO of HyperSocial. Wallake posted a picture of his tearful face on LinkedIn in the midst of mass layoffs. Many called out the post as "optics" and questioned why we should feel bad for him instead of focusing on his employees. In response to the criticism, Wallake said in a new post: "I'd do it again." And honestly, I read through his previous posts and this just seems to be who he really is. But it proves that not everyone is ready for every style of vulnerability.
Personal Posts: Thoughts
This isn't easy; sharing a piece of your personal life takes a lot of courage
You can't control how people will respond (which actually applies to all social media posts)
Brand Posts: Thoughts
Be genuine, transparent and — as mentioned above with the tweets about the Queen — don't post just to post.
QUESTIONS: Are you ready to get vulnerable on social media? Do you think brands should?
SOCIAL SNACK
Instagram Tests a Repost Feature
Instagram is about to start testing the ability to share other users posts and Reels with a new "Repost" feature, according to TechCrunch. Currently, we can share Stories from other users, and now that functionality will be tested in the Feed. Social media consultant Matt Navarra spotted a Reposts tab. According to the screenshots he shared, the Reposts would appear in your followers' feeds and be displayed in your profile in this Repost tab. Followers would be able to reply to the repost with a message. Waiting to see how this plays out...
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ICYMI
🔴 Twitter allows Android users to share tweets to Snapchat and Instagram Stories [@TwitterSupport]
🔴 TikTok is partnering to prevent violent extremism [TikTok Blog]
🔴 LinkedIn is working on a native post scheduling option [Social Media Today]
🔴 YouTube on how it's giving Learning creators more tools [YouTube Blog]
The Metaverse in Real Life
If you're super hyped about the metaverse, get ready for the ninth annual Meta Connect Conference on Oct. 11th and potential details about the rumoured "Meta Quest Pro."
In the meantime, I cannot stop watching this video: What the metaverse would look like in real life.
*Video shared by @MrMimiEth, originally posted by @Krawalbrause169
MEME-LIKE
Prepare For The Future
When I was a kid in the 80s/90s, I still remember when my friends and I would shout "NOT!" to each other as an exclamation point at the end of a sentence. It all started when one of the cool kids in class started doing it. I'm not sure where she heard it, and honestly, I didn't care. We all thought it was funny as hell. Looks like memes are spreading the same way for kids today. Check out this great article by Mark Serrels and prepare for the future (NOT!).
The Weird Way My Kids Use Memes is Absolutely Melting My Brain
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