Socially Networked

I have been writing more for Parenting Squad and just recently realized the importance of social media. Not just for the site, but for my own profitability, as well. They have been promoting social media for years, and I never really gave it much thought because I'm not a big social media person (I just play one on TV), and I didn't really think it mattered.

I did have some sense that the internet is all about traffic, which includes "hits" and "page views," though it all seems a bit contrived to me. You could ask 1000 people to click on your piece, and regardless of whether they read it or even cared, you'd be generating "traffic," and traffic is the name of the game. People don't spend a lot of time reading things online, anyway. It's all about quick glances and short reads, and social media is perfect for that.

The editor of my parenting page requested that we work toward generating more traffic, and when I asked how to accomplish this, she mentioned Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest, all of which I have but don't use. Facebook is pretty easy, but I had to go and learn how to Tweet and Pin (for Pinterest, get it?). It took some time, and I have stumbled more than my fair share, but I'm getting the hang of it.

One thing you notice about all this is that it can be a colossal waste of time. I easily spent an hour trying to send my first tweet, which is pretty embarrassing when you get down to it, but I think I got it to work. Then it was done, and my tweet was lost for good. Did anyone really care? Did anyone read it? Did anyone even pay attention? Probably not, but you realize it doesn't matter, as long as the person clicked on your page, then all is well.

Sort of emblematic of the world we live in, isn't it? Hard to say how I feel about it, but like everything, it doesn't matter how I feel, as long as I conform. At the very least, I can converse with my kids, who know all about this stuff.

This should be interesting, and believe me when I say it's only the beginning, stay tuned for more.

Until then, thanks for reading, and thanks to mmotrafficde4 for the pic.