My experience with Social Media in 2015

dsc_0956.jpg2015 was the year I invested in a “social presence”. Here is my honest review and my responses to the current state.

Facebook provides the bulk of my traffic, followed by WordPress. Facebook has destroyed the concept of Friend and totally diminished and warped the meaning of the word “like”.I received connection requests from authors flogging their books. Some writers have also befriended me, and have sent me messages saying they wish to learn. But they don’t. I see posts from them that repeat the same errors that have been pointed out to them. I have no idea how their books are published. I mean where are these publishers? I’d like to talk to them. I have much to say…

Distant family members who have never interacted with me, ever, have also sent me requests to connect on FB. I did accept a few, but they have nothing to say on FB, and far less to say to me. Now, you’re wondering, how much is less than nothing, right? I mean, right?

“And it makes me wonder… what’s going on.. ahh, ahh, yeah” – CSNY

I worked on my Facebook page for the blog. Strangers came and “Liked” it and then stayed away in droves. I created a Twitter account, followed a few people, was followed by a few. Every time I see that Twitter newsfeed, I cringe. There’s just noise there, just links to more noise. Gah! Twitter is the biggest waste of time.

I connected SloWord to Tumblr. The Home Page that I see for my blog is of 2 varieties… now which one does the public see? How do I find content? Ah, fuck it! It’s too much trouble to work out.

Scriggler: Now there I did have some success. Even climbed to the heady heights of #2 on the Monthly charts. I had a few posts listed as Post of the Day. Discerning people, those Scrigglers. They know a good thing when they see me. The only drawback there is I have to cut and paste the entire post there. Not good for SEO, I’m told, whatever that is.

I created accounts on Tremr, Triberr, neglected my Medium account and Ghost. StumbleUpon stumbled along somehow. I had a few interactions before it died. Reddit. Oh, my dears, what a website…. this is clearly aimed at people who are not me. A user interface that is straight from the early 90s and a clientele that has little to say and all day to say it in. Pinterest is too demanding of an image before it will do anything and overall it’s too focused on arts, crafts and cutesy posters. Google+ I’m slowly coming to grips with. A little cumbersome but may offer more than the others did. ( I say “May”…)

Then we come to the writers groups and blogging networks. The writers groups come in two basic varieties; Facebook groups and writing support websites.

Facebook writing groups are mostly link dumps and there was one ( I left ) where the feedback was searingly vicious….There are one or two that are making a genuine effort. On the writing support websites, a lot of writers post their excerpts. Some get feedback, most don’t. The ones that do get it get it from their network and they didn’t really need the website to get it. Most of the writer support websites kept flogging premium memberships.

When I first started writing, I asked around about getting some feedback. I was unsure of my writing skills, unsure of style, unsure of the world of writing. Three decades spent doing everything but writing will be hard to shake off, I thought. Some friends of friends recommended blogging networks. I signed up for some. I cannot even remember the names of some of them. Two stand out in my experience. Both are based in India.

BlogAdda will list your blog there, but it offers no method of interaction with others. They select featured posts twice a week, but you have to submit your latest post. They don’t go searching. They feature some writers base on some parameters that are a deep dark secret that must never be revealed to mankind. Some bloggers win contests and awards using a similarly esoteric and secret formula. It does, however, say it’s main purpose is to connect bloggers to brand marketers. The website is so confusing that I haven’t been there in months. I did submit my How To Write a Novel post and it did get featured. However, total traffic on my blog showed 2 extra hits. Clearly, every other BlogAdda user also stays away from the website, just like me. Being selected for that weekly honour does nothing for readership.

The other one is IndiBlogger. Now, this one does not outright say it is out to connect bloggers to brands. It runs bloggers meets and writing contests. In some, the first x hundred bloggers all get e-tailer vouchers. In other contests, winning posts are selected by judges from the sponsor. I’ve read some of the winning posts. My overall reaction? “Oh, kill me now!” Yes, there are some who write decently, are coherent in their thought processes and obviously take care and pride in their outpourings. The percentage of such bloggers is minuscule, however.

I’ve got into trouble on that site. Mostly for complaining about the voting and ranking system it uses to grade writers. It allows only positive votes. Since you have to post the link to your post on the site, there is nothing to stop a reader from clicking “Promote” without reading the article. Members there have tested this out and found that posts titled “DELETE, NO CONTENT” have garnered over 100+ Promotes. Members have tested the back-scratching networks and proved its widespread existence. I asked why this could not be changed to a 5-point anonymous rating system on the RSS feed instead of making bloggers post their actual links. MISTAKE #1

It also grades bloggers using a monthly ranking system. While it is called a Rank, it is actually a Score, since many people can have the same rank. Rank, in my opinion, indicates ordinality while Score is a cardinal number. The website shows some statistics about MozRank and Alexa and other mumbo-jumbo. I then found out that this is based on the frequency of blogging. I tested it out myself and over a course of 3 or 4 months manipulated my ‘ranking’ to validate my theories. I then called it out. MISTAKE #2

At Indiblogger I was attacked using two arguments. The first was the “Go to Pakistan” argument. If you disagree with me, then you should not stay here but go to Pakistan ( replace with country of your choice depending on where you live ), where you belong. “How dare you stay here and ask for improvements? You should leave.” If we all followed this argument, there would be either mass migrations in the world or mass suicides. I mean, really, are you so fucking bereft of ideas and logic that you cannot debate the concept without using this inane argument? Some of these people had sent me friend requests on Facebook. So I can see them trying to change the world with their Facebook posts, but change IndiBlogger? You must be evil to talk about it.

The other form of attack accused me of trying to win contests. There have been 200+ posts on this blog. Not a single one has been paid for by any brand. I have never submitted a blog post to any contest. Ever. As a Canadian, I’m ineligible for all Indian contests. The prizes are vouchers in Indian rupees which I cannot even use. Evidence? We don’t fucking need no stinking evidence…. We’re here to win contests, you’re here, so you must be here to win contests too.

SloWord’s tagline has always said “Learning to Write rightly”. A joke, but a comment on the reason for this blog. Now, having read excerpts from “published authors”, I no longer need this tagline. I think, I already know more about writing rightly than some of them will ever learn. As a mission statement it no longer has any value. Mission has been accomplished.

I’d say my Social Media foray in 2015 sucked. 2015 sucked really badly. It really did. But it did have one or two good things.

  1. I now have 3 short stories in hand
  2. One story was submitted to 2 different magazines and rejected by both. ( It’s a plus, trust me..)
  3. I have completed the full-length play. I have a choice of endings now. Happy or Sad; you can vote on it. Let me know.
  4. I have a plan for a multi-volume set of my Memoirs. About a 100K words have been collected into one document now.
  5. I ignored all the wonderful advice from writers. One in particular set me back 2 months. Then I realized that the feedback came from someone who had self-admittedly limited experience in the genre. I also successfully managed to ignore the cheerleaders for the “dumb it down” brigade.
  6. Overall, 2015 managed to clear the fog and set me on the right path.

So what do I have in mind for 2016?

  1. I have to rethink my presence on the internet entirely. Some culling of friends on Facebook will be necessary. Therefore, if you haven’t interacted with me in a few months or ever OR you insist on posting horrific videos of whales eating girls and or beheadings OR all you post are semi-religious, mostly-stupid religious dogma OR your entire FB image is one of jokes curated from the internet OR are the type to like every post as in “with grieving heart I must tell you that my mother just died”; 200 Likes THEN you’re going on the list. I shall then rank all my friends in order of priority, using a criteria known only to myself. I presume the bulk of these friends will not know (or care) that I deleted them as friends. The get rid of the riffraff clogging up my newsfeed on all social channels.
  2. Cultivate the regular readers by feeding assiduously with proper water and nutrients ( all organic, of course.)
  3. Compile a set of at least 10 short stories that can potentially be published
  4. Compile Vol 1 of the memoirs.
  5. Edit the play and find takers for it.
  6. SloWord will have to take a backseat. I’m afraid so. I have to find a new format for this blog. A different type of content. But see #2 above and take heart. You may not get quantity, but you will get new, improved content, laced with the goodness of aloe and the smell of fresh summer roses wilting in the vase standing in the hot sunlight and which you forgot to water for three days in a row.
  7. Find a new tagline for SloWord. I fucking well know how to write rightly and the joke has worn thin.
  8. Believe in my natural abilities.
  9. Write.
  10. Find a source of revenue to support me in the lifestyle to which I have become accustomed. One of laziness.

There, I feel better already! I’m free at last! 1-DSC_3502

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  1. ladyofthecakes

    I’m going to send you a fb friend request – you said nothing about fluffy kitten pics, so I assume you are gagging for more.

    1. peevedpunjabi

      Actually if you do send me FB request I will accept. So be warned!

      1. ladyofthecakes

        You have so many pseudonyms, I wouldn’t know where to start….!

  2. Janice Wald

    I am sorry you had stress in 2015. I have had the best success with Facebook and StumbleUpon.
    Janice

      1. Janice Wald

        Do you subscribe to my blog? Let me stumble your links. It is a perk I give to my blog subscribers.
        Janice

          1. Janice Wald

            I want to stumble your link to the social media presence in 2015 article; it was a great article.
            Janice very relatable.

              1. Janice Wald

                I will do it. Let me know when you start getting traffic.
                I am having a big blog party tomorrow. It is a meet and greet. Many people come with, as you say, a mish mash of topics.

                    1. peevedpunjabi

                      Thanks very much, Janice.

                1. peevedpunjabi

                  You can try that link… it’s a genuine How To

                  1. Janice Wald

                    I will. I also will stumble the social media article. I loved it.
                    Janice

    1. peevedpunjabi

      I think it has to do with the type of content. You write tips for blogging. That always goes down well. I write essays and memoirs. People seem to be looking for How To posts.

      1. Janice Wald

        I heard blogging does not do well on StumbleUpon, and yet it is my number one referrer of traffic.
        Janice

        1. peevedpunjabi

          I generally believe that self help blogs such as yours do well with people. My blog is too much of a mishmash

      2. Janice Wald

        Let me try. I think you subscribe to my blog. It is worth a try. Send me your link with your highest page view. You get traffic on StumbleUpon if other people stumble your links.
        Janice

        1. peevedpunjabi

          I generally believe that self help blogs such as yours do well with people. My blog is too much of a mishmash

  3. Janice Wald

    I never heard of Struggler. I will check into it.
    Janice

  4. mindfulmagpie

    This is a bold, confident, and ambitious post. First, let me congratulate you on your productive writing year. You have accomplished a lot, even while having to waste enormous amounts of time on social media. This whole blogging thing is a mystery wrapped in an enigma. I started one just for the fun of it but I quickly found that many people use it as a platform to become, say, a famous cookbook author. There is nothing wrong with that but sometimes one can feel bombarded with their continuous posts. I did write a little book through NaNo wri mo, and through that process someone did advise to change up my beginning, that there wasn’t enough action.Hmm. I have never spent the time on social media that you have, at least not for my blog, but I understand that folks who want to write things need a presence. Sigh. I do not have a FB page for my blog. And I never remember to check twitter or instagram. So I guess I’m going to poke along the way I am.

    1. peevedpunjabi

      I’m actually questioning the strategy completely. I think I was.taken in by people’s glowing accounts of the traffic they receive. There are some bloggers who say they get 10s of thousands of hits per day on their blogs!! Yet their blogs have hardly any original content. See people like you who write sensitive articles should be read more. I’d like to see more writers like you. Why aren’t there more of you? How can we drown out the multitudes of billboards masquerading as blogs?

      1. mindfulmagpie

        You raise good points. I have to think there are lots of us out here. But how do we find each other? It’s a mystery!

        1. TheLastWord

          yes, it is hard. I’ve been toying with an idea for a while now on how to bring Little Red but Should Be Red blogs for a while now. In fact, I made one attempt at it. Couldn’t figure out how to make it work. Maybe this year I’ll re-visit that and finally work out some thing that will work.

          Until, then, I try to thank the good ones, I try to provide links to the blogs through my posts. I hope that it sends some people over to discover what I have already discovered.

          1. mindfulmagpie

            I wish more people would make the efforts that you do to connect blogs to readers. I’d like to think that each small effort we make ultimately has a benefit to someone. Keep up the good work.

            1. TheLastWord

              Thank you… The Irregular SloWord Awards was one such initiative.

              Just a way to say thanks and spread the good word.

  5. Percy Wadiwala

    Well, a productive year, at least, eh?

    I’ve been about 6 months on FB as a writer now, under a pseudonym. Experience? Mostly a lot of white noise. Keeping out the relatives and ‘friends’ accumulated over the years kept my feed sane at first, but no longer.

    Writing groups have been largely a positive experience. Made some fellow-writers friends, which is always good, I guess. But again things are ‘settling’ into a situation where only the usual 4-5 friends comment on my excerpts, so that is disappointing because, as you rightly pointed out, I don’t need FB to get that feedback any more.

    Cheers, good luck for an even more productive 2016.

    1. peevedpunjabi

      I’ll chalk one up for experience. There is just so much noise. I hope 2016 works out for you.

  6. roughseasinthemed

    You forgot to mention’I’m having a latte in Starbucks’ type of comments on FB. Seriously? How interesting.

    I spend my time on there looking to earn money. Socially, I use my blog/s. Agree on Twitter, and tumblr and and and.

    1. peevedpunjabi

      Thanks Janice…nothings happened so far …

      1. Janice Wald

        I am having a big blog party today. Why don’t you come? Maybe you can meet some new readers. It should be continuing for a couple of days still.
        Janice

  7. A.PROMPTreply

    Wow, you have certainly been out and about in the cyberworld….I never even heard of half this stuff! I guess exposure is the name of the game when you’re trying to get published though so all your legwork of the past year wasn’t wasted I’m sure. As for the play and voting on the ending…I think we’ll need a bit more info before we can decide…..

    1. peevedpunjabi

      Well, I hope it wasn’t wasted…but I rather think I will need a professional media manager if I ever collect enough material that is publication worthy.

  8. umashankar

    That has to be a landmark post about the social media in general and Indian blog directories in particular. I enjoyed your take on each of those channels, derived due sadistic pleasure on your plight on Indiblogger, and agreed with the electrons, protons, neutrons and the Higgs Boson of the each and every sentence you wrote about Indiblogger. As for Blogadda, I am yet to come upon a blog directory that sucks harder. Thank you for this scintillating treatise, you made my evening.

    1. peevedpunjabi

      Geez, I had no idea the hate ran that deep 🙂 🙂

      1. umashankar

        I felt compelled to ask Blogadda to remove my profile from their database. It took them a couple of years to do that, however.

        1. peevedpunjabi

          Oh really? I’ll leave it there. I’m far too lazy to write to them or IB to remove it. If they decide to remove me after this post is reported to them, by al means they’re welcome to it. I don’t see them surviving for very long. I mean have you seen the Home Page? My God…I mean, this is *your* Home Page, why would would you give it away to substandard content and clutter?

          1. umashankar

            I agree! They remind me of Dr Faustus who sold his soul to Beelzebub. And he could have been so much the Master of his destiny.

            1. peevedpunjabi

              I guess $20 is $20… Personally, I value my soul at a far higher rate….

  9. You have given a good review of many sites and the majority of them i never heard of, but I’m glad my interest was in Facebook to connect with a group and in WordPress to explore my love of writing. I am enjoying the latter. For you something good has come out of the ‘research’ and experience, it looks to me like a good plan for 2016.

    1. TheLastWord

      Thank you. I shall visit your blog over the weekend. Please do explore my blog at your convenience and leisure. It has a little bit of many things.