Today’s prompt for Blogtember states, “Discuss ways that blogging or social media has changed you.”
When I started this blog back in January of 2005 I did not have the social media outlets that I do today, mainly because many of them did not exist yet. Aside from message forums, chat rooms, and texting blogging became my first step into the social media scene. I began my blog to share photos of my newborn son as we embarked on the new life as a military family far away from family. Within that year I created accounts with Livejournal and Myspace. My world was finding it’s way online but behind the protection of passwords. I even stopped blogging for a while because I was scared about sharing photos of my son online.
Eight years down the road and things have really changed in the way social media impacts my life. I was at a job interview where I had previously turned in my CV containing links to my various social media platforms and was greeted with, ‘I feel like I already know everything about you.” I google myself and am greeted with much of my photography portfolio and images from my blog. Being in the creative scene I realised that my name and my presence online is my brand. Anything I share online now is married to the fact that once it is out there, it is out there.
As of today my whole family’s life is impacted by social media. I am constantly documenting our life on camera and sharing online. My husband uses social media to talk about foreign policy and his football club, Arsenal. My kids now will come up to me and ask me to take a photo of something and share it on facebook. Anytime we are out and have to wait on something, more than likely my husband and I will have our phones out. The digital age of constantly checking, sharing, or reading something online. With the world of smart phones I can be out of the house and publish a blog post. Furthermore I can share a photo from the post on Instagram, which automatically gets shared to my twitter feed, which can then be shared to my facebook wall. Within seconds I have shared a piece of my life with over a thousand people in my personal network alone.
I believe with all things there is a learning curve with social media and making sure it does not take over your life. However used well and it can really benefit your business, your brand, and your blog. I have put together a Social Media & Your Brand infographic for this purpose.
Feel free to pin this to your Pinterest board and follow me on Pinterest.
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Also remember about the Giveaway!
*infographic orginal to ACR made by Bonnie Rose © 2007 – 2013 | All Rights Reserved – http://www.bonnieroseblog.co.uk
