Social media is the greatest robber facing today’s society. It takes our valuable time and wastes it. But, unlike a true robber, we give social media our time. No one forces us to hand it over, but we willingly give it up. The ones that most take up my time are Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat. I use Twitter mainly to keep up on sports and politics as it is set up well to keep users drawn to live sports and political updates through Tweets. I use Facebook to watch dog videos and keep up with friends from high school and other friends with whom I am not in constant contact. It is also good for coordinating events and meeting other people with similar interests (my dad and I are in a group for Jeep Wrangler owners). Instagram is good for sharing events while Snapchat is good for informal communication or sharing experiences at various points in time.
After logging my social media usage (above), Facebook and Twitter are the platforms I use the most. Facebook’s videos keep me there longer than I would like. If you watch a video, the next one automatically plays, and often times, it is something of interest, even if it is not the same topic of what I previously watched. I watch sports highlights on Facebook sometimes, and when I do, the next video is often of a cute dog doing tricks, police chases, or comedians. Once I get started, it is easy for me to waste 10-15 minutes watching videos. Twitter draws me in similarly, but I often get hooked on reading through the comments (mainly arguments) of sports and political tweet because who doesn’t love a good argument!
I check social media too much during the day. Much of the time it is when I have a down period and do not know what to do with myself. It is almost weird to be sitting on a bench outside just to sit and wait; a phone is almost necessary to eliminate any awkwardness. If I do not know anyone at a party or another event, it sometimes is easier to scroll through social media than it would be to talk to new people. I tend to use social media more during the times I am by myself or doing something requiring just me. If I am eating alone, I pull out my phone and watch videos on Facebook rather than just sitting there and only eating. Same thing happens when I wake up or go to bed. Rarely do I ever just go to bed or wake up and get out of bed right away; it takes me a while for both because of my social media usage (and my desire to keep sleeping!). In between classes is another big time I use social media because, again, it sometimes feels weird to not be on social media in that situation.
I would say the majority of my social media usage is sports related in one way or another. I follow ESPN, SportsCenter, all the Detroit Sports Teams, and other sports accounts on all the social media platforms. It is hard to not come in contact with it when I open up social media. During the 48 hours, I remember the Red Wings positing scoring updated from their game, and the content was very clean and consistent. It was visually appealing, and I was impressed with their social media work. The Astros’ scandal blew up Twitter over the past few days, and much of my feed concerned the scandal and the following fan and player commentary.
From an advertising standpoint, the only advertisements I clicked on were ones for cars on Facebook. The other ads I saw were for products I did not need. I can see how social media could be used to promote products. Some athletes and influencers have such an extensive following, and their fan bases are so devout that any marketing tactic or promotion of a product would help boost sales.
Social media has taken too much of my time, but with how well it has connected me and the benefits it can create, sometimes it is worth it. I need to do a better job, however, of not using it during times to break awkwardness. Being present with people is very important, even if it is awkward. Setting a good example is the way to prevent the Social Media Robber from stealing more of my time.