A Beginner’s Guide To Social Media
New to the world of social media? It can be daunting at first, especially as it seems like such a large part of the modern world, but you should know that it is never too late to start. While it can take a while to get the hang of, you should soon see the benefits of social media and enjoy connecting with everyone in your life online. For many people, social media is a great way to maintain relationships and keep in touch with those people that you care for but do not get to see often enough. So, what are some tips for getting started with social media?
Take Time Exploring Different Platforms
First, you should spend some time exploring the different platforms. These days, there are many different social media platforms, and they each have their own purpose. Therefore, it is a good idea to spend some time on each one to find one or a few that you like the look of. The main options right now include:
- Snapchat
- TikTok
Learn To Save Posts
Every now and then, you might come across that you want to save. There are different ways to do this on each platform, so you should look this up so that you know what you need to do if you want to save a post. In some cases, it is not always easy to do. With Snapchat, for example, pictures and videos online last 24 hours before disappearing. You can take a screenshot or record a video, but you should know that the app will tell the poster if you do this, so you may want to check with them first. You can then take a screen recording and then use an app to send the video to your Mac (there is no Snapchat app on Mac). You can learn more about this process here https://setapp.com/how-to/save-snapchat-videos.
Stay Safe
Social media can be great fun and a good way to keep in touch with people, but you do need to be aware of the dangers. Inevitably, social media can be a dangerous place, and you need to learn how to use it safely. This should include adjusting the privacy information so that you can control who sees your posts and is able to interact with you. You should also set random, complex passwords and change these on a regular basis. There are also social media scams to be aware of. When you know how to use these platforms safely, you can use them with confidence and enjoy all of the benefits that they can bring.
Fill In Your Profile Information
When creating your accounts on different social media channels, you should take the time to properly fill in your profile information. This will boost your credibility online and make it easier to connect with people. One of the most important steps will be picking a profile picture - this should be one that clearly shows your face with an eye-catching background. Your profile picture will be seen whenever you post, so you want it to be a good representation of who you are.
Find Friends & Family
Once you have your profile information all filled in, you will want to start finding friends, family and other people that you know. Often, this is easy enough as you can automatically find people from your contacts list, but there may also be other people to find as well. It is amazing some of the people from your life that you can find on social media, and it might be an opportunity to reconnect with people that you had lost contact with. Of course, you may be a more private person and want to limit yourself to a small group of people, and there is nothing wrong with this.
Find New Communities
In addition to the people that you know, social media can also be a great tool for meeting new people and this is one of the best aspects of it (especially at a time when people spend a lot more time at home). You can meet new people by finding online communities to join, such as a group for people in your town or city.
Think Carefully Before Posting
When it comes to posting your own content, you should always think twice before hitting the send button. Social media gives you a chance to share your thoughts, photos, and opinions with the world, but this also means that you need to be sensible. You should be respectful, mindful and avoid posting anything that could cause offense. Additionally, you might not want to post anything that is too personal, such as photos of your kids. You also need to think about how often you post - you do not want to spam your followers with multiple posts each day.
Comment On Other People’s Posts
You should share your own content with your followers, but you also should be engaging with other people’s posts (people will then be more likely to comment on your own posts). Social media is all about interaction, so you should like posts, ask questions and come up with comments that will help you to create a deeper connection with the poster. These days, this can be a great way to strengthen and maintain real-life relationships.
Keep It Lighthearted
Finally, you should try and keep it lighthearted on social media and use it as a positive way to engage with others. In recent years, there has been a lot more misinformation, divisive content, hatred, and trolls on social media, and this is not what the platforms were designed for.
Hopefully, the advice in this post will be useful and help you to get started on social media. It is never too late to start using social media, and it can be a great way to connect with people and maintain relationships, but you also need to know the best ways to use these platforms for a positive experience.
