FACEBOOK: LOVE IT/HATE IT!

July 1, 2012 by Rachel Thompson 39 Comments

Time for a bit of a confession.

I’m not a huge Facebook fan.

I know. I’m sorry, I’m sorry.

For those of you who love Facebook, I am in no way judging you or your taste in social media channels. I myself check in over there frequently on my personal account, and my two pages (Mancode: Exposed and BadRedhead Media). It’s an important part of any writer platform. However…

I’m a bottom line kinda gal. I don’t go in for long discussions about well, really, anything on social media. I save it for here, my BadRedheadMedia.com blog, or ya know, that thing called real life.

Maybe you’ve heard of it?

Which isn’t to say I don’t like social media. I adore Twitter (even the trolls make me laugh). I like how you have to get to the core of your message quickly, in 100-120 characters (if you want a RT). It’s terrific for branding, the writing community, small businesses — my interests. Twitter has made me a better writer, networker, branding consultant, and person.

So…why slag on Facebook?

Let’s deconstruct:

Privacy: I don’t mean that they share my info (which they do and that bugs the hell outta me). I mean, if I want to check Twitter, nobody knows I’m on there. I can read, respond to DMs, schedule stuff (using Hootsuite). But the second I click over to Facebook, someone invariably stealth-hits me with a message to go to something, like something, share, whatever. (Yes, I know I can fiddle around w/ online/offline etc. Please.) Let me be clear: I’m fine with sharing and promoting others — that’s what I’m all about. But don’t stealth stalk me. Leave me a message. Ask if I want to chat. And no fellas, I’m not a freakin’ ‘cam girl.’ (And my eyes are green, dammit. Not blue.) Ugh.
Profile: Read my damn profile. I read yours! Just as on Twitter, find out what I do, who I am before you start asking me questions like ‘what do you do?’
Groups: I love the groups I’m in and that I’ve been asked to join. But I hate that people add me without my knowledge or approval. Then I start getting email notifications — cause like, yea, I need more of those. And then I have to go back over to Facebook to turn off the notifications and I’m stealth-hit again! Grrr.
Following: ‘Do you know this person?’ Um, wait. There are like, 10 billion people on Facebook. What are the odds? Why do they mention mutual friends or people you may know, and then limit who you can follow? It’s stupid. I get the whole concept of preventing spam (see next point), but really, that’s just dumb. If I knew them, we’d already be friends.
Spam: Seriously, what the hell. I’m not sure how people spam on Facebook, and I don’t really care. Just stay the hell off my timeline.
Likes: Someone puts a picture of a spider up and 2,000 people like it. Whatever. I personally want an Unlike button. If your pet just died and you’re sharing that, how am I supposed to freakin’ LIKE that? That’s just fucked up.

So is there anything I do like about Facebook? Yes. I enjoy the interaction with people I’ve met.

On Twitter.

NO THANK YOU On Twitter, Please: 5 Top Alternatives(badredheadmedia.com)
Top 25 Ways to Sell Your Book Without Constantly Spamming Links(badredheadmedia.com)
Top 5 Reasons Blogging Is Critical to Your Success!(badredheadmedia.com)
Facebook Spammers…Really? Haven’t We Learned? 7 Ways to Get Unfriended on Facebook(momeomagazine.com)
Effective Ways Of Getting Social On Social Media(amberrisme.com)
Branding Isn’t Your Best Friend: It’s Your New Lover(badredheadmedia.com)

About Rachel Thompson

Rachel Thompson released the BadRedhead Media 30-Day Book Marketing Challenge in December 2016 to rave reviews.

She is the author of the award-winning, best-selling Broken Places (one of IndieReader’s “Best of 2015” top books and 2015 Honorable Mention Winner in both the Los Angeles and the San Francisco Book Festivals), and the bestselling, multi award-winning Broken Pieces (as well as two additional humor books. Rachel’s work is also featured in several anthologies (see Books for details).

She owns BadRedhead Media, creating effective social media and book marketing campaigns for authors. Her articles appear regularly in The Huffington Post, Feminine Collective, Indie Reader, Medium, OnMogul, Transformation Is Real, Blue Ink Review, Book Machine, and several others.

Not just an advocate for sexual abuse survivors, Rachel is the creator and founder of the hashtag phenomenon #MondayBlogs and the live weekly Twitter chats, #SexAbuseChat, co-hosted with certified therapist/survivor, Bobbi Parish (Tuesdays, 6pm PST/9pm EST), and #BookMarketingChat, co-hosted with author assistant Emilie Rabitoy (Wednesdays, 6pm PST/9pm EST).

She hates walks in the rain, running out of coffee, and coconut. A single mom, she lives in California with her two kids and two cats, where she daydreams of Thor and vaguely remembers what sleep is.

For contact information, visit rachelintheoc.com or BadRedhead Media at badredheadmedia.com.

Follow Rachel on: Facebook, Twitter