It’s really weird to see [what was] a pretty stable social media channel like Twitter falter. Especially since it’s 16 years old! It was founded just before I moved to Topeka, and at this point I’ve used it for a large chunk of my professional library life.
What the heck, Elon!
Since Twitter’s currently going through some major road bumps (and might not survive those) … should your library still use it? I have some thoughts on that.
First Thought: don’t delete it yet.
Why not?
- It might survive. Twitter might make it through the major changes and craziness going on at the moment. If so … it’s still a pretty useful tool. My guess is it will continue to be so (if it survives the craziness).
- Do you actively use it? If so … it’s still working, so continue doing what you do (for now).
- Do you have customers there? My library has over 7000 followers on Twitter. We still get questions and comments there. Why would we stop responding and posting? […I mean, other than if it crashes and burns…]
Second Thought: It’s just an outpost.
Remember that Twitter, and all the social media tools you use, are just outposts. Your website is your home base. You should continue having multiple outposts. Think of these as ways to reach outside the walls of your building (both your physical and digital walls).
Those outposts should point back to your home base. Keep most of your focus on your website, your building, and on all the cool stuff your library does. Use your outposts to share all that stuff … and invite people back to your home base.
Third Thought: Time to Reassess.
It’s probably a great time to examine what you’re doing with social media, and perhaps tweak your focus a bit. Try out a new social media tool. For example, Mastodon, Hive Social, Post, etc. are all possible Twitter replacements (you can find me on Mastodon!).
Make more video. Social media is more focused on video formats these days, and especially short-form video. I’ve been enjoying what Milwaukee Public Library’s been doing on Tiktok – fun stuff! Check them out at https://www.tiktok.com/@milwaukeepubliclibrary .
Maybe don’t leave Twitter just yet, especially if you’re still getting some good use out of it. At the same time, figure out some improvements that you can make in your approach to social media, and start making some positive changes!