You Have My Permission to Leave Twitter (or rather, X)

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You Have My Permission to Leave Twitter (or rather, X)

I quit Twitter in the summer of 2021. My mom had just died, I was starting a demanding new job on an interim basis, and had experienced some hostile interactions on the platform. I thought a break would be liberating, so I resolved to step away from Twitter for three months. No announcing my departure as some folks are apt to do, I just walked away.

And I never came back.

I’ve been somewhat of an evangelist for quitting Twitter for a few years now. Once Elon Musk bought Twitter in October 2022, I became even more convinced that the platform would no longer be a viable place for meaningful conversations to thrive. Musk has implemented numerous changes in his reign so far, many of which are generally agreed to be poor choices that negatively affect user experience.

So what does this mean for you or your business? If you’ve been hanging on to Twitter (or rather, X, as Musk rebranded it in July 2023), in the hopes that it still has some kind of value, this is your sign that it’s okay to walk away. 

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How to Write a Great TikTok Bio

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How to Write a Great TikTok Bio

Writing a bio for any social media profile can be challenging. How do you express the essence of who you are and what you want to be known for when you have a limited character count and need to match the vibe of the social platform? It’s tricky, and even more so with TikTok! A TikTok bio is a whole different beast than an Instagram bio. I love sharing my knowledge about all things TikTok, so today I’m sharing everything you need to know about writing a great TikTok bio.

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What I've Learned from Posting Twice a Day on TikTok for 2 Years

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What I've Learned from Posting Twice a Day on TikTok for 2 Years

For the past 2 years, I’ve posted twice a day on TikTok, once in the morning and once in the evening. It was a long and fascinating journey that helped me learn a lot about this unique, ever-evolving platform. Looking to enhance your own TikTok strategy? Here are 5 things I learned from posting on TikTok twice a day for 2 years. 

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My 23 Favorite Books of 2023

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My 23 Favorite Books of 2023

I always enjoy writing my annual ‘Year in Books’ blog post (check out my roundups for 2022, 2021, and 2020 if you missed them!). Reading is the hobby that’s been there for me consistently, year after year, regardless of whatever changes may be happening in my life. 

2023 has been busy! In January, my husband Tim left his day job in engineering to pursue murals and design work full-time under his business Tenderchomps Art. I helped him run a community art event for elementary schoolers at a local library, ghost wrote blog posts for his website, started running his social media, and offered guidance based on my own experience as a business owner. 

In May, I celebrated four years of running Serve Me the Sky Digital! And in August, I dove into a new endeavor: teaching a social media course for undergraduates at Nazareth University. It’s been a year full of learning, new experiences, changes, and great books! At the time of writing, I’ve read 163 books so far this year. 

Let’s get into it! Here are my 23 favorite books of 2023, organized by genre. 

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A Conversation with Alex Lopez: On Growing a TikTok Following, Pivoting Your Strategy, & Staying True to Yourself

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A Conversation with Alex Lopez: On Growing a TikTok Following, Pivoting Your Strategy, & Staying True to Yourself

This is the 18th post in the “A Conversation With” series, where I interview smart humans about their experiences in communications, social media, and content creation. You can read past features here.

This month, I interviewed Alex Lopez, a writer and content creator who has grown a large following on TikTok over the past few years. In this blog post, we explore tips for going viral, pivoting your TikTok strategy, content creation as a career path, and more. 

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9 Things to Check Before Hitting Post on TikTok

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9 Things to Check Before Hitting Post on TikTok

So you’ve created an awesome TikTok and you’re almost ready to share it with the world. But wait! There are several things you need to check before you hit the big red ‘Post’ button. Reviewing these items is essential for optimizing your content so the algorithm knows who to serve it to. I’ll walk you through all the fields to check before hitting post so that your content can perform its very best.

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A Conversation with Kelsey Sweet: TikTok Strategy, Experimentation, & Collaboration

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A Conversation with Kelsey Sweet: TikTok Strategy, Experimentation, & Collaboration

This is the 17th post in the “A Conversation With” series, where I interview smart humans about their experiences in marketing and social media. You can read past features here.

This month, I interviewed Kelsey Sweet, Social Media Strategist for the Buffalo Bills, whose work focuses on influencer marketing, TikTok strategy, and cause marketing. In this blog post, we dive into wacky TikToks, analytics, mental health, and more.

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5 Books About How Social Media Shapes Our Culture & World

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5 Books About How Social Media Shapes Our Culture & World

This fall, I’m teaching a college-level social media course at Nazareth University. The students and I are both learning lots, and it’s been a great experience so far! The midterm project I assigned was pretty unconventional for a social media class: the students had to read a book about social media from a list of five suggested titles and then review it in a traditional paper and an Instagram post or TikTok. My goal was to encourage them to think critically about the platforms we use every day in our professional and personal lives. It was fascinating to read my students’ observations, discuss the books as a class, and see the intersections between them! Today on the blog, I’m sharing a little about each book and what it tells us about the myriad ways that social media shapes our culture and our world. 

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The Easiest Way to Add Multiple Links to Your Instagram Bio

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The Easiest Way to Add Multiple Links to Your Instagram Bio

Since its inception, Instagram has not allowed users to include clickable links in captions. The result is the infamous ‘link in bio’ culture, where individuals and businesses alike encourage their audience to visit their bio and click the one link there to follow through on the desired call to action. Because Instagram only permitted one link in a user’s bio, a few different workarounds arose so users could drive their followers to multiple different calls to action. Some people optimized their Instagram bio by using third-party tools like Linktree; others (myself included) advocated for creating a hidden landing page on your own website. Now, neither of those options is necessary, because in spring 2023, Instagram added the ability for users to include up to 5 links in their bio. It’s quick, easy, and effective! Here’s how to set it up:

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