Being real in social media
One theme that is consistent in both my writing and my life: being real. You’ll find it in the titles and subjects of my posts; in my general understandings about life; in my poetry; and now in my social media philosophy posted at Tracy Ready’s terrific blog. Overextending myself turned into a wake-up call that helped me to get real with myself and my social media friends.
Being real with fans and gigs
As I mentioned in my previous post, I’m interested in learning what other indie musicians have experienced with fan (“Contact Management” or DTF “Direct-To-Fan”) apps and gig/event management tools. There is an overwhelming number of these and they all seem to have a price tag. Some come as part of a package (such as ReverbNation). Others are offered by everything from startups to sites claiming they have dozens of top-40 artists in their clientele. Given their complexity and cost, I won’t be able to try out all the fan and gig management apps, so if you have experience, I’d really like to share what you’ve learned here. And that can take the form of a guest post or a reference in a post that I write. Let me know what you know and want! Obviously, I’ll publicize you (your web site, social media presence, etc.) as a contributor to my 50,000+ followers once the posts go live.
As always, you can contact me via the comments at the bottom of this post or on Twitter.
And even if you’re not social media connected or an independent musician, I’d enjoy hearing what you do to “be real” in your life. What are your stories of being the real you? Please leave your comments.
Playful blessings,
Stan
I agree that being real is key – in our writing, in our art, in our life…and on social media. It’s amazing how hard people will sometimes try…going to great extents to avoid letting people see what’s real…when it’s as simple as that – being who we really are. We all have strengths & weaknesses, good days & bad days, and we’re all struggling sometimes and doing the best that we can. I have felt the pull to give out more than is realistically possible in my social media endeavors, and I find it helpful to just continually check in with myself & ask how I’m honestly feeling…and then to adjust as necessary. I appreciate that you raised this topic of being real, because it’s important, and I love seeing people be real (in social media & in life,) because we give each other permission to be ourselves & be real when we are practicing that.
I was just questioned recently about censoring comments on my blog, and I did some soul-searching after being questioned. I believe that it is important to allow people to respond to my posts in whatever way comes naturally to them, and I choose not to edit or delete legitimate posts, because I want to give others the opportunity to be themselves & express themselves online. I appreciate real, and I seek it out – on social media and in life.
Thanks, Susan!
Glad to read that you’re doing your best to avoid censorship on your blog comments. If yours is like all the blogs that I know, you are keeping the spammers out for obvious reasons. (Although, I have seen some people try to make the case that keeping spammers out is also censorship. LOL.)
Keep being real, my friend!
Hi Stan,
I strongly agree with you and one of the first things I always look for in writing is authenticity. I created a strategy called Poetic Puberty and the first stage is being real with yourself and those who you inspire.
Feel free to check out that section of my handbook at http://www.poetryhandbook.com. Take care buddy!
Hey, Carl,
Thanks for your comment. Hope you’re enjoying your day off. 🙂
Hey Stan, I hear ya on the email management sites. What I have found is that if you get a free service there is usually some strings attached. I used to use the free reverbnation tool but over time I realized that I’d prefer to have sole access and control of that list rather than have it be something that a 3rd party site might use or trade. I use COnstant Contact and also Mailchimp and they are both good services with a monthly fee that depends on how many users are on your list. At a certain point it makes sense to invest a little if you are serious about your e-letters…
Thanks, Darius!
I’m with you 100% on having full control of your list. I’m curious to know if you have a preference between MailChimp and ConstantContact…or how they compare.
hey stan, i have used both constant contact and mail chimp and they both have free trial periods which helps. Mail chimp is a little more customizable and seems to be preferred by my graphic design friends cos they can do more with it – having said that I have stuck with Constant Contact since it is easier to use (as a non-designer)even if a little clunky plus they are the company who have really pioneered this over the last decade, they are very active in free tutorials etc – not sure about pricing comparison tho…
Pretty sure that Constant Contact is still more expensive. I used to have an account with them, but in a business split, I was unable to retain my access to it. Thus, my need to find a new management tool…
Thanks for the tips, Darius!