Category: InstagramCategory: Instagram
To get us started, “social media triggers children to dislike their own bodies,” this according to a study over at The Guardian.
Also, Meta is being fined by the EU for “forcing users to accept targeted ads.” Oh, and “Meta’s New Vision Of The Future Doesn’t Mention The Metaverse Even Once.”
Is Facebook heading towards another pivot? Shocking!
“Influencers discovered they could earn tens of thousands of dollars on the platform by making simple reaction videos,” writes the New Yorker.
“As long as fifteen minutes a day allows them to forgo full-time jobs and focus on music, they will continue to pump out face-filter videos.
“I do it every day to make sure I can pay my rent, dude,” Koch said.
To make you feel even worse, please read ‘30 ways influencers cheated their way to millions of dollars,” with lots of screenshots and info on “how Twitch streamers fake their numbers,” “fake Instagram engagement,” and more.
Yes, I’m all about leaving social media, but while we’re there we need to maximize our efforts to get folks to visit our sites and subscribe to our newsletters.
When Sarah Palmyra (with her 896.5K followers on TikTok) was asked how to engage with her audience, she offered this bit of advice:
“Stories are a really great way to engage with people. I just ask my audience questions, what do you wanna see next? What do you think about this? What do you like about this? And then that’s when I really check my direct messages and see who is saying what. And I have those real conversations just one-on-one.”
I’ll leave you with this:
For posts published by Instagram business accounts, the average engagement rate almost doubled in the past year and is up to 1.94%. Carousel posts still have the highest engagement rate (3.15%), while photo posts have the lowest average engagement rate (1.18%).
If the average engagement rate on Instagram is around 2%, imagine how low the actual click rate is for the “link in bio” game we’re all playing?!
Gee, it’s no wonder that we’re not seeing huge traffic to online stores and tour date pages!

I’ve been leaning on the “link in bio” strategy since November (since “Tweets with a link garner 28.76% less reach” says Buffer), to drive traffic from socials to my various projects (see my Linktree here), just like I hope you’re testing out. Hit me up if you have questions or ideas (seth@socialmediaescape.club).
You can say “LINK IN BIO,” or you can do something like this (watch all the way through the end, it’s so well done):
Am I saying you have to make videos just like this? No.
Do you you have to make dance videos? No.
Do you have to point at words? No.Do you have to do something?
Yes.
There’s a whole new year ahead of us; are we really going to keep “doing socials” like we’ve always done, and expect improved results?
Making fancy videos like above is hard work.
Saying “watch our video” with a link is light work.We have to find that sweet spot that works for us that will get fans to click a link and subscribe to our email list, or pre-order our latest product.

But, maybe you don’t have to do all the work.
I was chatting about the importance of artists’ telling their stories with Steve Tom Sawyer the other day, about making video clips in the studio, on the road, while shooting a music video.
And Steve raised a great point – why should the artists always have to do that?
He’s right.
Find someone on your same level, trying to put together a body of work, and build something together. There’s a lot of talented A/V people out there, hustling and doing the work.
So in the new year, ask for help. Partner up. Build a team.
Work with good people on good projects and good things can happen.
That said, wanna talk? seth@socialmediaescape.club

I help creative people quit social media, promote their work in sustainable ways, and rethink how a website and newsletter can work together. Find out more here. 🏳️🌈🏳️⚧️
Join us — start a 30 membership and hop on our next Zoom call meeting!
Trying to figure out your email strategy, grow without social media, maybe not sure what to send to people? I’ve got Email Guidance spots open, and here’s how it works and how to book.
Prefer a focused conversation instead? Book a 1:1 call and we’ll dig into your work together.
Email me: seth@socialmediaescape.club
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