The Darkside of Social Media (Week 6)

Social media can be used to make or break your career in the creative industries. These days I find that consumers value connecting with creators on a more personal level than in the past. This is made possible through social media, such as Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. As there are more and more people on social media it is “easier than ever to become famous, but more of a hassle to retain your privacy once you become the subject of scrutiny.”(Knibbs, 2013)

This weeks lecture taught me that once you have gained any amount of fans on social media, you can be hated for anything you say wrong. If you were to have a fight with someone on social media without any fame it would be meaningless, but once you have followers you are expected to do certain things certain ways, and if you do not live up to your fans expectations you can be ridiculed and hated.

The issue with having your own personal account judged is that your fans are reacting poorly to YOU and not an idealistic image that had been constructed to sell your product. So once you have a bad reputation on social media it’s hard to redeem yourself.

Generally when someone has done something wrong on social media they turn their attention to their online reputation. By that point and time the damage to their business may very well be done(Thomas, 2013) So it’s important you conduct yourself professionally online so that you can deliver your product to your fans who have unbiased expectations.