Facebook has changed. When I joined in 2008, my friends posted pictures of themselves and their families. I enjoyed seeing their faces and knowing what was going on in their lives. But I think you’ll agree that the landscape of Facebook has altered significantly. When I go to the homepage, it’s obvious that it has become a site for free advertising. Now I hurriedly scroll past political stances, entertainment gigs, announcements, event reminders, quotes of the day, etc. I feel frustrated, and I need your help to resolve what has become a conflict for me.
When Facebook originated, its goal was to foster connections among family and friends all over the world. I applaud this feature and value it. I am frustrated that it has become a marketing tool for any individual or organization seeking visibility. That’s not wrong, but people are clogging their pages by pushing their own products, businesses, and blogs, including me. I am part of the problem as I also contribute to the clutter, taking advantage of free advertising for my blog.
I question my motive. On the one hand, I want people to read my blog to see God’s signature on my life. I want to show you how God is always faithful to me and never fails me. I want you to connect more deeply with Him because of what you read in my blog. God unconditionally loves us, and I don’t want readers to miss this message. On the other hand, I have an impure motive to post my blog to Facebook in order to gain visibility and new subscribers. In short, while trying to promote God, I am promoting myself. As a Christian, that doesn’t feel right. Our culture says, “That’s okay. Use the tools God has made available to share your story. Besides, social networking is here to stay.” But is God pleased when part of my motive is to promote myself? What if I choose not to plug my blog through Facebook anymore and trust God to grow my readership outside of Facebook?
Statistics from my blog site reinforce the direction I want to move. Out of 340 friends, I see 10% of them on the homepage on any given day. When I post my blog on Facebook, I’m guessing approximately three hundred friends never see it on their homepage. In addition, my blog site shows Facebook as a “referrer,” so I know how many people access my blog from Facebook. The most I’ve seen is about 2% of all of my “friends.” Moreover, the 2% of people who read my blog post through Facebook are already subscribers.
So where do I go from here? The answer would be easy if Mark Zuckerberg decided to start charging anyone who uses his page to promote a business or product. I would bow out. There is so much promotion to wade through that I am starting to lose interest. It is like reading a local newspaper filled with press releases and advertising, making it hard to find the news. If I’m working hard to get past advertisements and promotions, then I bet you are too, which means the chance of your taking the time to read what I have to offer is pretty slim.
Your opinion matters. I am leaning strongly toward pulling my blog from Facebook. I’m sick of the clutter and tired of contributing to it. More importantly, I don’t want to elevate myself through Facebook. I trust God to promote my blog as long as I honor Him in my writing. Do you think it’s a mistake to quit promoting my blog through FB?
Blessings,
Lee Ann
That decision is totally up to you Lee Ann. Are your motives to promote yourself or to promote God? I don’t see any difference in whether you continue to use facebook or some other form of getting the word out that you have a blog who’s focus is on what God is doing in your life. I see that as your goal not where you market it. If however the advertisements are distracting on a free site like facebook, do as you wish. I don’t even see the ads (I know they are there they just don’t distract me) and I have many Christian pages that I’ve liked that I follow daily that fill me with God’s word every morning when I log on.
Hi, Nicki:
My primary motive is to promote God and His love and faithfulness. But it is also true that part of my motive to post my blog on FB is to promote myself. So my motive is both/and, not either/or. I, like you, have a variety of authors I follow, but I subscribe to their sites, and I get their blogs in my personal email box, which is my preference. I just want FB to be a place to keep connections with family and friends. But now it’s a major trafficker of promos. It just looks like a chaotic, frenzied arena of ads and promotions, and I am just soured by it. I believe going forward that I most likely will not use FB as a place to publish my blog as WordPress is a more than adequate site who will get the word out for those who subscribe.
Please know how much I appreciate your thoughts on this subject. You continue to be a great supporter and faithful reader of my blog, which means so much to me. Thanks, friend!!
Blessings,
Lee Ann
I can see where it is a slippery slope, on one hand you are not comfortable with FB because of the commercialism, and I get that, and I agree about how many people are really reading it. That is one reason I am doing a 90 day blitz with FB, I may come to the same conclusion. In the last 10 days since I have been posting to FB, I get very few friends or even family reading what I am doing. And the point is not so much to reach them but to reach past them. If I understand FB correctly if a person clicks on “like or comment” it goes to their list of friends. I too have not seen this happen yet. But I digress, the vision you have is God led, I don’t see it as promoting yourself. If you didn’t want any recognition all your blogs would be anonymous. But God does not want you to be anonymous. He wants people to see you, know who you are, leading by example and that’s why being everywhere you can is so important. If you only go to certain area’s, who are you trying to reach? The unsaved search everywhere. They are searching for answers, for examples and for things to read. Yeah, FB is like a newspaper, good analogy, and we want people getting into reading again. You are now syndicated in a world wide newspaper. If you are blogging and it only takes a second to post to FB, who knows how God will use that. Again this is a personal choice, but I don’t see being on FB as promoting yourself, but promoting your trust in God, promoting your lifestyle which people are craving and thumbing satan as to say, I will reach someone from any means possible. Do you really want to judge what is right or wrong with FB? You have such a great blog, what if 1 person came to Christ through FB? Would that make it all worth it? Food for Thought. 🙂
Love you my friend and will support you regardless your decision.
Ro
Hi, Ro:
I loved your word “commercialism” as it captures the overall impact that FB is having on me. I wish I had thought of it for my blog! You have offered a very compelling argument for continuing to post on FB. I will keep praying through this.
Thanks for your love and support, Ro!
Blessings,
Lee Ann
Lee Ann, let me first say I am one if those people who rarely posts to fb and rarely gets a chance to keep up with others; however, today I decided to read what you had to say. First, let me say the first time I read something of yours was when your Dad was sick in the hospital, you motivated me then. I am a Christian, and I will let you know how I feel God prompting me. First, I am taking the time to respond that should say something. Second, what is God saying for you to do? He has always made my way clear and blessed me mightily for obedience. Third, didn’t the shepherd leave to go find just one? It only takes one person to know God through your words and that definitely makes it worth it and not for you. I will also say that if it were not for a hundred people like you my husband probably would never have accepted Christ. You see he likes to think of himself as a “chia” Christian – it took a lot of seeds and lots of watering before he sprouted. Keep up the blessed work and may God bless you mightily here as well as in heaven. Tammy
Hi, Tammy:
Thank you for sharing what God was prompting you to pass along to me! The emergence of this blog post came out of what I believe God is challenging me on – “quit promoting yourself.” There is nothing wrong with having a blog and sharing how He has moved in my life and how I believe He can move in my readers. WordPress is a more than adequate site to publish my blog, and my writing will make it to FB by folk like you who decide to “share” my link on FB. If God is honored by what I write, He will prompt others to share this in another venue. So right now, to answer your question on what I think God is saying, I think He’s saying “quit cluttering the FB world with yet another promo and cloaking it as ‘sharing God’s Word.'”
Your point on the shepherd seeking a sheep who strays is an interesting one. In that analogy my sheep are my subscribers, those whom He has already entrusted to me. My trust in God is to watch him “expand my territory” of who to impact. But that will happen using WordPress as my platform.
Tammy, I hope you’ll consider subscribing to my blog. There is a strong chance that I will not be posting my blog through FB in the future. THANK YOU for your continued support and encouragment of my writing. May God continue to bless you and yours!!
Blessings,
Lee Ann
Lee Ann, i’ve never had the impression that you are trying to promote yourself in any way. If you were not to use fb, would you continue to email your blog or would you just post your blog and leave it to chance as to whether or not people access it? Personally, i believe your writing is helpful and a blessing and enjoy reading it. If you were trying to sell something or receive financial gain, or if you were trying to garner the sympathy of your readers – it could be looked at as self-serving, BUT it is none of these. You need to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit and do whatever you believe God would have you do.
Sent from my iPhone
Hi, Sandy:
Thanks so much for your input. It is very helpful to hear your perception that it’s not about promoting myself. You asked how I would be getting the word out on my blog if I punt FB, and the answer is that I gave a “call to action” to subscribe through my post entitled, “Do You Read Me?” Readers who connect with my writing were invited to subscribe because I will no longer send out an email blast from my personal email. WordPress sends out the emails to anyone who subscribes, so I am simplifying the process. So the bottom line is that subscribers will be notified, and anyone else who chose not to subscribe will have to bookmark my site and look at it when they want to. It is certainly public, so anyone can find me if they know my name!
I am still praying through this, and your counsel to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit is right on. It was the conviction I was feeling within that caused me to write on this conflict to begin with.
Blessings and Hugs,
Lee Ann
I agree pull the plug.
JOAN CURTIS
Joan,
I do feel I am moving in that direction. Even if I were not feeling the spiritual tension in this conflict, I question the efficacy of FB as a real way to reach people. Thanks for your continued support and encouragment!
Blessings,
Lee Ann
hey Lee Ann, I can’t tell you what the Holy Spirit is telling you, but I can share what He has told me personally. I am 34 and have never signed up for facebook, and although I have friends who frequently tell me that I need to, I just never have. For me, the Lord has never given the green light to go ahead so I haven’t. Why not facebook for me? I don’t know and I am sure that many would say that it’s just not that big of a deal, but the bigger issue is whether I obey Him or not. What I do know is that He has His reasons and is not obligated to tell me what they are, but it is my job to listen and obey. So I would say do whatever He tells you to do, and ultimately you will be blessed as you chose to stay in His perfect will for your life.
Alicia,
I so appreciate your sensitivity to the Holy Spirit and your clear stance that obedience to Him is a non-negotiable. This is something I have always admired in you. I believe the Holy Spirit has spoken to me, and I just need to trust God to grow my readership. You’re right, the blessing will be all mine!
Thank you again for your continued encouragement and support of this writing ministry.
Blessings and Hugs,
Lee Ann
What a timely subject. Until your recent post I had not been on facebook in about 3 months. I deactivated my account a week after the election. I just couldn’t take the vile comments and although I was contributing my two cents to the cause, it made me feel filthy to be in the battle. I too joined fb in order to share pictures and what’s going on with family and friends. When I look at my friend list now (which is short in comparison with most) it is made up of old high school friends, (who I actually am not really ‘friends’ with) neighbors from Texas who I promised to keep in touch with and others who I don’t get to see on a regular basis such as family in other states. Clicking “like” occasionally is not a form of staying in touch, to me. On the other hand, I know how busy my family are and enjoy seeing photos of my nieces and nephews.
So when I checked my fb page for the first time in 3 months did I feel I’d missed anything? Nope. I have literally redeemed time I was wasting. I am so thankful for being out of the loop. I know people check fb before bed and first thing in the morning and write what they’re doing in between! But I also have friends who do not do Facebook at all. They are quite literate and well informed despite that fact! My cousin Todd has a fb site especially for his book and if I get back on I will do one just for my Shaklee business. I know he feels it is crucial to meet people this way. So you might consider two separate fb pages, one personal, one for the blog. As someone commented to you earlier, people are searching and someone may find you in that way.
But I would certainly support your pulling out if you feel led that way. And if anyone knows how to actually ‘clean sweep’ the account, rather than just ‘deactivating’ it let me know!
Hi, Shari:
I resonate with everything you’ve shared about FB. I could leave it alone for three months, come back to it, and realize I haven’t really missed anything. I, too, agree that hitting the “like” button to acknowledge someone’s post is not a genuine form of “staying in touch.” I am still processing the culture of FB and am considering another post to challenge Christians to evaluate with integrity their use of it. Right now, I am still answering self-imposed questions as to why I use it to tag why it remains tempting to check it with a regular frequency. That variable alone bothers me!
I have considered the idea of having a separate FB page for my blog to separate it from my personal site, but for me, it still is another form of clogging the homepage anytime I would announce a new post. It still frustrates me to see someone else’s FB pages for business right in the middle of each page I try to scan. So no matter what a second FB page might be, I still feel that over the last two months, there is that “still small voice” that says punt this. It just doesn’t feel right. I, like Todd, desire to write a book on Living Giving. I am a student of Michael Hyatt on how to build a stronger platform. Hyatt was the former CEO of the Christian publisher, Thomas Nelson Publishing, and I follow his ministry to pour into others, whether his topic is leadership, or how to get your platform up and running, etc. His book, Platform: Get Noticed in a Noisy World, and his Platform University is outstanding. As a Christian, he truly gets those of us who see what we do on the internet as a MINISTRY to touch the lives of others. He emphasizes that our home base has to be strong and one in which we have full control. FB is not one of them! I already have a strong vision for a website and am close to buying a domain name. I see the tabs that will include my blog, my teaching ministry at the church, a podcast, a Wednesday evening format called “The Bible without Borders” and share material with others, etc. Some may think I am getting busier, but the fact is I have already invested the time to write, put SS lessons together that I email to my class members each week for their file, and all I’m wanting to do is share them with a wider audience. I see maybe mentoring other teachers down the road.
It is true that people may search me and find my blog in the process. That is not to be discounted, but my belief is if God really wants me to be read by someone else, He will show them how to get to my blog and subscribe to it if they feel led to do so. The other point to make is that I am just not announcing future blog posts to clutter the homepage. Anyone who is a “friend” (very loose term) can still see my older posts on my timeline and out of curiousity click my wordpress link. So they can still locate this blog.
Shari, I appreciate your time and effort to comment as I do the others who have taken time to comment. I think as Christians we need to keep asking some harder questions about this. Let’s have the courage to keep dialoguing on this!
Love and Hugs,
Lee Ann
Hey Lee Ann,
I love your blog. I will say that although I like the “noise” on FB, I understand many do not. For my business, personal relationships are crucial and FB has more than expanded that arena for me. I feel like it was a gift. Where else can I say goofy things and still get business from it?
That being said, I completely understand how you might feel that the crass commercialism of the platform is counter intuitive to your purpose of letting God’s light shine through your writing.
But here’s my take on it: as someone above said, you’ve never seemed to promote yourself to me either so I would have never thought you were struggling with that issue. In fact, I get a great sense of calm after reading your work and feel that it is, indeed Divinely inspired. However if YOU feel that you are promoting yourself and not the Word – then by all means, listen to God’s direction and do what you know He’s telling you to do. God rarely yells at us, he just whispers His directions and it’s up to us to be quiet enough to hear Him. You’ve heard Him. Don’t second guess it.
I’ll read your work no matter what. ♥
Hi, Dana:
I always appreciate your perspective and insights. I do appreciate knowing that you don’t perceive me promoting myself. As I shared in another reply, my dilemma is both/and, not either/or. I believe I am BOTH promoting God’s word AND promoting self. The dilemma is whether I should publish on FB when promoting myself is also in the motive.
I am feeling enough spiritual tension with this such that I prefer to stick with WordPress and to trust God to grow my readership apart from FB. Thank you so much for your continued support and encouragement, Dana. You have been on this journey since I began blogging, and I am so grateful that God placed you in my life!
Blessings,
Lee Ann
Hmmm. I am not a fan of Facebook and my generation, in general, doesn’t use it to live their lives like my daughter’s do, I don’t consider your blog self promotion, since you are sharing your walk with Christ. I am glad to hear your message wherever you post it. JoAnn
Thank you, JoAnn. I appreciate that you’ll read whatever inspirations God gives me wherever I post it 🙂 In the end, I need to follow the Spirit’s leadership on this matter, but it helps to test out what I believe I’m hearing with others who use FB frequently and for a variety of reasons.
Thank you again for taking time out to comment on a matter that is very important to me. Your opinion matters along with the test!
Blessings and Hugs,
Lee Ann