This is not the post on Facebook that tells you I am taking a break from Social Media because I’m just so stressed out by the pressure to look a certain way or do a certain thing. Nope, this is the post on Facebook and my website that is me telling you I completely suck at Social Media. I just can’t keep up anymore. My Social Media game really started flailing badly when Reels became the standard across all industry and media.
This is not a cry for help. It’s a stance.
I am in a state of continual awe of my younger counterparts who have these amazing Social Media presences. I love their pages, their humor, their videos. I’m in awe of the people who are sponsored riders and have the wherewithal to be great spokespeople for various equestrian products and wares. Truly, and I REALLY appreciate their discount codes!! But I am not these people. I am a middle aged woman, whose self-conscious about her looks. I hate having my photo taken. I live in a world of denial trying to take my own selfies knowing that I am the Social Media Accounts Manager of my business and boy…does that lady need to take some classes.
I simply can’t bring myself to do it. And it’s not because I’m not trying. I will take videos here and there. I have ideas for things and maybe in the future you’ll see those ideas come to fruition. It is fun to do, when there is time. The Social Media Sphere changes really quickly. I notice these changes on a day to day basis, and as I mentioned previously, I can’t keep up. Also, I don’t want to. I literally DO NOT want to keep up with the latest songs, themes and viral trends. I don’t have time, my mind sees the trends, my mouth laughs at them, my thumb hits the like button and I move on.
Perhaps this confession is shocking to you. “OH MARGO NO!!! NEVER ACCEPT DEFEAT YOU CAN DO THIS!! HERE I WILL HELP YOU MAKE REELS IT’S NOT THAT HARD!!!” I’m sure you can. But it’s okay. I do know how to edit videos. I have, somewhere, a selfie stick. I have equipment. I’m sure I can watch YouTube to figure out how to find good angles and make attractive videos. I bet there is an app somewhere I haven’t heard of that will do the bulk of this for me provided I have some raw content.
…and of course there is AI. I could have our future Robot Overlords churn this stuff out for me. But I won’t.
I have told you, and been truly honest about my feelings on Social Media. It’s a valuable marketing tool, fun, entertaining. I have, to my mind reasonable explanations that apply only to me and perhaps others of my age and budget. I can’t and don’t stay totally on trend with Social Media at all times because my mind, at 45 years of age, doesn't think about doing it. And what I’m about to say IS NOT MEANT TO BE AN INSULT TO THE PEOPLE WHOSE MINDS DO WORK IN THE SOCIAL MEDIA REFLEX WAY…I already told you I admire them greatly. All kudos to these women. Keep up the good work. I totally mean it.
I am not saying I’m old or uncool or morally and intellectually superior. What I am saying is that I am different. And per usual, I would like to assure all my other “different” people out there that it is okay. While Social Media is an affordable option for advertising and EVERYTHING is content there is this part of me that is quite stubborn. The part of me that puts a lot of work into my barn, spending a lot of time looking at my horses, talking to my clients. Getting to know both horse and rider. Figuring out what their daily needs are and making those things happen. There is also a part of me, the part that reads the New Yorker, finds a think piece, engaging. Interesting. I appreciate it when people take a moment to communicate their thoughts. Visual communication may be taking over the world, but I am traditional and still like to write. So here we are. Social media… Throwback style!
Now, like it’s 2004, I will TELL YOU WITH WORDS I have a great many wonderful, viable, relevant skills you as horse owner and potential client would appreciate. I’ve been with horses coming 40 years now. I’ve watched them, cared for them, ridden them. I can spot a collic quickly. I so consistently feed our herd of horses I have the entire feed list memorized and can go through it without missing a beat or a supplement or medication. I have a lot of tricks for getting horses into trailers, and shower stalls. I’m a whiz with currycombs and saddle soap. I can recommend excellent saddle pads, shampoos, and fly sprays. Just ask me! I’m not irrelevant, I’m vintage.
I know each horse and each rider in my barn very well, both are important to me and I consider both horse and owner my client. I can tell if either one of them is off. To me, I don’t know how to put chirpy music behind a video of me having a conversation in the barn with the Mom whose daughter is going through a tough time with her chronic illness. I don’t know that me watching a horse walk a little funny in the arena trying to decide if he’s lame or if there is a dip in the footing would make good content. It might but some of the most important moments in the barn are personal or sponataneous. Without hiring a film crew to keep track of us all the time, many awesome moments get missed by cameras because we are living them. In the moment, as it happens.
It is because I am very present there, at the barn consumed with the horses and people we care for is why my digital accounts are sometimes wanting. I am, right where I am, doing what I am very best at, having totally forgotten to make a reel for Instagram. And I think that’s how it should be.