Social Media for Seniors
Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest are the main social media platforms people use. Facebook is often used to keep conections with family, Twitter is usually used to spew thoughts, Instagram is a great blogging platform and Pinterest is a great app to keep all your favorite things in one place. Here you were learn about social media for seniors and how seniors can use social media.
I am not sure when I first heard about each of the above social media websites, but when I did, I knew I was going to be spending some intimate time with my computer. To be honest, I am somewhat of a technology enthusiast. I am not on the cutting edge, but I do love to explore new technology and new sites.
How Social Media for Seniors Can Be Used
I remember when I was first introduced to email, which now seems like it happened in the dark ages in 1993. While it was exciting on the one hand, on the other hand it was the demise of good old fashioned writing for me.
Today, I literally cannot live without email, or text messaging for that matter. Text messaging is the primary way I communicate with my daughters and it feels good because we can group message in real time. Commiserating with each other like when the Baltimore Ravens lost to the New England Patriots in their Division Playoff Game, or cheering together like when Ethan, now two, went on the potty.
Text Messaging
I have plenty of friends who ask me how I can stand text messaging with the girls and not talking. It is easy. They both work and when they come home the last thing they want to do is talk to me. They want to spend time with their husbands and kids. If I have a question, I get an almost immediate answer via text message as opposed to leaving a phone message and waiting for them to get back to me.
All of this is to say that social media is a fun, informative and educational outlet you might want to try if you haven’t already.
What is Social Media?
There are a lot of different definitions of social media, but in short, social media is a form of communication with people through the use of technology.
Now we will get into how to use social media for seniors.
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I first dipped my toes into the world of social media through Facebook. It is free and very easy to set up an account. You can create a profile, upload pictures and videos, send public and private messages, connect and reconnect with friends. You can only look at a person’s full profile if that person has “friended” you, or vice versa. In other words, if you do not want to be “friends” with someone, it is easy to say no and it is easy to “unfriend” someone.
I love Facebook if for no other reason than it keeps me up to date on the lives of my friends and families and their birthdays, which in turn serves as a reminder to me to send a message. When I see something that a friend or contact is doing, I can comment on it or simply “like” it.
I was a little hesitant about using Twitter, an online social networking service that allows users to send and read short 140- character messages called "tweets,” because I never knew I had it in me to say something in as little as 140 characters, but I have gotten the hang of it!
I primarily use Twitter to keep up to date on topics of interest to me and to send out an occasional political or headline rant.
This is a great platform for those who like to take pictures. For seniors, they can use it as an online journal. Seniors are able to snap photos of grandchildren and write captions for the photos, and when the post is published, Instagram even tells you the publication date. This makes it easier to look at life events from years ago, all on your phone.
I recently discovered Pinterest when I was planning our trip to Disney World and wanted to find appropriate activities there for various ages. Since then, I have discovered it is a wealth of recipes, decorating advice and activities to do with grandchildren.
Pinterest is also a great way to get all the things you love in one place. You can make different boards. You can make boards specifically for cute dogs, fashion, makeup, food and recipes. The possibilities are endless.
Now You Know About Social Media for Seniors
I have had a great time writing this article. It gave me a chance to go onto my favorite social media sites and catch up on new videos and postings.