Use Your Words
Sometimes you just want to send up a flare: tweet a song from Shazam; post a photo from your road trip; embed a YouTube video you just found. I get that. I do that. That’s the joy of microblogging.
But, you know, that doesn’t need to be the only way.
Friends, if we’re going to grow up, we’re going to have to start using our words. Describing things simply as “awesome” and “ridiculous” and “amazing” is not going to cut it if we’re going to help each filter through the masses of music and photos and exhibits and websites and phones and news and Tweets and contests whizzing by us every day.
I’m the first to admit that I overuse these shortcut phrases, even purposefully. I have as much room for improvement as anyone.
Word of mouth referrals are just as important as ever, but we have these tools that make it terribly easy to shotgun our commentary and recommendations without putting much thought into the other end. We need real adjectives, real nouns, and less hyperbole. We need calibrated, honest assessments of songs and YouTube videos and tech reviews. We need meaningful context.
You want me to buy concert tickets? Tell me why you like this artist. Tell me your favorite songs, and what about them to you love, and how they make you feel. Tell me about the first time you heard it. Take the time to tell me something that makes it real.
We can do this. We can use technology to communicate effectively.
OneTwoThree Go.
