So, Want To Follow James Spann On Social Media?

People have referred to me as a “social media expert”. Nope… I am not. And, I am not sure there is such a thing. But, I do enjoy interacting with people, and I have connected with many via social media platforms over the past 10 years.

Here is a look at what to expect if you follow me….

*Nobody has access to my accounts but me. I have no staff, and no “helpers”. Every post and tweet is from me. It takes much of my time, but I enjoy the interaction. But remember, there are a few times when I am “off the grid”.

*I do my best to answer all questions. I really do. But, when the weather is really active (especially during winter storm threats and severe weather situations), I simply can’t answer every one of them. This blog is where we post long, detailed, frequent updates, and I always send people here anyway. Social media is NOT a good long form platform for crucial weather information.

*Constructive criticism is welcome, and needed. But, if you are a troll, hater, or know-it-all that is looking for a fight, be prepared to be blocked. I block first and ask questions later… my social media accounts always feature good, in depth discussions and there is no room for a troll. Go troll somebody else.

*You will get occasional plugs for Big Brains Media shows (our new media business). I work long, hard hours at social media with no compensation… the best way you can support me is to listen to Big Brains shows that appeal to you. Most of the weather geeks know about WeatherBrains, but we do some other cool shows too, with many more exciting things in the pipeline.

Where to find me….

GOOGLE PLUS: Honestly, this is my favorite platform of all. Yeah, I know… most say they just hear crickets when they try it. My advice… give it a chance. I often post the most detailed information there because Google Plus is so effective. Join, and “circle up” some good sources of news and weather information. Put the Google Plus app on your phone and tablet. I believe Google is 100 percent behind this social media network, and it has a great future. Some really, really good weather experts hang out there, and we use their video platform (Google Hangouts) for WeatherBrains every Monday night.

I have found very few trolls and haters, and the discussion is excellent. Come join us. You just might find yourself using less and less Facebook.

I do not put automated severe weather warnings on Google Plus… but I do post frequent weather updates, including important posts during severe weather.

TWITTER: Love the nature of the short messages. It is like a breaking newswire. I have almost 100,000 followers, and they are from all over.

Let me caution you… if you follow me on Twitter, be ready for lots of tweets in your timeline. Most are about weather, but for some reason I have become the “information bureau”, meaning I get some very important tweets about traffic and breaking news. I retweet all of the information I get that is useful to large numbers of people. You follow me, and you will know what goes on around Alabama. And, in many cases, the country.

And, yes, I love sunrise/sunset pictures. If you hate them, you might not want to follow me.

Like Google Plus, I do not automate severe weather warnings on Twitter. We have an account called @ewarn where you can get all Alabama severe weather watches and warnings.

But, I will post frequent severe weather updates during active events on Twitter.

FACEBOOK: Let me say up front Facebook is not a good platform for getting severe weather information. Due to the FB “Edge Rank” algorithm, you won’t get all of my updates in your news feed, generally speaking. So, do not use this as a primary method of getting severe weather warnings.

I do understand Facebook has the largest number of users in Alabama, and I understand I have to be there with frequent, useful, and relevant updates. But, I must admit I am very frustrated. Facebook wants us to pay big bucks to reach most of our followers, and I get the idea the problem will only get worse in coming years. This why I REALLY want you to come over and join us on Google Plus.

Warnings are automatically posted to my Facebook account, and I post frequent updates there as well.

It is important to note I reached my 5,000 friend limit years ago. But, I can have an unlimited number of followers/subscribers (the account has over 100,000 followers now).

And, in addition to the regular account, I also have a “like page” with over 120,000 likes. This is open and you can post pictures, video, or share important weather reports to me and the world. I check it often, but most of the weather updates are on the regular account.

INSTAGRAM: You are welcome to share pictures with me this way… I am “@spannpix”. Here I post the “best of the best” pictures from the “Spann Twitter Army”… the shots are simply beautiful if you cruise over there.

I do have a Pinterest account… but I must admit I have not really done much with that platform. And, I have ended my FourSquare checkins in an effort to simplify my digital life. I do checkins using Google Plus, and I keep them private so people won’t be bothered with them in their Google Plus feed. I just like to keep a running diary of all the cool places I visit. You don’t need to be bothered with that.

Linkedin? No presence for now.

So, if you dare, come along and connect. The ride together will be fun.

Tags: social media

Category: Hodgepodge