Updated on December 22nd, 2023
As a blogger I feel like I need to have a presence on all social media platforms from Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, LinkedIn, YouTube, Bloglovin’, Tumblr, etc., but is it necessary to have that many social media accounts and which ones are actually worth joining?
For this post, I wanted to share how I use each social media platform as well as the pros and cons I found, and if I would recommend it as a blogger. Also, if you are looking for a high-speed internet service to browse these social media platforms on, you can check out the plans for various internet providers, including att internet, to find the one that meets your needs.
Bloglovin’
I rarely use Bloglovin’, but my blog is linked to my Bloglovin’ profile to share my posts automatically. I know most bloggers use Bloglovin’, but honestly, I am unsure what to do besides automatically sharing my posts and following other bloggers. Also, I have only received a couple of views each year from Bloglvin’ and lately Bloglovin’ has been having many issues with their site being down and profiles cannot be accessed.
Would I recommend Bloglovin’? No
I mainly use Facebook for Messenger and to join blogger groups. I have not had a Facebook page for my blog for the longest time, but I know many bloggers do have a page. From what I have seen, it is hard to grow your audience for a Facebook page, and you also have to pay to promote your posts to larger audiences, resulting in a low activity level of people who have liked, commented, or shared your posts. I do not see having a page as necessary, and it is not worth spending money on. I recommend joining blogger groups, though, because you can share your blog posts with other bloggers throughout the week.
Would I recommend Facebook? Yes, but only for Facebook groups
I have never used Flipboard before, but it can be useful for bloggers. Flipboard is a bit different because you create a Flipboard Magazine that includes articles, social media posts, photos, videos, etc. You can then share your magazine on your blog, in emails, or on other social media accounts, and readers can flip your content where they add it to their own magazine. A fellow blogger commented that she uses Flipboard, but she has not noticed an increase in blog views, so I would only recommend Flipboard if you have the time and making magazines sounds fun to you.
Would I recommend Flipboard? No
Google+ (No Longer Available)
I cannot even remember the last time I logged into Google+. I know some bloggers like to share their posts and other blogger’s posts on Google+, but I do not know how effective it is at getting views for your blog. When Google+ was available, I never noticed an increase in my blog’s views from there.
My Instagram started out as a personal account, but now I use it around 50/50 to promote my blog posts and share personal images. I find it difficult to find other bloggers to follow unless I know their usernames, and it is also difficult to grow my following. I was stuck at 1,500 followers for a long time before I found other bloggers to follow through Twitter threads.
Also, I hate the algorithm because there is no telling what will show up, and it is very easy to miss other bloggers’ posts unless I go to their accounts. Now Instagram has stated that it is no longer a photo-sharing platform and the focus will now be on video content. With all the changes, Instagram is no longer a reliable source for blog views. I only use Instagram about once a week or even less because I honestly do not enjoy it. I would only recommend Instagram if you like sharing pictures and creating short video content.
Would I recommend Instagram? No, not anymore
I created a LinkedIn account when I started my master’s program, but I rarely use it. I know some bloggers create a LinkedIn profile because it looks more professional to have an account, and you can also join groups dedicated to bloggers and find jobs with brands or copywriting and social media work, but I do not think it is necessary especially if you are blogging as a hobby. Personally, I only know one blogger who has or at least promotes their LinkedIn profile, and I would not recommend it because there are better platforms to join.
Would I recommend LinkedIn? No
I mainly use Pinterest to share my pins in blogging groups and repin other bloggers’ posts. I have heard of bloggers who have gotten tons of blog views from Pinterest, but I am lucky to have had several hundred extra views from Pinterest. As far as boards, I do like being able to have different boards with separate topics so I can have some boards that are related to my blog and others related to more personal topics.
If you want to use Pinterest, I suggest using Canva to create a Pinterest graphic for each of your blog posts so when your post is published, you already have a picture ready to be pinned. I recommend using Pinterest if you have the time to create graphics and share them in Pinterest groups, otherwise, it is a great way to find out about other bloggers’ posts.
Would I recommend Pinterest? Yes
Medium
Medium is a platform where you can share your writings on any topic. I know several bloggers who use Medium, but I do not know if they have seen an increase in their blog views from using the platform. One of the bloggers uses Medium because they wanted to make some extra money since Medium has a Partner Program for monetization, and they were not making any money on their blog. They have earned small amounts from sharing their writings on Medium.
I have also read that bloggers who have used Medium to republish their blog posts, the Medium posts will rank higher on search engines, and therefore, their posts on their own blogs are not seen. There is also the issue of duplicate content if you republish posts on Medium and do not write unique content there. I would not recommend Medium for republishing your posts, but if you have the time to write unique content, you can potentially earn a little bit of money.
Would I recommend Medium? No
Myspace
Does anyone still use Myspace? Myspace was a popular social media platform back in the day, but I do not know anyone who still uses the platform. However, Myspace does seem popular among musicians, but as far as using Myspace to share your blog posts, I do not recommend it because there are so few active users compared to other social media platforms like Twitter and Instagram.
Would I recommend Myspace? No
Quora
On Quora, people ask questions that others can answer. You could potentially answer questions and include your blog post link in your answer for people to visit. However, you could spend a lot of time just looking for questions you can answer. It might be beneficial to see what questions people are asking because it can help you figure out what to write a blog post about. However, I do not recommend looking for questions you can potentially answer and including your blog post link.
Would I recommend Quora? No
I have a reddit account, but I do not use it to submit my blog post links. I do know some bloggers will share their posts on various subreddits, which will then increase their views. However, your submission may be downvoted (yes that is a thing on reddit), and you may receive negative comments. I would only recommend reddit as a last resort and instead, focus your time and energy on other social media platforms.
Would I recommend reddit? No
Snapchat
I only know a few people who still use Snapchat, but none are bloggers. On Snapchat, you can share pictures or short 30-second videos that can only be viewed for 24 hours (similar to the Instagram Stories feature). Snapchat also allows you to add links to your pictures or videos, but as I said, I do not know any bloggers who use Snapchat for their blogs.
Would I recommend Snapchat? No
StumbleUpon (Now Mix)
I have briefly used StumbleUpon and Mix to share my blog posts. From what I have seen, StumbleUpon/Mix is good for exposure, and some of your posts can get a ton of views, but you will have a poor bounce rate. Since people are just stumbling onto your post, they will only visit it for 1 second without reading anything before they move onto another site. It is also a hit or a miss with which of your posts will get views. I have not had any success with StumbleUpon or Mix.
Now it seems that Mix has solely become a mobile app and people are comparing it to a boring version of TikTok, and there has been a shift from article-based content to video content in the app, so it does not seem like Mix is good to use for blog posts anymore.
Would I recommend StumbleUpon/Mix? No
TikTok
TikTok has been growing in popularity, and on TikTok, you make short videos that have the chance of going viral. Also, TikTok recently expanded the maximum video length to 10 minutes, but it seems most videos are still less than 3 minutes (the old limit). I know several bloggers who regularly create blog-related videos as well as videos from their everyday life, and they do get a decent amount of views and engagement on TikTok, but I do not know if the videos have any impact on their blog views. If you do like making shorter video content, TikTok may be worthwhile, but for me, I personally do not like creating video content, so I will only use TikTok to watch others’ videos.
Would I recommend TikTok? No
Tumblr
I actually started my blog on Tumblr, but then I switched over to WordPress and deleted my account. Tumblr was fun to use at first, but I ended up feeling disconnected from the community. You cannot leave comments like you normally do on blog posts, and if you want to talk to someone, you have to do so through their Asks. For me, Tumblr is like another blogging platform, so I would not recommend using it if you already have a blog. Also, if you do use Tumblr to republish your blog posts, there is the issue of duplicate content.
Would I recommend Tumblr? No
I started out having a personal Twitter account, and it still mainly is, but I also have my blog connected to my account. When I publish a blog post, I share it on my account. Along with sharing my blog posts, I also share other bloggers’ posts as well as anything thing else I find cute or interesting. Twitter has increased the character limit from 140 to 280 characters, so now you can write longer tweets without worrying about being cut off.
I also find it easy to find other bloggers to follow and to grow my followers, and it is also easy to find blogging opportunities with the bloggerswanted and bloggersrequired hashtags. Twitter is hands down my favorite social media platform to use, and I would recommend it because you can share anything you want from blog posts to pictures to just text, and Twitter is one of my highest social media sources for blog views.
Would I recommend Twitter: Yes!
YouTube
First off, I only recently started a YouTube channel to share cozy gameplay videos that I may mention on my blog. Some bloggers feel like it is necessary to have both a blog and a YouTube channel, but I do not think it is. However, it is totally up to you to decide if you want to start a channel, but you need to make sure you have the time to film and edit videos, write and edit posts, and take pictures for your blog. You also need to be aware that growing your channel is a slow process, just like growing a blog.
YouTube has also changed the requirements to become monetized, and now you need 4,000 hours of watched videos in the last 12 months and at least 1,000 subscribers. I know several bloggers who have started channels and then quit, so I do not recommend starting a YouTube channel unless you have enough time and enjoy making videos.
Would I recommend YouTube? No
In my 2021 blog post roundup, most of my blog’s views are from search engines and the WordPress Reader, followed by Pinterest, Twitter, and Facebook. Pinterest, Twitter, and Facebook were also my highest sources of views from social media platforms in 2022 and 2023. I recommend sticking to 1-3 social media platforms for your blog because it is difficult to manage 10 different accounts, and it can take up so much time.
According to Chren says
Pinterest and Twitter are our main platforms. Everything else feels like a lot of effort and doesn’t get bloggers good results.
talesofbelle says
Pinterest and Twitter are my main ones too, but I do get some fews from Facebook groups too. All the other platforms do take a lot of effort and don’t really help with views
I also find this post helpful. I’ve recently rebranded and started a new blog and I’ve been thinking of ways to reach my target audience. Twitter really help me increase my views and grow my following. I’m not that active on Pinterest, but your post inspired me to create pins again. Thank you and hope you’ll have a great New Year!
That’s great to hear you found this post helpful, and congrats with your rebrand! Twitter is really helpful, and I only create 1 pin for each of my blog posts and that’s plenty for me to actually notice an increase in views from Pinterest
Thank you!
I almost gave up on Instagram due to the algorithm! I also agree with Bloglovin’; it’s a dead site anyway since they switched over to try to help bloggers with opportunities (don’t think that’s going over well for them). I’m definitely going to try more with Pinterest; I just made a bunch of new pins for posts I already wrote. This was a very insightful post 🙂
Yea I don’t use Instagram that much anymore. Bloglovin’ is dead and I haven’t heard anything about them helping with opportunities so I agree it’s not going well for them.
That’s great! I only make 1 pin for each of my posts and that’s plenty for me to notice an increase in views from Pinterest
I totally agree with the biggest part of your list – I used to have a Bloglovin account, and for some reason or other my account just disappeared
Yea Bloglovin is having a lot of issues and I just checked now, and I can’t even access their site. I think it is a dead site now
I think choosing few social accounts that works well for you is the best way to go than wasting time trying to use all.
I completely agree! There is no point being active on all social media accounts especially when some accounts aren’t even good for getting blog views
I loved reading your takes with these social platforms. There are several that I don’t use and have felt as though I should join, but I’m glad to hear that you wouldn’t recommend them with your experience. Thank you for sharing!
You’re welcome! Yes there are so many social media platforms out there & even if they’re recommended for bloggers, they’re not always the best or most helpful to use!
This is so useful. I definitely won’t be wasting my time with social media platforms that arent going to help.
Exactly! It’s good to focus on social media platforms that actually help bloggers
I would definitely not recommend some of these apps for blogging too Karalee! I never saw the point of Google + anyway, just seemed so pointless! x
Lucy | http://www.lucymary.co.uk
I didn’t understand the point of Google+ either when it was around!
Very helpful
Thanks! I’m glad it was helpful 😊
❤️
haha first I started an instagram account, after that, I’ve been convinced to start a blog and yaaay I have my blog up and running or wordpress for a while now, twitter is so so… and now a facebook page 😨 the dark side. I kind of feel like i am lost. Like literally. Facebook is hectic lately and our days are fast and crazy too… and even my invitation for friends, to like the page are pretty much lost. “i sent you a notification about it”… “what notification?” …. “oh yea it’s here.” I found it much easier to reach out to my first 1000 follower on Instagram, then the first 10 on Facebook 😀 I have to admit, I am struggling with facebook.I feel like its very hard to engage with people, and it’s more about the groups now than pages… Any ideas and opinions are welcome, and thank you guys!
this is my insta 🙂
http://www.instagram.com/nono.nemeth
this is my blog 😄 http://www.theworldthroughmyglasses.org
Like I said I don’t think a Facebook page is worth it b/c even if you put in a lot of time, it is really difficult to get even your friends to like your page as you mentioned. I do think it’s good to be in Facebook groups b/c you can share your posts & there are tons of different groups you can join.
If you want to keep at it w/ your Facebook page, then just keep sharing your page. Just know that it’s a slow process for pretty much everyone & even if you have a ton of followers you’ll probably still not have a lot of engagement since Facebook pretty much makes it mandatory to pay to share your posts to all your followers.
Great round up. Just started a tumblr account to see if it can help build audience, may be I should have read this post first!! 😁
Haha well I hope you’ll be successful on tumblr though! For me it is another blogging platform & I ended up falling out of love w/ it.
I use all of the above and to tell the truth I am not able to manage them and I have not seen any benefit yet.
I think that’s why you haven’t seen a benefit! If you use your energy to focus on 1-3 accounts then you’ll most likely see a benefit then!
Thanks.
Great post! I agree with everything you have written.
There are so many choices and the effectiveness varies
greatly from user to user.
The main place I get lots of traffic from is Stumbleupon by
far, this year so far about 7,000 referrals. When I make a
new post I add it to my stumbler page, which I like as a
visual reference. Using Firefox the new update changed
how the stumble bar works, so I had to revert back to the
previous version of Firefox. Most of these social media
sites are now just veiled marketing pages that want you
to pay for exposure, also “successful” bloggers and brands
actually pay for followers (or bots) so their high numbers
are not actually organic followers but paid for. It is a strange
time to be a blogger, I think the trick is to keep doing what
you enjoy doing and just use the services that work for you.
Using 6-10 different services just becomes exhausting.
Keep up the great work!
Thank you so much!
That’s amazing you’ve gotten so many referrals from StumbleUpon! I’ll have to check it out again.
I agree a lot of social media accounts require you to pay for exposure. For example Facebook requires you to pay to boost your audience on your like page’s posts & Instagram has the option to pay to promote your posts. I’ve seen a lot of people talk about buying followers too & it’s just crazy!
Wow, I feel like I could have wrote this myself! 😂
Excellent post, I relate to most of it and I think it’s very important to write something like this for all bloggers out there. Thank you for sharing!
You’re welcome! 😊 I think it’s good for bloggers to know that they don’t need to have every single social media account!
Very true! So very happy I found your blog! 😊🙏🏽👊🏽
That seems to be some great knowledge 👍 thanks for sharing. Keep Glittering,… Love TGA by Misha 😊💗👍
Thank you! 😄
Nice info 👍
Thank you!
This is a great post. I get most of my views from wordpress, which is driven by my sharing my posts on my personal Facebook page, twitter and Pinterest mostly…I notice good traffic from Pinterest, as I put the link to my story on each picture I share – it’s almost like a teaser! I agree you can spend too much time throwing too wide of a net – so many of these don’t seem to drive any viewing at all
Thank you! That’s great to hear you’ve gotten views from Pinterest & I’ll have to look into adding links to the pictures I share!
I agree & that’s why it’s great to hear about other blogger’s experiences with social media!
I’m not much a fan of instagram either! It’s just all a bit obscure and too image oriented for me. As for pinterest I actually started that as a way of gathering ideas for the first time I coloured my hair, funny how things evolve haha x
I agree with you about Instagram! Have you noticed any views from Pinterest? 😊
I’ve written about this myself, and it’s a fair question to ask. I have Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Bloglovin’, G+, Flipboard, Pinterest, and StumbleUpon. However, My posts automatically share to Facebook, Twitter, Bloglovin’, and G+ and that is pretty much it for those. I actively spend time on Instagram, Flipboard, Pinterest, and StumbleUpon because I genuinely enjoy them, and would use them without the blog. I enjoy concentrating on different networks to see what I can learn and what skills I can gain from them! Tumblr and YouTube will be forever “no” for my blog, though!
That’s a lot of accounts, but that’s nice being able to automatically share posts on some of them!
Since you do spend time on Pinterest, StumbleUpon & Flipboard, have you seen an increase in views from those sites?
Tumblr & YouTube are a no for me too since I’ve already been down the Tumblr path & I don’t want to start a channel!
Flipboard, no- BUT I would say I would be using it personally if I didn’t have a blog account so I’m not too bothered. Pinterest and StumbleUpon traffic is DEFINITELY increasing for me with consistent use, which is lovely to see. I set aside 10-20 minutes for Pinterest 3-4 days a week, and it has made a world of difference for really not too much work!
That’s great to hear you’ve seen some traffic with Pinterest & StumbleUpon. Thank you for sharing your experience & I’ll have to look into spending some time on those sites 😊
I agree – you can’t be everywhere! I stick to Facebook, mainly for groups, Twitter, and my blog also has a podcast. I do post to Google but I don’t get a lot of views that way. I had heard however that it helps with searches and it only takes a couple of seconds! I think you should also concentrate on the places where you like to be, which is why I’m not on Instagram or Pinterest!
That makes sense! I love Twitter because it’s so versatile & I didn’t know that posting to Google helps with searches so I’ll have to look into that!
Well I don’t know for sure that it does, but I thought it couldn’t hurt!
I use Instagram (@IsabellaHume – shameless plug) and my blog, because my blog is mainly dedicated to poetry, so my instagram is great way to share that with some appropriate images. I’m finding it difficult to generate traffic, but I’m hoping that by persevering it’ll work out! 🙂
Haha I followed you & I think combining poetry with images on Instagram is great & I hope you’ll be able to generate some views! 😊
I saw – thank you! Yes I’m trying to engage and generate traffic – I’ll see how it goes!
Instagram as I enjoy sharing and finding pictures, just started the blog here, linkin for professional links and my Facebook is private. I have twitter aswell and I tend to use this for following dietetic information. I think you are right that being active on too many accounts is time consuming and I only really post on here and instagram
I think that’s great you only have a few social media accounts & you only really focus on your blog & Instagram! 😊
None of my links are professional so I don’t use LinkedIn, but have you noticed any views from there?
No, most of my views are from here, Instagram and google
Oh okay!
I’ve been thinking about switching up how I promote my blog on social media, as well as my social media accounts (personal and for blogging)… You brought up a site that I used to login to religiously when I was in college: Stumbleupon. Pinterest kind of took over, so I completely forgot about it, but you mentioned it piqued my interest in sharing my posts on there. Can’t hurt to try, right? Thanks! 😊
I know a lot of bloggers have a separate personal & blog social media accounts, but I just use my personal accounts. Like I mentioned I mainly use Instagram for my blog now & for Pinterest I don’t think it’s necessary to have separate accounts since you can just create separate boards!
Especially if you have some extra time it can’t hurt using StumbleUpon again! You may be lucky & get a ton of views 😄
I have loads of social media accounts and at times it can be a bit overwhelming. I have a facebook page for my blog, an instagram account, a twitter account, a pintrest account, and a youtube channel! I totally suck at creating youtube videos, but they’re super fun to do when I have the time and feel motivated to do so!
I don’t really use Google+, I didn’t even think it could be beneficial! Great post xx
Melina | http://www.melinaelisa.com
Thank you! That is a lot of accounts! I admire you for having both a blog & a YouTube channel because that is something I could never do 😊
WordPress is enough to !!!!
I have a blog, instagram, twitter, a pinterest and a youtube. I feel like it’s impossible to manage all of them though, so my Insta and blog get the most attention. I have like 10 followers on pinterest, I just never think to use it!
I feel like there’s no way anyone needs ALL of these social media accounts, it’s better to be consistent on one or two. Anything else is just unhealthy for our sanity!
I agree there’s no need to have all of the social media accounts b/c it’s difficult to manage them!
I also only use Pinterest to repin other blogger’s posts so I don’t have many followers either.
Fellow Blogs in Bloom member here! I totally agree with this post. I have a Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Bloglovin and Pinterest. I need to be more active on my Pinterest though. It’s hard to keep up with my blog, my blog groups and my social media!
I agree it is so hard to keep up with everything & it is so easy to neglect certain social media accounts if you have too many!
I think just having a good ol’ WordPress account should be enough to keep a person happy – so long as they make sure to follow other blogs, link to related past posts, use good tags, write well etc. It’s the most freeing (social media?) flatform I’ve found yet – you can write however much you want and about whatever you want, post pictures, embed videos… Anything and everything 😀 I do really enjoy Instagram to share my photos too though – but my Instagram account is definitely growing really slowly… Those are the only social media platforms I use and I love them both 😀
I didn’t mention WordPress in my post since I figured almost everyone who read this post would be using WordPress & I consider it more of a blogging platform than social media. I do agree WordPress is freeing & you can do anything you want!
Instagram is great for sharing photos, but I feel you on the slow growth.
I think having both your blog & Instagram is plenty & it isn’t necessary to have anymore social media accounts! 😊
Usually all the social media are connected to my WordPress blog, so whenever I post, it automatically shares a Facebook post, a tweet, tumblr post, a google+ post, etc. I always share pictures on my blog, and I use those pictures to share it on Instagram and Pinterest. I usually do it all in one go, and then only follow up with my engagements after.
A huge note though: Before I send out a post I do a lot of research for hashtags and tags, especially for WordPress, Instagram and Pinterest.
That sounds manageable! I automatically share my posts too & whatever picture I use for my post I share it on Instagram 😊
I tend to use the same hashtags haha, but I think researching beforehand would be good to do!
There are so many social media sights I try and keep it to a minimum so I can manage them all equally. Great post x
Thank you so much & it’s good to keep it at a minimum b/c like you said there are so many sites & you don’t want to stretch yourself too thin!
WordPress reicht-zu !!!! WordPress is enough to !!!!
This is such an interesting post! I have the majority of social media platforms for my blog (except youtube and a facebook page) but the ones I use the most are Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest x
Thank you! Those are the ones I use most too plus Facebook for the blogger groups 😊
Thanks for raising the questions. I am starting blogger. I dont have much experiences. I use facebook, Twitter and Linkedin … I think the more audience is better since we all want to share our ideas and experiences with the broader public .. may be the answer depends on your motive. what do you want to achieve? the more the views is better in my opinion what ever the purpose … correct me. By the way, how do you pay for the wordpress? I want o upgrade mine but I couldnt make it. any advise?
I think Facebook, Twitter & LinkedIn is plenty for you now! You don’t want to wear yourself too thin by having too many social media accounts. You’ll also probably end up neglecting some accounts in favor for others, so focus on the accounts you have now.
As far as upgrading, go to wordpress.com then “My Site” & the 3rd option down is Plan. From there you can choose between the Personal, Premium & Business plan. I definitely recommend the Personal plan & that’s what I use. Then you choose upgrade then you have to pay for the plan using a credit card, debit card or PayPal. Even though the plan is $4 a month, you have to pay for all 12 months at once. Once you completed the purchase you’ll also be able to choice a domain name. I hope this helps!
Thanks a lot. Does the payment worth it? Tell me your experience.
I think it is worth it because first off you will have your own domain so your blog URL will not have .wordpress.com in it. You will also have more storage for pictures & WordPress will not show ads on your blog.
I haven’t even downloaded apps for most of the social medias because i do most of my blog business on pc — I dont use them for anything but blogging. Facebook is just for chatting with you or interacting with blog groups, twitter is just for ranting and sharing posts.. Instagram I check like once a day maybe and I don’t post too often.. as for everything else I just check it occasionally if I’m in the mood to do so. It’s def not necessary for bloggers to use every single one, like you said.
I downloaded all the apps just to take the picture for this post 😂 I do have Twitter & Instagram on my phone but nothing else.
I check the other social media sites on my laptop if I’m in the mood too, but normally I’m not haha.
I’m glad you feel it’s not necessary either! 😊
I use Facebook, Twitter, WordPress and sometimes Pinterest. I think that is enough for me, I have blog about human psychology and love stories so I don’t see point at Instagram.
I think that is plenty too! Yea Instagram is all about pictures so I don’t see how it would work well what you blog about.