The end of the decade can be described as life-changing for all of us. The sudden disease has struck the world suddenly and fiercely, thus provoking the whole industries to rebuild their work, and setting a new lifestyle for the progressive humanity. As for social media, the great quarantine turned out to be a big boost. In the times of social distancing and total lockdown, social platforms have become the major method of communication and leisure. And for many people, having a possibility to share their feelings and watch how others are coping with the isolation has become a fresh breeze.
If you think this through, social platforms are a good instrument for improving your mental state and current mood. Writing the emotions, impressions, and experience on paper gives a feeling of relief, like a good talk to a friend. Writing stuff down is a well-known therapy method among psychologists, so no wonder that it works. Furthermore, if you want to share your posts for IG or any other social network, some cheap likes may be a good help for improving your self-esteem and make you feel appreciated.
So let’s discover more about how social media have become an emotional outlet in times of crisis.
STEAMING IT OFF
Of course, the main plus of social media during the lockdown was the possibility to drop off the anger and anxiety. For your mental health, it is very important to let emotions go, and many people are using social media just to load off the weight of daily stress. As a result, you feel better and can relax after a hard day.
As the quarantine chimed in, lots of people strayed feeling anxious and even helpless, as the new disease is mysterious and unpredictable. And seeking for some relaxation and to get away from the reality for some time, they discovered the social platforms once again. And what they found there were thousands of people who feel the same way. Thus, the communication began, and users could avoid loneliness. They still feel involved in social life, and they have a chance to share their thoughts with other people who will demonstrate support. For instance, look at the many real-life stories people have shared on The Doe about all the current truths people in the world are facing today.
UNITING AND MUTUAL SUPPORT
This point comes straight from the previous one. Humans are social animals, which is why it is vital for them to feel the connection to a certain group. Social platforms are an instrument to find and connect with like-minded folks, and it is possible to find a community that gathers over interests, hobbies, or tastes in life. This factor helps to break the loneliness. Being a part of something bigger helps to keep up the self-esteem and feel yourself needed.
On social media, it is normal to ask for help as well. Calling out for good advice can bring you good results if you have the positive and friendly people around you. Besides, some people feel uncomfortable talking out loud about their issues, and writing helps them to cope with it.
However, to get real and effective support online, you have to be cautious and all-time ready to face criticism and hatred. Sometimes people are uniting on the basis of xenophobia, misogyny, sexism, racism, terrorism, etc. Such communities can be called toxic, and it is hard to track their appearance on the platform and regulate their behavior. To avoid meeting the participants of these communities, follow these tips:
- Do not enter such groups and leave comments there
- If you see a trolling or offense in comments under your posts, delete them and block the authors
- Don’t argue with haters in your comment section
- Don’t argue in the comment section of your favorite bloggers
- Keep your newsfeed clean, and get rid of toxic people in your feed
INFORMATION AND AUTHORITIES
Nowadays social platforms have a function to spread the news around the whole community faster than the wind. This is why the majority of governments were using them to keep the population aware of the main thesis – the situation is horrific and dangerous, and we reach out to every possible place to get the information to you. Since the lockdown in March and till today – if you type in the hashtags or keywords that are related to the COVID-19 you will see a note that refers to the site powered by the government of your country. This measure is used to prevent the spread of misinformation, which burst out in the first months of the pandemic. Also, the authorities started using social platforms to reach out to the nation and generate some reputation for themselves. With the general quarantine, many institutions of state were supposed to push themselves to work online and develop tools for functioning. And social media are a perfect survey that helped to gather data about how society feels.
When America was shaken with the BLM movement, social platforms have become one of the prominent instruments that the activists used. Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and other networks held on the manifestos of the movement, helping to spread the news and updates that concerned the movement. Also, through social platforms activists could receive support and help in their work, increasing the number of people who were involved in the BLM movement indirectly, by sending money, or spreading the information.
And as an apotheosis of the critical situation, social media played the main role in the development of the demonstrations in the Republic of Belarus. While the official channels were ignorant and silent, the independent social media was full of descriptions and evidence of corruption, cruelty, and violence that was actually happening in the country. The possibility to share the latest news and document what was happening, the demonstrators and occasional people could cry out about the situation they are in, and they could receive support and help from all the ones concerned. And if the citizens of Belarus couldn’t have the opportunity to make their voice heard all over the globe, who knows how the situation would have turned out in the result. Due to the awareness of the whole world of what is happening in Belarus, the inauguration of the President wouldn’t have been held in secrecy and the public image of him would not be affected at all.
THE CHANGES TO MARKETING STRATEGIES
The outbreak of coronavirus was sudden for all industries. And social media marketers were included in this group as well. Yet unlike many other niches and businesses, SMM’s were forced to rebuild their plans and strategies according to the crisis upcoming. Time was of the essence, and the result turned out pretty good. Of course, many brands had their marketing campaigns planned months forward, but the extreme situation turned their flow to the other side. At the time of the total lockdown, the main trend that was supported both by corporations and small local businesses was unity and support. Many brands started the initiatives that were targeted to beat the pandemic. For example, clothing brands produced face masks, which were either for sale, or included in the order as a gift. Cosmetic companies produced antiseptic, and technical corporations provided medics with the devices they needed.
CONCLUSION
The latest world crisis has changed the course of behavior on social media. At first, people were frightened by the unknown and scary future, but thanks to the power of online communication lots of users experienced less anxiety. The brands and corporations became closer to the consumers not in terms of business but in terms of the common fear.
However, the outbreak of coronavirus has increased the level of addiction to social media. In the future, this can provoke more FOMO syndrome and substitution of real life. And although many services and measures are taken to help people to get through the crisis, lots of them are still feeling insecure and unsure of their future. What would be the next actions of the authorities when the crisis is over, remains to be seen. But we should hope for the best.
