Today we’re gonna talk about self-promotion.
I have a weird relationship with self-promotion. Not to be confused with my weird relationship with self-prostitution.
I have a few friends and family who have their own businesses and when I see them self-promoting, I’m all for it. I get really excited when I see their posts and how they’re furthering themselves. I feel like a proud mum.
HOWEVER, when it comes time for me to self-promote…I’m essentially a useless half cooked bun. I have all these ideas about how I can promote myself, but they just don’t really come to fruition. Or if they do then it’s more of a rotten, moldy, fruit fly invested fruit.
Lovely little piece of imagery there for you.
I’m looking at a lot of different avenues for self-promotion at the moment and I tell you what…starting to feel a little bit like the other one at this point but not as well paid.
One of the ones that Matt suggested to me when I first started this blog was TikTok. Now I can admit that I was skeptical because all I knew about TikTok was that it was teenagers doing weird dances to songs. I was even a little judgey of how much time he spent watching TikToks.
Then I started having videos show up on my newsfeed on Facebook. There were pet videos which I live for and then there were the Wipe It challenges with people putting on their cosplay or OC’s. Then I saw this one video that was using a voice over from a Youtube. Contouring 101. Pure gold.
It’s not just men that love pterodactyls. I too love pterodactyls.
Now I was still more than content to just download the app and you know…scroll. Laugh at a few videos and then just go to bed and be happy.
That was the plan at least.
Then my nephew happened. When he turned 12 a few weeks ago he was I’m assuming given permission to download TikTok and start posting videos of his own. We had a family dinner last weekend to celebrate his birthday and he asked Matt and I to look at his new TikTok account and videos.
In a week he’d managed to get 55 followers and had a video of some kid cutting a balloon with over 1000 views.
Now…I’m not saying that I’m salty but throw me a potato and some vinegar and feel free to leave the salt in the pantry because I’ve got enough to go around.
I am well aware that in the grand scheme of TikTokers, 55 followers in a week is nothing and 1000 views is a drop in the ocean. However, I would also like to point out that it has taken me months to get 38 followers on my blog. And my views overall so far have hit just below 1100.
This isn’t me begging for likes or views or the whatnot. There isn’t going to be any of that holding the next post hostage until I get however many likes. These posts will keep coming whether you ask for them or not. They can sit in your email inbox unread for months, it’s still in your inbox.
Funny story about emails actually. When I was younger and took too long to tell a story or went off on too many tangents, Dad would tell me to send him the story in an email. I always told him no because he had to suffer through the story just like I had to suffer through the experience. Also, I figured he just wouldn’t read it and it was very important that he knew what the bitch did in History class.
Now it actually does go to my dad in an email and he actually does read them. Hi dad!
See I still do it.
Back to the main story here.
So, I made a TikTok account. I’m not wholly proud of it but I am kinda proud of the fact that a video of my dad juggling apples got 1000 views in the first three days. And my cats have a lot of likes as well.
Look…I’ve gotta sell myself somewhere okay.
Now that that’s out in the open. Let’s just talk for a quick second about KinkTok. Just like the rest of the internet I should’ve known that if it was a thing then people would do it. I just wasn’t expecting it to be a thing that came up on my For You page. However, I did figure out how it happened.
So, I saw this video by a Canadian guy where he was using the sound that goes “You might be a thot but you’re my thot, come on bitch we’re getting Frappuccino’s.”
It was hilarious. I loved it. There was another one about bi-sexual girls and goblin energy which I also thoroughly enjoyed. But yeah. So, I liked the videos and all of a sudden, I’ve got a whole lot of videos popping up of Daddy’s and Brat’s and Doms and Subs and I was very confused as to why these videos were coming up. This one Canadian guy makes videos about doms and subs and all of a sudden I’m knee deep in safe words and respectful relationships.
If these are things that you’re into, you do you boo.
WitchTok…That one I have no idea how it came about but they’re also pretty cute.
Also found a transman that I might have a crush on. He has an OC that reminds me and my friend of that older guy that nearly every girl had a crush on in primary school. He’s got early Panic at the Disco! And Greenday vibes. I’m loving it.
I also follow Mother Nature and her intern Claire. I didn’t know that I needed lozclaws in my life, but I do.
Matt’s For You page however is cars, girls doing dances and guys doing dumb shit. He says he doesn’t know why the girls keep popping up but I have my suspicions.
He’s 100% trying to learn the TikTok dances.
Don’t worry. I know that if Matt’s going to cheat on me it’ll be with a guy. I also know the two guys he would cheat with.
Is it still cheating if the other person knows you’re doing it…and kind of even endorses it? Look…I love Matt. So much. Sometimes though I wish I had a little time to myself when I’m home. This kid has been working from home for months now. He’s taken over my library and everything. I think that if he had a side hoe I might get some peace…so long as I’ve approved of the side hoe…
I’m now understanding better why mum cherished the weeks that dad would take us kids away on ranger camps. Those three weeks off during the year were the only real peace that she got from us shitheads.
Wow I get off topic. This the reason I couldn’t write a good essay in high school to save my life. Now, where were we?
Self-prostitution!
Nope…that’s not it.
Self-promotion. That’s the one.
Look, there’s probably more effective ways that I could be peddling my wares and building awareness of these wares but for the time being I’m just gonna keep doing my thing and not take myself too seriously. There’s a time and a place for seriousness, and even then, I’ll be there making some smart-ass remark/joke because that’s how I cope with serious situations or anything that makes me uncomfortable.
POLYAMORY!
I am 100% going to be asked some interesting questions at the next family dinner…
S.J Smith Books 