#this is the kind of thing meta allows on its platform

[humanwheatleyslefttoenail]

If you go on instagram right now you might get an ad for a quiz to see where you really stand on I/P and it'll ask you questions such as "do you think it was ok for Hamas to murder Israelis" "do you side with Israel or Hamas *and* Palestine" "in a future Palestinian state, being gay will be punishable by law, is that ok with you". they're really just shamelessly platforming hasbara digital terrorism lmfao

#don't reblog #instagram #meta #hasbara #free palestine #this is the kind of thing meta allows on its platform #shadowbanning palestinians for what actually happens to them but letting israel platform actual propaganda

[olderthannetfic]

fandom social justice history anon here - aaah, thank you, early fandom being dominated by academics definitely connected the dots I was missing, thank you! Yeah, now looking at it with this in mind, it's pretty obvious how the tone of the meta essays from that era, while often snarky or even outraged, definitely sounds more like the tone of people who are used to passionately arguing in a setting that doesn't allow you to just throw whatever ad hominem accusation at your opponent's head. In contrast, tumblr's (and as a result, twitter's and tiktok's) style of fandom drama now reads to me even more blatantly like a catfight between high schoolers who have just recently learned some Big Words they only care to use as ammunition. I've read multiple older fans (including your invaluably informative blog) talking about how tumblr definitely reshaped fandom and brought in a TON of new people, and how slash was far from the "mainstream" of fandom even in the livejournal-ffn.net days, and I'm having a feeling that, for all the imperfections of this first tumblr generation of fans' activism ("let my gays marry" etc etc) the thing that got slash to be "mainstreamed" within fandom the way it currently is, also has to do with this pretty sizeable influx of new fans being mostly teenagers. As in specifically, overwhelmingly teenage girls who were having their first sparks of interest in romance during the height of the "I'm not like other girls" era + everyone shitting on twilight & "girly" musicians, because if you look at the posts from that period, they often contrast being a slash reader with being the slutty partying "other girl" or annoying hipster & at my school too slash kind of spread as a "not like the other girls" alternative to mainstream romance. Yes, not the healthiest attitude either, and it's good we've mostly grown past that, but like I said, there's a good chance that was what buffed up the numbers of slash fans to the point where today people are surprised fandom ever even was hostile to it, and at least in my environment, fandom activism, for all its flaws, was most people's first exposure to any sort of "-rights" activism at all. But (as is probably obvious) I did not experience most of even that era personally (I joined tumblr fandom in 2014). Anyways, excuse the rambling, if you feel like adding anything to confirm or deny my hypothesis, I greatly appreciate it, and I hope you have a nice day/evening!

--

M/M still isn't mainstream in plenty of fandom contexts, just not the ones I hang out in, and "not like the other girls" of the type you describe was already big in the 90s among people who'd heard of fanfic. It's just that fanfic was harder to stumble across overall.

I think the two biggest factors are the changing attitudes towards gayness in mainstream culture in a number of countries and... well... AO3 getting popular.

FFN was the big place in the past, though not for my crowd. Now, AO3 is taking a massive bite out of not only its market share but now, in the last few years, Wattpad's.

When the visible institution around which fanfic revolves puts filtering out het front and center, it sends a strong message that previous fandom platforms did not. You had your m/m-only archives and your f/f-only archives and your places that let you filter for those but that treated het as an unmarked default.

Look at early discussions of AO3. There's an undercurrent there that we all assumed it would be one of a number of archives and that we didn't expect it to get this big.

Nobody could have foreseen the Het-Is-Eternal-Default Wattpad crowd being forced by their own platform's suckitude to come camp on the thing built by slashers. Now, we are the admins and they are the also-tolerated. That never happened before.

The thing that makes people not report gay hand holding as evil porn that must be eradicated is simply AO3 putting its foot down.

Anyone who thinks that virulent slash hate is gone just hasn't looked at other spaces.

This is not about individual fans behaving better: it is about institutional power.

[goldsasa]

Dear Sirs!

(or have some ladies also signed?)

A few days ago, you, Mr Musk, together with Mr Wozniak, Mr Mostaque and other signatories, published an open letter demanding a compulsory pause of at least six months for the development of the most powerful AI models worldwide.

This is the only way to ensure that the AI models contribute to the welfare of all humanity, you claim. As a small part of the whole of humanity, I would like to thank you very much for wanting to protect me. How kind! 🙏🏻

Allow me to make a few comments and ask a few questions in this context:

My first question that immediately came to mind:

Where was your open letter when research for the purpose of warfare started and weapon systems based on AI were developed, leading to unpredictable and uncontrollable conflicts?

AI-based threats have already been used in wars for some time, e.g. in the Ukraine war and Turkey. Speaking of the US, they are upgrading their MQ-9 combat drones with AI and have already used them to kill in Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq.

The victims of these attacks - don't they count as humanity threatened by AI?

I am confused! Please explain to me, when did the (general) welfare of humanity exist, which is now threatened and needs to be protected by you? I mean the good of humanity - outside your "super rich white old nerds Silicon Valley" filter bubble? And I have one more question:

Where was your open letter when Facebook's algorithms led to the spread of hate speech and misinformation about the genocide of Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar?

Didn't the right to human welfare also apply to this population group? Why do you continue to remain silent on the inaction and non-transparent algorithms of Meta and Mr Zuckerberg? Why do you continue to allow hatred and agitation in the social media, which (at least initially) belonged to you without exception?

My further doubt relates to your person and your biography itself, dear Mr Musk.

You, known as a wealthy man with Asperger's syndrome and a penchant for interplanetary affairs, have commendably repeatedly expressed concern about the potentially destructive effects of AI robots in the past. I thank you for trying to save me from such a future. It really is a horrible idea!

And yet, Mr Musk, you yourself were not considered one of the great AI developers of Silicon Valley for a long time.

Your commitment to the field of artificial intelligence was initially rather poor. Your Tesla Autopilot is a remarkable AI software, but it was developed for a rather niche market.

I assume that you, Mr Musk, wanted to change that when you bought 73.5 million of Twitter's shares for almost $2.9 billion in April?

After all, to be able to play along with the AI development of the giants, you lacked one thing above all: access to a broad-based AI that is not limited to specific applications, as well as a comprehensive data set.

The way to access such a dataset was to own a large social network that collects information about the consumption patterns, leisure activities and communication patterns of its users, including their social interactions and political preferences.

Such collections about the behaviour of the rest of humanity are popular in your circles, aren't they?

By buying Twitter stock, you can give your undoubtedly fine AI professionals access to a valuable treasure trove of data and establish yourself as one of Silicon Valley's leading AI players.

Congratulations on your stock purchase and I hope my data is in good hands with you.

Speaking of your professionals, I'm interested to know why your employees have to work so hard when you are so concerned about the well-being of people?

I'm also surprised that after the pandemic your staff were no longer allowed to work in their home offices. Is working at home also detrimental to the well-being of humanity?

In the meantime, you have taken the Twitter platform off the stock market.

It was never about money for you, right? No, you're not like that. I believe you!

But maybe it was about data? These are often referred to as the "oil of our time". The data of a social network is like the ticket to be one of the most important AI developers in the AI market of the future.

At this point, I would like to thank you for releasing parts of Twitter's code for algorithmic timeline control as open source. Thanks to this transparency, I now also know that the Twitter algorithm has a preference for your Elon Musk posts. What an enrichment of my knowledge horizon!

And now, barely a year later, this is happening: OpenAi, a hitherto comparatively small company in which you have only been active as a donor and advisor since your exit in 2018, not only has enormous sources of money, but also the AI gamechanger par excellence - Chat GPT. And virtually overnight becomes one of the most important players in the race for the digital future. It was rumoured that your exit at the time was with the intention that they would take over the business? Is that true at all?

After all I have said, I am sure you understand why I have these questions for you, don't you?

I would like to know what a successful future looks like in your opinion? I'm afraid I'm not one of those people who can afford a $100,000 ticket to join you in colonising Mars. I will probably stay on Earth.

So far I have heard little, actually nothing, about your investments in climate projects and the preservation of the Earth.

That is why I ask you, as an advocate of all humanity, to work for the preservation of the Earth - with all the means at your disposal, that would certainly help.

If you don't want to do that, I would very much appreciate it if you would simply stop worrying about us, the rest of humanity. Perhaps we can manage to protect the world from marauding robots and a powerful artificial intelligence without you, your ambitions and your friends?

I have always been interested in people. That's why I studied social sciences and why today I ask people what they long for. Maybe I'm naive, but I think it's a good idea to ask the people themselves what they want before advocating for them.

The rest of the world - that is, the 99,9 percent - who are not billionaires like you, also have visions!

With the respect you deserve,

Susanne Gold

(just one of the remaining 99% percent whose welfare you care about).

#elon musk #open letter #artificial intelligence #chatgpt #science #society #democracy #climate breakdown #space #planet earth #siliconvalley #genocide #war and peace #ai algorithms

[givemearmstopraywith]

(cw for domestic abuse for this ask) i havent watched promising young woman either, but i watched princess weekes video about it (in the background as i was doing dishes or something) who also didn’t like the ending — but what stuck with me was a comment under that video of someone saying they were nearly strangled to death by their boyfriend a week or so before seeing the movie, and because of that, at the time they wouldn’t have resonated with an ending where cassie lives. i think your views still hold value, of course a lot of art is subjectively dependent upon our experiences. but in the case of saltburn, its hard to imagine what kind audience would resonate with it in the same way?? as an aside though, what do you think of parasite?

see that's the thing- even if i don't like a piece of art, i still think it has value. for that reason even if i disagree theoretically with promising young woman i can acknowledge it has practical value, like in the case of that comment: maybe even theoretical value, even if i disagree with the method. and we don't talk enough about rape victims dying, by their own hand or at the hands of their abusers: its not part of the conversation about #metoo or survival in general. those conversations need to be had and "bad" art is often the way in which those conversations begin, leading to better conversations, opening a previously uncut path that allows disempowered people who have more direct experience with oppression speak for themselves. (not that im implying that certain things need to be spoken about by privileged people first- not at all, but historically, and i do mean historically, this has begun to change now, it is only attention of the privileged that platforms the experiences of the oppressed.)

i should probably rewatch parasite more closely now that the hype around it is gone- this might be predicable but i didn't like parasite either. and it's funny because say that circles this conversation around to where it began: my subjectively experience of art. growing up i was poor, had no father, and on the dole. there are certain prejudices against people whose experiences triangulate with mine that lead to us being treated as parasites on the system. so even the subversion of that idea didn't resonate with me because it struck too close to my subjective experience of classism and my internalized feelings about myself as a poor person. critically though, i also think that parasite is a commentary on a different kind of cultural classism than exists in north america, which makes both my subjective dislike of it and its appropriation by upper class north americans (remember when, like, chrissy teigen was tweeting about how good it was?) as a fun social commentary- the same thing happened with squid game, which really just extends this conversation into the problem of whiteness' ability to strip the human element of social commentary from cultural contexts that aren't their own. so i think parasite is good art, and it's mythos once it entered the north american market really just sort of advances its story in this very meta way: i just didn't like it personally. which is sort of antithetical to saltburn, which i think is bad art and i don't like, but which i enjoy for its frothy, lurid confectionary feeling.

#replies

[canadiancryptid]

So, I did a poll like a month ago seeing if people wanted to know a little more about me, and then I forgot to actually do anything with it. Completely forgot what sort of things I was going to say but I have a couple things here.

9 People I'd Like to Know Better Game!

@msbadatnamingthings tagged me in a "get to know you better" game like 2 months ago that I kind forgot about. I had a few questions answered and then it just kinda got lost to the void of my drafts pile like so many other things. Sorry about that, but I'm remembering now!

last song: Deltarune the (not) Musical - The Field of Hopes and Dreams

favorite color: purple

last movie/last tv show: just finished The Ghost and Molly McGee :(

sweet/spicy/savory: savory

relationship status: single

last thing i googled: I think it was something about how the education system works in Minnesota. Trying to work on a fic around a certain character. Probably not hard to guess which one.

current obsession: Infinity Train never went away and likely never will, but I've recently been obsessing over Deltarune again

I also got a couple questions on the original poll from @keliana856! Finally getting to them! Whoo!

1: Lake and the entire concept of the Mirror World. The entire concept is so interesting to me, and I feel like it really doesn't get talked about enough. We get the basic premise of how it works in Book 1, but other than that, most of it is left unexplained. We learn some more from Lake when she's talking to the Flecs and answering some of Jesse's questions, but that's about it. We don't even know if the existence of the Mirror World is connected to the Train or not. Its such a cool concept and I love thinking about it.

Lake is my favorite character in the whole show, BY FAR. Her story is amazing, her dynamic with Jesse is incredible, and her introduction and entire first episode were one of the best things I've ever watched. I love thinking about her complicated relationship with Tulip and what might happen if they ever saw each other again. The finale of Book 2 was the first show that made me immediately want to go on Ao3 just to see more of her adapting to life on Earth. I already loved the show, but Lake and her story were what cemented it as my favorite show.

2: I've always been a fan of the supernatural. Fantasy, Modern Fantasy, mythology, and to some extent Sci-fi. (Still love it, just think I generally prefer the other stuff) It's a lot of fun to think about and see explored in fiction. I was a huge fan of mythology and Rick Riordan's books as a kid, so seeing Percy Jackson being adapted into a show has been AMAZING. The movies were frankly terrible, but that's a rant on its own. Outside of that, I like stories with a mystery to solve and twists that you COULD have seen coming with what was provided but probably didn't. It's fun seeing how communities can come together to find secrets and discuss things. Found Family is another one of my favorite themes. Not sure I need much of an explanation there. It's just an amazing trope to see.

When it comes to video games, I love RPGs, metroidvanias, platformers and puzzle games. I play a lot of different types of games, but those are my favorites. I don't talk about it much on here, but I'm a programmer. I'm still learning, but making games is my DREAM. There are so many ways to tell a story through the medium that you can't get anywhere else. The interactive nature of a game allows for so much exploration of the characters and world at large, and I love it. Rather than just watching the story play out on screen, you get to be a part of it. I love games that get a little meta. Games that make the player a part of the story like Oneshot, Deltarune and Undertale. I like games that take the established mechanics of a game and make it a part of the world. Underhero is a game that does this well. Pretty much every part of the game has some in-universe explanation as you progress through the amazing story. The game is incredibly underrated; I highly recommend it.

So, yeah. When it comes to games, I love stories that embrace their nature as a game and make it a part of the world. Video games are truly unique among storytelling mediums, and I love seeing it used as such. You don't really see any other mediums doing things like that, but it's always cool to see.

In no particular order, some of my favorite stories recently have been: Infinity Train, The Owl House, Steven Universe, Gwenpool, Nimona, Spy x Family, Spiderverse, Fionna and Cake, Oneshot, Undertale, Deltarune, Underhero, Epithet Erased, and the Percy Jackson series as a whole.

I think that's it for now. If anyone has anything else they'd like to hear me talk about, my ask box is always open!

#cryptid says stuff #long post #asks #I guess this is kind of an ask post #honestly my thoughts on a lot of these things could probably be entire posts on their own but that could be for another day #gonna try to get around to this sort of thing sooner #like hopefully within the same month that I say I will #the fic I mentioned in the original poll is still kinda in the works I haven't forogtten about that YET #actually the last thing I googled might have been 'how to get a cat off your lap without making them sad' cause I was doing some pet sittin

[lostcauses-noregrets]

Hi Lost! <3 I know that Twitter has long been home to a wonderful eruri community. I’ve never had Twitter, but used to be able to casually snoop on the art, conversations, and AO3 updates. With the recent changes to Twitter that’s not really possible anymore :( and I’m not planning on making a Twitter account..

Do you think the public-facing community will go somewhere else at same point with all the uncertainty? (Maybe Threads? Maybe elsewhere?)

I know there are discords but I tend to be a true lurker (besides asking questions on your tumblr) so I don’t think I’d contribute much.

Curious about your thoughts!

Twitter is a complete shit show right now. Just when you think it couldn't possibly get worse, it manages to plumb new depths. Its utterly pointless and self defeating that you have to be logged in to see twitter content, but then again pointless and self-defeating business decisions do seem to be the current CEOs specially, that and being an utter twat.

Aaaaanyway...

Despite all the bullshit, there doesn't seem to be any signs of a mass exodus to another platform. Many people, particularly in fandom, are rightly wary of Threads because Meta has a nasty habit of linking your accounts together no matter how carefully you try to keep them separate. It's almost like they have no concept of consent, privacy or data protection. So yeah, not many folk are keen on having their fandom account linked to social media accounts they may use with family or work colleagues.

A few folk I know have Bluesky accounts, but it seems to be very niche and doesn't have much traction yet. Mastodon doesn't seem to feature at all in fandom circles, at least not that I've seen. There has been a slow drift back to tumblr but I don't think tumblr will ever have the same kind of presence as it used to unless the porn ban is lifted and I can't see that happening any time soon. Tumblr did post a twitter thread explaining the reasons porn is not allowed here, which in their own words boils down to

1. credit card companies and app stores are anti-porn 2. there are new rules around verifying consent and age in adult content (and our top priority is ensuring that all of our users are safe)

It sucks, but at least they're up front about it.

Discord still seems to be the best bet for fandom communities. The fact that servers can be closed and controlled is one of Discord's best features, but as you rightly pointed out, that doesn't help fans who prefer to lurk, of whom there are many. Having said that, there are bigger servers where you can lurk pretty anonymously. I tend to stick to smaller servers with a few close friends, so I'm not sure how big the biggest Eruri servers are. I know there are a few that have been around for a good number of years now, so I suspect they're a pretty decent size.

I do wonder if twitter might eventually reverse the decision about having to be logged in to see content, but the way things are going right now, it's a moot point whether the platform will survive at all.s

Personally speaking, I'm not going anywhere for the time being. AO3, Tumblr and Discord still feel like my main fandom homes and Twitter is just an added extra where I go to see cool art and roll my eyes at the discourse. I'd be interested to hear other fans thoughts on this, so feel free comment!

#asks #fandom #platforms #eruri

[mousieta]

Review: The Novelist Series

The Novelist (2018) Mood Indigo (2019) Pornographer: Spring Life (2021) Pornographer: Playbook (2021) Pornographer: Continued Spring Life (2021) Country: Japan Platform: Various I truly think this series broke something in me, in the good way. I’ve had post-show depression since binging the whole thing and since I did binge it all in one go, I’m going to review the entire series as one. 

There are two orders to watch this show in, by air date or by in-story chronology. To do that latter, you’d start with Mood Indigo then watch the rest in air-date order. While story wise it may make sense to do so, I would argue that it is better to watch them in air-date order, even though that takes you back and then forward in in-story time. I watched Mood Indigo first, but I actually think the series is better watched in order of air-date.

The Novelist (Pornographer) is an erotic melodrama that tells the story of Kijima Rio, a published author of erotic fiction who gets his arm broken when college student  Kuzumi Haruhiko crashes into him with his bike. As Kuzumi cannot financially compensate Kijima and has apparently taken out his means of making a living, he agrees to transcribe for Kijima.

Mood Indigo is a flash-back/prequel to The Novelist exploring Kijima’s path to becoming a ‘pornographer’ and his relationship with Shiro, his editor. The subsequent series then pick up after The Novelist and see the conclusion of all three men’s stories.

The show is intensely erotic, the character’s often viewed through the lens of their sexuality. What the show does incredibly well is showing sex as multi-fasceted and capable of carrying so much more than lust. Sex is as complex and complicated as any other human endeavor, engaged in for a multitude of reasons and imbued with layers of motivations, manipulations and desires. This is, honestly, a thing in dramas that I didn’t even know I was missing so deeply.

Sometimes the de-sexualization of characters in dramas starts to grate a little. There is nothing wrong with romance and exploring it but the coyness and aversion to explicitly showing that our leads sometimes just want to rail the fuck out of one another, or are using sex as a subterfuge, or are confused but over-wrought by desire, feels like a part of the human experience is being missed. Thus, I appreciate Thai drama’s depictions of sex but don’t want it to just be the horny kind, or the romantic kind, because humans are more than just horny and romantic. And this show gives us that with some truly wrenching angst.

The series is truly good on every level, the acting gripping and compelling. Takezai Terunosuke as Rio traces such a believable character arc through his whole chronology. The writing is moving in its compassion for its characters and subject matters, allowing things to be messy and not completely resolved. I have more meta I want to write about it specifically, in particular about the character dynamics between Rio and Shiro because there is so much meat to chew on there, which I love.

I’m glad I finally got around to watching this, am sad I binged it too fast and it is now over and which one of my frens would watch it soon so I could obsess over it.

2022 Drama Reviews Masterlist

#2022 drama reviews #the novelist #mood indigo

[denimbex1986]

'Imagine, if you will, living in the year 2016 and not knowing what the acronym “OMG” stands for. Better yet, picture living in 2023 and earnestly asking the question: “What's a meme?”. Well, you would be Cillian Murphy.

Murphy is currently on the promo trail for Oppenheimer, a rare mass press outing for the notoriously low-key actor whose occasions of visible happiness at having to be out of the house can be counted on one hand. The massive global campaign for the Christopher Nolan film, where Murphy plays the father of the atomic bomb, J. Robert Oppenheimer, has naturally involved an endless stream of junket interviews. Murphy, however, is having none of it.

In one particular instance that's now going viral (not that he'd know what that means), his co-star, Robert Downey Jr, uploaded a video while walking through an event in Paris filled with the cast of Oppenheimer. When he lands on Murphy, his hand shoots up almost instinctively to cover the camera, barely looking away from the conversation he's having. Not today, sir.

Murphy's anti-internet agenda has been making the rounds of late, ironically, on the internet. An interview at the start of the year for his film The Party, where he revealed that he had never seen the classic ‘disappointed Cillian’ meme because he doesn't even know what a meme is prompted a wave of internet celeb interview archivists to comb through the records of his longstanding rage against the machine. In the same press run with Jamie Dornan, where he didn't realise that ‘OMG’ stood for ‘Oh my God’, he also revealed he doesn't use emojis. Naturally, he doesn't have social media of any kind. It's not worth imagining how he'd respond to having a TikTok video painstakingly described to him.

But let's face it, Cillian Murphy has got it right. The peace of a man who's never had to waste energy thinking about how to burn Elon Musk on Twitter is a hard won thing. He's probably never heard the “ATTENZIONE PICKPOCKET” lady or seen those videos of bottles of olive oil being kicked downstairs. He just rawdogs Succession, blissfully unaware of stan accounts calling Kendall Roy their babygirl. The inside of his head must be like a laundry advert – all green fields, lambs and nobody “serving cunt.”

At every turn, the internet is telling us to log off. Twitter is becoming more unbearable by the day, its users like marionettes battling rate limits, blue badges and terfs. Elsewhere, Meta has asked us to download another app to share our same thoughts on a different platform. One that looks exactly like the other platform but isn't that platform, don't worry. All the while, TikTok is sucking our brains dry of its juices like a sponge.

What if we all just… logged off? Wouldn't that be nice? What if we take a leaf out of Murphy's book and untethered ourselves from the shackles of the digital world and allow ourselves to simply exist. That seems quite nice. Maybe then, one day, we too can look blank-faced at someone as they describe something on the internet and say, with all sincerity, “What is that?”'

#Cillian Murphy #TikTok #Twitter #Oppenheimer #Robert Downey Jr. #Meta #Succession

[bellshazes]

#OHHHH #this makes so much sense and also clarifies a lot of the ??? my brain produces for some of your writing #like the way you talk about and approach building and stuff this first section makes me Get It now#also now im like. how to give other people this framework for play bc its so much more fun than just absorbing the interest du jour #i feel like bc of a combination of lack of this kind of underlying thought and how algorithms work ppl tend to condense#whether that be on Faithful or megabases or texturing or Hardcore 100day whatever #and while its easy to call that fads or imitation i think its partly just #players do Not have the language or framework to go 'but how do i want to play?' #increased roleplay has opened that up a Bit but its still very BILLION ITEM FARM engineer-porn out there #meta #bdubs #anyways. fuck dude this rules (@salemoleander)

how to give other people a framework for their play is exactly what I want and what I was getting at, thank you for that phrasing! especially because you could start like this:

Ask yourself "How do I like to play?"

except then you've already started off wrong. there are secret hidden questions behind all simple questions, and if the quest is to get people thinking about their own framework for play, then it's more like:

How do I know how I like to play? Is it by what I'm naturally drawn to? Experimentation, trial and error? Past experiences? Things I've seen other people do and want to try?

What different kinds of enjoyment do I get from different activities? (if I like redstone and also mining, how are those kinds of fun different?)

In what contexts do I experience different kinds of fun? What contexts am I currently playing in or wanting to play in? (biome, single v multiplayer, physical computer setup, time window, etc.)

and it's a red herring to list questions this way because what I'm after is not a checklist but a way of thinking that prompts people to continuously ask these questions or interrogate their experiences in some kind of capacity, as an ongoing activity or reference system that helps guide and shape play. it could look like paying attention to joy or pride or victory when you feel it so you can use that information about your experience to make the game more fun/rewarding/better for yourself, opening more possibilities.

I think a didactic checklist or how-to approach is worse than a dialectical, critical conversation one because a dialectical approach also naturally is compatible with collaborative play, if not encouraging of it. the framework has as much utility for a single "I" as it does a collective "we" of players, and a lot of my feelings and desire for such a framework is the wonderful conversations about the game in the abstract or as it relates to a project with friends. even as conversations for their own sake, it's rewarding! and actionable on top of that!

a dialectical framework also sidesteps the issue of pigeonholing yourself, as a checklist is by definition checked off; a way of thinking and paying attention to your own play experience allows room for your preferences to change across time or contexts or whatever variable condition. it is, as I think bwbs3 somewhat exemplifies, friendly to skill development but doesn't require it. it would solve all my problems if it existed (jk. but.)

unfortunately the platforms available to us for meta-level minecraft content (content about minecraft as a game experience) are just not. built. for dialectical learning and theory - like possibly false conceptions on what The Algorithm desires and so on. and even in my perfect world it wouldn't fully replace farm tutorials or build hacks or whatever - they're different niches. i get why it's not already being done. but I wish people would

#peter posts #once a coworker said unironically you can't teach critical judgement and i had like a full-body reaction. #i joked about Dialectical Building Theory but tbh. i mean. #mc meta

[madhukumarc]

What is digital content creation?

Digital content creation refers to the process of producing and publishing various forms of content that are specifically designed for online platforms.

This includes articles, blog posts, videos, images, infographics, podcasts, social media posts, and more.

It is a crucial aspect of digital marketing as it allows businesses to engage with their target audience, build brand awareness, and drive website traffic.

To give you more information, let's go deeper.

Digital Content Creation:

When it comes to digital content creation, there are several key factors to consider.

1. First and foremost, it is important to have a clear understanding of your target audience and their needs.

By knowing who you are creating content for, you can tailor your messaging and delivery to resonate with them effectively.

Here's some information that could be beneficial to you.

Image Source - HubSpot

2. The next step is to conduct keyword research.

This involves identifying the search terms and phrases that your target audience is using when looking for information related to your industry or niche.

By incorporating these keywords strategically into your content, you can improve your chances of ranking higher in search engine results.

3. Once you have identified your target audience and relevant keywords, it is time to brainstorm content ideas.

This can be done by considering the pain points, challenges, and interests of your audience. What kind of information would they find valuable? What problems can you solve for them?

By answering these questions, you can come up with compelling content ideas that are likely to resonate with your audience.

“By analyzing customer behavior, preferences and interactions, you can more precisely target and personalize content creation for your audience” – MarTech

4. After deciding on the topic of your content, it is important to create a well-structured outline.

This will help you organize your thoughts and ensure that your content flows smoothly.

A clear introduction, body paragraphs with supporting information, and a conclusion are essential elements of a well-structured piece of content.

5. When it comes to actually creating the content, it is important to keep it engaging and easy to read.

Use headings, subheadings, bullet points, and short paragraphs to break up the text and make it more scannable for readers.

Incorporating visuals such as images, infographics, or videos can also enhance the overall appeal of your content.

“Perhaps the most common mistake in content creation is thinking that customers care about you and the product or service you offer. In fact, the only thing they care about is their own business challenges and pain points. That means content needs to be almost entirely about them, not you” – MarketingProfs

6. Furthermore, it is crucial to optimize your content for search engines.

This involves incorporating relevant keywords into your title tags, meta descriptions, headings, and throughout the body of your content.

However, it is important not to overdo it - keyword stuffing can actually harm your search engine rankings.

7. In addition to optimizing for search engines, it is equally important to optimize for conversation.

This means creating content that is informative, engaging, and valuable to your audience.

Use language that is relatable and easy to understand. Incorporate storytelling techniques or personal anecdotes when appropriate.

The goal is to establish a connection with your readers and keep them coming back for more.

8. Finally, once you have created your digital content, it is important to promote it effectively.

Share it on social media platforms, email newsletters, or relevant online communities where your target audience hangs out.

Encourage engagement by asking questions or inviting comments. The more visibility and interaction your content receives, the greater its impact will be.

“Content creation doesn’t always mean starting from scratch. With some creativity, you can repurpose and recycle content to extend its life, maximize its value, and maintain a steady stream of content even when you’re not writing something new every week” – Moz

9. Remember, most of the aspects shared above apply to any type of digital content creation while keeping end goals in mind.

The end objective of digital content creation is to engage, inform, entertain, or inspire a specific audience, ultimately driving desired actions or outcomes.

Image Source - 2024 AI Content Report by Semrush

Pro-Tip: Utilize AI content tools to expedite content creation, and generate various content concepts, while incorporating human checks to enhance value and originality.

In conclusion, digital content creation is a multi-step process.

It involves understanding your target audience, conducting keyword research, brainstorming ideas, creating well-structured content that is both SEO-optimized and conversation-optimized, and promoting it effectively.

By following these steps and consistently producing high-quality content, you can attract and engage your target audience in the ever-evolving digital landscape.

Here's related information that you may also find helpful – Is Content Creation Worth It?

[myresellerhome]

8 Best ChatGPT WordPress Plugins

Do you get tired of spending hours creating interesting WordPress content? ChatGPT, an innovative AI-powered chatbot, has the potential to transform your audience engagement. The 8 best ChatGPT WordPress plugins are all the rage right now. These plugins effortlessly incorporate AI technology into your website, allowing web developers and small business owners alike to create an infinite number of dynamic and personalized interactions.

Why Should You Use a ChatGPT Plugin for WordPress?

The GPT-3.5 and GPT-4 language models are used to make the well-known AI robot software ChatGPT. The company OpenAI is making it. They also made tools like DALL-E and Whisper.

ChatGPT lets you make text, translate languages, write different kinds of creative material, and get answers to any questions you have about a subject.

To put it simply, ChatGPT plugins are WordPress add-ons that allow the tools for artificial intelligence to work with WordPress. When you use the app, it will ask the ChatGPT software to answer your question and then show the answer on your website.

As an example, you could use the plugin as a robot that gets its answers straight from ChatGPT. Talking to visitors and telling them about your goods or services can help you get more leads.

You can also use ChatGPT plugins to offer 24/7 customer service, improve the quality of your content, or make the user experience better if you have an online shop.

Plugins for ChatGPT can also help you improve how you work and be more creative. It lets you make meta descriptions and post names, as well as blog post ideas and other things.

8 best ChatGPT WordPress plugin:

1. Uncanny Automator

You can connect your WordPress site to ChatGPT with Uncanny Automator, which is the best automation tool for WordPress. Connecting two different platforms lets your complete processes.

With the ChatGPT integration in Uncanny Automator, you can use a prompt or a list of themes to come up with blog post ideas.

You can use different actions and prompts in Uncanny Automator to make an AI-made picture, posts for social media, personalized emails, product descriptions, and answers to customer questions.

Another great thing about Uncanny Automator is that it lets you connect ChatGPT to services besides your website. For example, you can connect it to Facebook, Drip, Zapier, Brevo, Instagram, Google Sheets, and more.

Check out our guide on how to set up automated workflows in WordPress for more information.

Benefits:

More than 140 WordPress plugins and third-party apps can connect to Uncanny Automator to automate processes.

For email promotion, you can use both Uncanny Automator and ChatGPT at the same time.

It's free to use.

It has advanced features like schedules, delays, and the ability to make new users.

2. WPForms

Since it works with ChatGPT, WPForms is the best contact form tool for WordPress on the market. It lets you do different things because it works with ChatGPT.

You can make smarter forms for your website by using an automation tool like Uncanny Automator to connect WPForms and ChatGPT.

You could, for instance, make a form that asks for a blog post topic and a summary of the post. When someone submits that form, ChatGPT will automatically write a blog post about that subject.

Aside from that, you can use WPForms and ChatGPT to make a plan for your articles and send emails automatically when someone fills out a form.

Benefits:

The form builder in the app makes it simple to make and post forms on your website.

It's free to use.

You don't need to write any code to connect WPForms and ChatGPT.

Since it now works with ChatGPT, WPForms can also be used as an AI writing assistant because it can write text for you.

Anti-spam, conditional logic, payment method integration, geolocation, and more are some of the other features it has.

3. Formidable Forms

Formidable Forms is a powerful form-building tool that works well with ChatGPT and makes it easy to make forms that people can interact with.

It has a drag-and-drop builder and a ready-made template that lets you make any kind of form, like polls, games, surveys, and more.

You can also add a ChatGPT field to your forms, which will make them work like AI assistants and help people fill out and send the forms.

People who fill out this field will be able to get real-time answers to their questions from customers, get feedback, and have chores done automatically based on what users say. It will basically walk your users through the whole process of filling out the form.

Benefits:

You can make a searchable database of your form comments with Formidable Forms.

It also has a shipping tool that can help you figure out how much a product will cost, along with shipping.

The plugin not only has the ChatGPT field, but it also has AI templates that you can use to make dynamic forms.

4. Thrive Ovation

If you want to post positive reviews on your social media sites regularly, Thrive Ovation is the best ChatGPT plugin for you.

It's a well-known testimonial plugin that comes with the Thrive Suite and makes it easy to collect, handle, and show testimonials in WordPress.

Once you link this plugin to ChatGPT, every new testimonial that is given to your website will be analysed to see how people feel about it.

Using a software tool, ChatGPT will then post any good reviews on your social media accounts without you having to do anything. People will be more likely to visit your website if other people have done the same thing.

Benefits:

With Thrive Ovation, you can use a drag-and-drop builder to make your site, and you can also turn WordPress comments into reviews.

The app can help bring in visitors from social media sites because it works with ChatGPT.

The tool has a dashboard that lets you see all of your testimonials at once, including the ones that are ready to be shown, those that are still being reviewed, and those that have been refused.

It is a tool that comes with the Thrive Suite, which also has Thrive Leads, Thrive Architect, Thrive Theme Builder, and more.

5. An AI engine

You can easily connect AI Engine to ChatGPT as a free WordPress plugin that helps you write content for your website.

You should use it if you want to use ChatGPT for customer service. This is because the app has a short code that you can use to add ChatGPT as a chatbot.

At that point, the robot can answer questions from customers, fix any small problems with your services, send users to your support team, and help you offer support 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Benefits:

AI Engine lets you decide how your blog posts are structured by letting you choose how many parts and paragraphs are in each section.

ChatGPT is also used to make meta descriptions, excerpts, pictures, product descriptions, and other things.

You can also use an AI engine to translate if your website is in more than one language.

6. AI chatbot

If you want to add a chatbot to your website, AI Chatbot is a great free ChatGPT WordPress plugin.

This plugin makes it easy to connect to ChatGPT and shows a chatbot with text replies that you made in the WordPress backend. It also shows a list of frequently asked questions (FAQs) and asks users for their email or phone number so you can get in touch with them later.

With the AI Chatbot plugin, you can also make a chatbot that asks people what they think about your website, services, or items.

Benefits:

This tool makes adding a chatbot a breeze; no coding is required.

The way it works with ChatGPT software is very smooth.

By letting users enter their email addresses, the tool can help you build an email list.

7. AI Power

This is a free WordPress plugin called AI Power that lets you use ChatGPT's text generator, image generator, and audio converter for transcripts.

An auto-content writer is also included. All you have to do is give AI Power a hint or some relevant keywords, and it will write content for you.

The plugin also comes with ready-made ChatGPT-based form templates. These templates have two ChatGPT fields that can read a user's data and give them answers to help them fill out the form.

Benefits:

There is a WooCommerce product writer tool in AI Power that can write names, descriptions, and marketing materials for your WooCommerce store.

It also has SEO tools built in that will help your site rank better. Some tools, like AIOSEO, Rank Math, and Yoast SEO, can even work with it.

AI Power can make apps for your website and add them to it.

8. AI Post Generator

The free WordPress plugin AI Post Generator makes excellent content for your website using ChatGPT.

If you have a WordPress blog, this is a great option because the tool makes it easy to write blog posts that your readers will find useful.

The plugin saves you a lot of time because it makes a new post draft as soon as you type in a question or keywords that are relevant.

Benefits:

AI Post Generator can help your WordPress SEO by using keywords and phrases that your readers will find useful. It is also capable of producing meta-summaries.

The tool can make content in any language, which makes it perfect for a blog that has posts in more than one language.

The plugin finds the right images and heading tags for your posts and adds them instantly.

Conclusion

The 8 Best ChatGPT WordPress Plugins powerfully incorporate chatbot technology into your website. Natural language processing, customized replies, and WordPress integration make these plugins ideal for engaging visitors and providing immediate support. These plugins can help with customer service, lead generation, and making your website more fun and dynamic. 

Janet Watson MyResellerHome MyResellerhome.com We offer experienced web hosting services that are customized to your specific requirements.

Facebook Twitter YouTube

#wordpress plugins #wordpress #chatgpt

[bestdigitalmarketinginstitutes2v]

Best digital marketing institute in Mohali

After completing your digital marketing training in Mohali, we will guarantee a 100% placement rate

You can receive "Best digital marketing institute in Mohali" from S2V Infotech in both social media and SEO. Digital marketing refers to the promotion and advertising of a company, individual, good, or service over the internet, including social media accounts and online businesses. Since we prefer to work more realistically than conceptually, we offer the best "Internet marketing in Mohali." You will receive an actual project practical from S2V Infotech Trainer, increasing your chances of being placed in various firms. Additionally, we provide "online digital marketing courses in Mohali with Google certificates." Following the completion of your training, we will offer jobs.

You can receive any kind of digital marketing training from our company

Search Engine Optimisation training:

We will cover local SEO, off-page SEO, and on-page SEO in SEO training. The "Best digital marketing institute in Mohali" is located here; its company name is S2V Infotech Pvt. Ltd. The outline of on-page SEO keywords, including how to use keyword planners and LSI keywords, how to choose the ideal term for a page's higher ranking, how to avoid keyword stuffing, how to create content, and how fast pages load Including keywords (we mostly focus on Title, header (h1..h6) meta tag, picture alt attributes, Body Content), meta description length, title length, and site tracing tools (Google Analytics, Webmaster tool).

Off-page SEO: Introduction, backlinks, their significance, building backlinks, Google page rank, article writing and submissions, press forum posting, video submission, business listing, local SEO ("local business listing"), home page promoting tips and techniques, and link building tips are all covered under "off-page SEO."

Social media Optimisation:

It means bringing people together through the use of different social media platforms in order to promote businesses, goods, and online services, among other things. Our organisation, which has been around for 20 years, offers the "digital marketing courses in Mohali." Facebook marketing (including understanding Facebook marketing, creating and uploading Facebook pages, and important tools to use for fan page marketing) will be covered in the course of study. Social media marketing Facebook advertising types The best methods for promoting on Facebook Recognising Facebook's recommended practises creating a Facebook advertising campaign (with targeting and the payment module's options for CPC, CPM, and CPA), Twitter, LinkedIn, and video marketing.

PPC (Pay Per Click) Search Engine Marketing, Internet Marketing

The most effective way to promote our goods, company, and services on Google is through SEM. Best digital marketing institute in Mohali PPC Course is grouped under SEM. "PPC training in Chandigarh" is what we offer. SEO and SEM are not the same; SEO allows you to advertise your business on Google for free, however SEM requires payment in order to do so. This will include an introduction, paid techniques, cost per thousand impressions (CPM), pay-per-click advertising, post ad creation, and the significance of search engine marketing.

Online display advertising and Google Ads

We will cover Google AdWords in our extensive course at the "Digital Marketing training institute in Mohali," which is offered by an S2V Infotech recognised organisation. This is used to advertise businesses and products online on Google through sponsored advertising. Additionally, Google has a Keyword Planner through which we can select high search volume phrases. This course includes "Internet Marketing Course," where a highly skilled trainer will provide live, practical knowledge. We'll concentrate more on the practical than the theoretical.

Why is S2V Infotech the best option in Chandigarh for advanced digital marketing training?

Top Organisation for "digital marketing courses in Mohali, Panchkula, and Mohali" The organisation offers the greatest Industrial experts with real-world project experience.

International certification from "S2V Infotech Pvt Ltd." Company and free certification are provided by S2V Infotech.

Only one firm in Mohali, Chandigarh, offers 100% job placement in the field of digital marketing: Excellent for giving English-speaking mock interviews and seminars on personality development. In order to ensure that students do not miss class during the Covid Lockdown, we provide both offline and online digital marketing courses.

Best Digital Marketing Course in Mohali

Search Engine Optimisation, or SEO

Social media marketing, or SMO

Search Engine Marketing, or SEM

Google Adwords, Page-Per-Click Paid Content Marketing

Video promotion

Partnership Marketing

Email Promotion

Alphabet Analytics

Lead Generation for Freelance and Business Blogging

Jobs Available in Digital Marketing Training

Employ as a Freelancer

Get Employment as a Digital Marketing SEO Executive

Create your own digital marketing agency, run your own online store, and work as a content writer.

You can advertise on your own website as a digital marketing trainer, social media expert, and trainer.

Find Employment in Affiliate Marketing Many More

Contact us:

To know more visit https://s2vinfotech.com/  or call on [phone]

Address: Mohali-140301 C Block Market, Sunny Enclave Sec- 125, Punjab

#tags

#Best Digital marketing company

#Best Digital marketing

#Digital marketing company near me

#Top Digital marketing company

#best digital marketing institute in mohali #Best Digital marketing company #Best Digital marketing #Digital marketing company near me #Top Digital marketing company

[basgevers]

How I Use Instagram

Instagram has seen a lot of changes over the last few years and is certainly nothing like the app I signed up for back in 2011. Back in those days it was a fun app that let you share your images, more often than not completely destroyed by other app such as Hipstamatic (is that still a thing?) and be part of a vibrant, fun community where photography was the central focus.

It's a far cry from today, a massive advertising platform full of ads, suggested posts about things you're probably not interested in, and which leaves you scratching your head, and a slow drift towards video as Instagram desperately tries to keep up with TikTok. 

Instagram will never be TikTok and TikTok will never be Instagram. They're completely different apps, for completely different purposes. One is great at photography and a content distribution platform, the other is great at video and platform-native, creator led content. The constant changes in the mythical 'algorithm' have users lurching from one growth strategy to the next, hoping to stay ahead of this month's curve until it all changes again and engagement drops to near-zero and the cycle starts again. 

For the likes of me, with a small (but select!) set of followers, I've long given up on trying to grow beyond my current level. A lot of that has to do with the quality of my content, clearly, but also about fighting a battle against The Algorithm that I can never win. Small accounts don’t stand a chance, and unless you start posting nothing but Reels you will never get anywhere near the engagement that you had a few years ago. Or last month, even, when The Algorithm changed again.   

Side note: one of the reasons that Insta is really pushing forward with video-based content, is that the usage data is showing them that content creators are posting more Reels. But the reason for this is that these content creators have figured out that posting Reels (as well as stories and DM's) is the only way to get any kind of traction (or "Reach") on Insta these days, so more videos are being posted not because people want to, it's because they have to, to get anywhere.

This false narrative is then seen as confirmation by Insta that Reels are popular, which they are, but for the wrong reasons! 

I find all these changes very frustrating, but Instagram continues to be the number one app on my phone. It's like an addiction on the one hand, but also a sort of car crash voyeurism on the other – it gives me a kick to see how the powers that be at Insta (or Meta, really) have crashed into the barriers again, floundering around, trying to turn Insta into TikTok with one useless feature after another.   

If only they stuck to what Insta is good at – photography – and leave the rest to TikTok (which is really good at video).  

As long as TikTok doesn't allow for static images (which it never will, because, unlike Insta, it knows its audience), then Insta really doesn't have a problem – just turn it into the world's best, and at this point, only, photo sharing app.  

Which is sort-of-how it started in the first place, right?  

So, with all that said, I've adapted how I think about Insta, and how I use it. For me, Insta is still a place where I post occasionally, but the volume of my posts is no longer important – my reach is laughably low, my growth a gentle slope that barely registers. I keep it going just to register my presence, to tell future generations that I existed.  

No, the main reason I still spend waaaaay too much time on the platform, scrolling until the RSI in my left shoulder and forearm are too much to take and my grip is too weak to hold the phone, is to find brilliant photography. Despite what most people think, photography (and great photography) is still very much alive on Insta - you just need to know where to find it!   

So here are the seven ways that I spend my time on Insta. 

1. Forget the Home feed, use the Explore feed sparingly 

I don't really use the Home feed that much. A few months ago, Insta introduced the 'Following' and 'Favourites' tab that grouped the people I follow, as well as those whose work I really like into two separate sections and which means I no longer see the posts suggested to me by Insta (all crap, by the way).  

As for the Explore feed, yeah … So, sometimes you find diamonds in the rough, but mainly it's just a lot of seemingly random things. Currently on my Explore feed this is Labradors, lots of them because I once spent a few seconds too long looking at a cute puppy. Now, don’t get me wrong, I love Labradors, but it doesn’t mean I want my feed to be full of them. Insta seems to have two settings for the Explore feed: completely off, or complete overdrive. To wit: I love urban landscapes, street photography and new topographics. In fact, most if not all of the people I follow fall into one of these three categories. But I reckon only about 5% of the images I see are related to this. The rest, aside from Labradors, seems to involve German runners, guitarists (I play guitar, so, okay …), godawful memes full of cultural references I don’t get, then lot of ladies of various ages and persuasions, often with not much on and covered from head-to-toe in irrepressibly awful tattoos, and videos of things and people once seen, cannot be unseen. In short, Explore is a rabbit hole down which you can go, but which you often end up regretting.  

So, I use the Following tab to see content you really like from people I follow and which you would otherwise miss in the wheel-of-fortune that is the 'Home' feed.  I use the Favourites tab for a few select accounts whose work I definitely don’t want to miss.  

Speaking of which …  

2. Use the 'Suggested' users list – it's actually really good!

… most of the time. So, given that I've set up my Following and Favourites tabs, the next way I find photographers I want to follow is to go to their profile, then click on the '+' icon on the far right of the profile. This gives you a list of suggestions of photographers similar to the profile you're now looking at. Most of time, I'd say 90%, it produces a lot of really good suggestions, and this is how I find most of the people I follow. And, again, this is a real rabbit hole because the people you find will also have a set of suggested users, and so on, and on! If you start doing this, make sure you have nothing planned for the next hour or so because I can guarantee that you'll be at this for a while!  

3. Trim your followers and those you follow 

I do this about once every six months or so. The reason is that I want to keep my Following tab manageable. I used to follow about 2,500 people at one point, way too many and most of the people I was following had not posted for months or had changed direction altogether into something I don’t like or were follow-for-follow followers. From my own followers, I remove obvious spam accounts, or anyone who follows me but has a private account as well as anyone with less than 50 images (unless they're really, really good).  

I don't think any of this has any effect on anything I see on the Home or Explore feeds, but in case it does, by following only those whose work interests and inspires me I keep focus on my own work 

4. Find relevant hashtags and follow those 

I find another effective way to find the content I like is to use hashtags and the follow those to find more relevant content.

For example, some of the hashtags I follow include things like #banalmag, #documentingsmalltowns, #burbsonfilm, as well as more specific photography relates hashtags like #fuji23mf14, #xpro3 and things like #portra160. By going into the Insta menu, admittedly through a somewhat convoluted path (Profile – Following – Hashtags), I can quickly find images I like. You will get some rubbish, because, well, hashtags are abused quite a bit, but on the whole, I have found some great images and photographers this way.  

5. Find magazines and collectives

Like hashtags, Magazines and other Collectives are a powerful way of finding images that you might not find easily otherwise, and which may not be your thing, but which may well lead you to other photographers you might not have found. In a way, this is a sort of better Explore feed, without all the tattoos. There's quite a few to find in Insta – search for words like 'magazine' and 'collective' and you'll find a few. 

Examples include observecollective, thestreetcollective, thecuriouscameraclub and balkan.collective. I add these to my Favourites, rather than Followers. 

6. Use 'Collections' to store the images you find

I like a lot of images on Instagram, but once you've liked an image it disappears again into the void. It's hard to find them again. There is an option to find those buried deep in the settings, but that's very faffy.  

There is a better way.  

Instagram lets you save images you like into your private collections. I have set up several collections, e.g., Yellow, Portra160 in which I save images that contain the colour yellow, or which are made with Portra160 film, respectively. I also keep 'Discovery' collections per month in which I store images I have found in that month.  

7. Use Instagram as a marketing funnel to your best content! 

Ok, so writing that sentence above made me sick in my mouth. It's the sort of marketing bullshit that I truly hate, but if you wipe all the buzzwords off it, you'll find a real gem an idea. I saw a video on YouTube the other day where someone also talked about this. He uses Instagram to post an image but then drives people to his website where they can see more content (including text, video etc.). Admittedly he does this to monetize his content (something I'd never do) but the point is valid all the same: on your own website, you control the content, not Instagram.  

Instagram lets you put links in your profile, and this is what I use to get people to visit my site (the one you’re on now …). My plan for the site is to make this a gallery of my own favourite work and use Instagram to get people there.  

It's a tough road, particularly if your reach is very low, but what I've learned over the past few months is that likes, follows and reach are not important.  

What is important is to do what you love, namely photography, and I hope the seven points above help you find and be inspired by what you find on Instagram! 

#instagram #photography

[exohom]

Crafting Exquisite Luxury: A Guide to Custom Furniture for Your UAE Shopify Store

Introduction

Welcome to the world of luxurious custom furniture, where every piece tells a unique story. In this article, we will explore the art of offering custom-made furniture in your Shopify store based in the United Arab Emirates. By the end, you'll have a comprehensive understanding of why custom furniture is a game-changer and how to leverage it to stand out in the market.

The Charm of Custom Furniture

Custom furniture is more than just a product; it's an experience. In a market saturated with mass-produced items, custom pieces offer exclusivity and individuality. They resonate with customers who appreciate the finer things in life.

Understanding the UAE Furniture Market

To excel in the UAE's furniture market, you must grasp its unique characteristics. The affluent clientele seeks elegance, sophistication, and a touch of local culture. Custom furniture aligns perfectly with these aspirations.

Why Go Custom?

4.1 Personalization Reigns Supreme

One size does not fit all, especially in the world of furniture. Customization allows customers to tailor pieces to their specific tastes, ensuring their homes reflect their unique personalities.

4.2 Quality That Speaks Volumes

Custom furniture often means handcrafted perfection. Emphasize the quality and attention to detail that go into each piece.

Crafting the Perfect Custom Furniture Page

5.1 Keyword Research for SEO

Optimize your website for search engines by using relevant keywords like "luxury custom furniture UAE."

5.2 Unique Product Descriptions

Craft compelling and informative product descriptions that highlight the exclusivity of your offerings.

5.3 Captivating Visuals

Invest in professional photography to showcase the beauty and craftsmanship of your custom pieces.

Leveraging Local Artisans

Collaborating with local artisans not only supports the community but also adds a unique cultural touch to your products.

Price and Value Considerations

Custom furniture comes with a premium price tag. Ensure that your customers understand the value they receive in return.

Shipping and Delivery Logistics

Efficient and secure shipping methods are crucial to delivering these valuable pieces in pristine condition.

Customer Testimonials and Reviews

Build trust by featuring customer testimonials and reviews on your website.

Optimizing Your Shopify Store for SEO

10.1 Meta Tags and Descriptions

Optimize meta tags and descriptions for your product pages to boost search engine visibility.

10.2 Image Optimization

Compress and optimize images for faster loading times.

10.3 Mobile Responsiveness

Ensure your website is mobile-friendly, catering to customers on all devices.

Content is King: A Blogging Strategy

11.1 Topic Ideation

Create engaging blog topics related to custom furniture and luxury living in the UAE.

11.2 Writing High-Quality Blog Posts

Craft informative and captivating blog posts to establish your store as an authority in the field.

Social Media Presence

Leverage platforms like Instagram and Pinterest to visually showcase your custom pieces.

Measuring Success: Analytics and Metrics

Track website performance and customer engagement using analytics tools.

Building Trust: Return Policies and Warranties

Offer transparent return policies and warranties to build trust and confidence.

Conclusion

In the world of e-commerce, custom furniture can be your ticket to unparalleled success. Embrace the allure of personalization, quality craftsmanship, and the unique charm of the UAE market. Elevate your Shopify store with custom furniture, and watch it become a beacon of luxury in the heart of the Emirates.

FAQs

What sets custom furniture apart from mass-produced options? Custom furniture offers exclusivity and personalization, allowing customers to create one-of-a-kind pieces that resonate with their style.

How can I optimize my Shopify store for SEO? Optimize your store with keyword research, unique product descriptions, and image optimization. Ensure mobile responsiveness and use meta tags effectively.

Are there any advantages to collaborating with local artisans? Collaborating with local artisans adds a cultural touch to your products, supporting the community while offering unique pieces.

What role does social media play in promoting custom furniture? Social media platforms like Instagram and Pinterest provide visual platforms to showcase your custom pieces, attracting a wider audience.

How can I measure the success of my Shopify store's custom furniture section? Track website performance and customer engagement through analytics and metrics, which will help you make informed decisions to enhance your store's success.

#Custom Furniture #Dining Table #Coffee Table

[cogitometaverse]

Threads: fastest platform uptake in history!

Last week we saw the launch of Threads, a standalone app launched by Meta. It was amazing to see the incredible uptake of Threads over a few short days. Meta had done a fantastic job of quietly developing this app, checking it and then launching it fully developed. There were minimal glitches and it appeared in a seamless integration with Instagram and had 100 million users in just 5 days after its launch. We have seen a similar uptake with OpenAI’s generative AI-based chatbot, ChatGPT, which reached 10 million daily users in 40 days after launch and 100 million daily active users in about two months after launch. For context, it took TikTok nine months to hit the 100 million mark and Instagram a full two and a half years to reach that milestone. We can see from these kinds of numbers that people are more open to joining new platforms.

This is great news for us here at the Cogito Metaverse where we have been working full time for the last five years building the financial infrastructure for our Metaverse. We are building our systems and carrying out robust checking and testing of our systems, and all the while we are preparing ourselves for this kind of uptake by the masses.

Things that we are working on in our building of the Cogito Metaverse include:

Making sure that the platform is user-friendly and intuitive to use.

Considering the scalability requirements of our platform. We are developing systems to anticipate future growth and designing it to handle increased traffic and user load.

Implementing robust security measures to protect user data, sensitive information, and the integrity of the platform.

Making sure that our platform is optimized for mobile access.

Giving users the ability to personalize their experience, tailor settings, and adapt the platform to their specific needs when feasible.

Ensuring that our platform functions well across different browsers, operating systems and devices.

Continuous work to keep our platform up to date with the latest technologies and industry best practices.

The fast uptake of platforms such as ChatGPT and Threads gives us an indication of the type of uptake we can expect once the Cogito Metaverse hits the mainstream population. We are likely to witness a widespread embrace of the Cogito Metaverse due to its ability to revolutionize various aspects of our lives. We know that people are becoming increasingly interconnected and seeking innovative solutions for communication, commerce and entertainment, and we believe that the Cogito Metaverse offers a transformative digital space where individuals can break free from traditional limitations and boundaries, allowing them to connect, collaborate, and engage in ways never before possible.

With its promise of empowering users to build wealth, access finance, and gain a financial education, the Cogito Metaverse presents an enticing opportunity for individuals to explore new avenues for personal and professional growth. Furthermore, the platform’s dedication to making a positive impact on society aligns with the growing demand for socially responsible and inclusive solutions. Ultimately, the Cogito Metaverse’s potential to reshape how we live, work, and interact in a seamless virtual environment is likely to fuel its widespread adoption.

Let’s all of us together unlock financial growth and empowerment within this extraordinary digital realm. For more information, visit www.cogitometaverse.com

#cogitometaverse #cogito #economy #branding #investing #commercial #ecommerce #entrepreneur #finance

[hypemarketer]

How to Perform an SEO Audit

Are you aware of the effectiveness of your website?

SEO specialists understand the value of routine audits, but for many of us with only a rudimentary understanding of SEO, it may seem like a difficult undertaking. However, it’s getting increasingly crucial to comprehend this in the modern age of digital marketing.

In this blog, we’ll provide you with advice on how to do an SEO audit (similar to an SEO audit checklist), as well as information on the newest tools and advice to help you comprehend the what, where, and why of the process.

What is an SEO Audit?

An SEO audit is what, then? It’s a technique to assess the functionality of your website, guard against spam, and look at optimization ideas. SEO audits are crucial for numerous reasons, but principally because Google often modifies its algorithm to reflect emerging technologies and search trends.

Any digital marketer should begin by doing a complete SEO audit, whether they do it themselves or hire someone else to do it. This is due to the fact that it enables you to evaluate your current SEO efforts, regardless of how many or infrequent they are, and respond immediately in response to those insights.

What is the price of an SEO audit?

This depends on the tools you wish to employ, the scope of your website, and the size of your company. The cost may vary depending on the agency you choose, so get several quotations to compare. Check out our SEO audit manual and toolkit for instructions on the procedure and to get a starter toolkit.

How important is an SEO audit?

To maintain a website’s usability both internally and externally, it’s critical to assess its general health. The sitemap, anchor text, and even social networking platforms should all be the subject of an internal examination. Load time is significant, and performing an exhaustive audit will also reveal warning signs that you need to address.

Making sure you don’t get punished by Google for doing something that can harm your site’s rating is one of the reasons why doing this is so crucial. This may be caused by a variety of minor issues, and if you’re not an SEO specialist, you might do it without even realizing it. Complete SEO audits need a lot of technical expertise, and there are several technical descriptions available online. If you’re not technical, it might not sound like the most enjoyable pastime in the world, but if done correctly, it can increase your earnings in ways you could never have imagined.

You must routinely assess the overall effectiveness of your website. Use some of the tools indicated above to inspect your website once a month, and hire a professional to examine it once a year.

Areas an SEO Audit will cover

An SEO audit is simply a system review to see how well your system is doing in contrast to the competition. The following are some of the key topics that an SEO audit will cover:

Use of keywords: An audit can show you whether your use of keywords is appropriate, strategically arranged, and ready to attract the right kind of visitors. Look through our Comprehensive List of Keyword Research Tools to help you rise in the search engine results.

Latent Semantic Indexing (LSI): This phrase describes the context and purpose of a particular search. As technology, notably AI, develops, it can comprehend a growing amount of specialized meaning, allowing it to more frequently take into consideration things like secondary and long-tail keywords.

Organic Search Rankings: If you pay for sponsored advertisements, you should always seek ways to reduce your expenses. Your performance in organic searches may be evaluated using an SEO audit, which can also help you avoid using paid advertising. The information may also be used to continue developing methods that guarantee organic reach.

Keep up with the Competition: The rivals in your market should routinely do an audit to examine their SEO positions, keyword positioning, etc. They will verify their links, meta descriptions, and other elements, therefore you must do the same to keep up with them.

Field Trends: To keep up with new advancements in your field, you should also look at industry trends. Finding out how your brand is discussed on your site and other websites will also help you identify trends and possibilities in content.

Recognize problematic code: An SEO audit may help you examine the code of your website’s backend to look for errors and other problems that might be slowing it down or causing you to rank lower in search results. If you don’t know how to accomplish this, you should ask a technical specialist like a web developer for assistance.

Steps of an SEO Audit

To guarantee optimal optimization, an SEO audit involves a few crucial stages. Let’s take a closer look at each of them.

Website audits and crawling

How then do you do an SEO audit? An extensive web crawl is the first step in every successful audit. This enables you to evaluate the existing situation and find any potential problems with your website. In essence, a crawl will assist you in establishing a baseline for the remainder of the audit.

An automatic scan should be performed once a month to track simple metrics like bounce rate, conversions, and page visits. Major faults, such as any on-page mistakes in the form of broken links, incorrect page titles and meta-data, or duplicate content, will frequently be revealed by this. If you come across any important problems, you may get in touch with an expert for a thorough audit. Annually, a more comprehensive inspection should be performed.

Your site is evaluated when you perform a scan or a full audit; faults can be identified, and it also provides you with crucial indicators for optimizing your site for improved SEO and raising brand recognition.

When doing a technical SEO audit, you should pay attention to the following areas:

> Are all of your URLs original, tidy, and straightforward? > Content: Is your writing, formatting, informational, and text original? > Are the meta descriptions accurate in length and distinct on each page? > Do you typically have five links each page? Do they all function? > Do the descriptions match the images? > Is the website’s navigation straightforward and simple?

Your landing page and its relationships to other sites, as well as the page’s general usability, the menu, and the effectiveness of the advertisements and banners, will all be thoroughly examined.

Page Speed

When doing an SEO audit, page speed is equally crucial, thus it’s crucial to evaluate and benchmark your page load time. In this day of short attention spans, a quick site speed encourages a pleasant user experience, whereas a slow one will lead to greater bounce rates! If your website is one of your main conversion channels, this is far from ideal. The top SEO audit tools for assisting with page speed are listed below. Utilize Google’s PageSpeed Insights to evaluate how quickly your website renders on desktop and mobile devices. Another tool that will evaluate your web pages is YSlow. It offers recommendations that you can quickly put into practice, such as appropriately formatting and compressing pictures.

The benefit of a speed test is that it allows you to identify the components of your website that are functioning as roadblocks in terms of SEO. You can optimize the performance of your site after you are aware of the areas that want improvement.

Assess your Site Architecture

Having a strong structure for your site will help its SEO, which is another aspect. In terms of website visitors and the bots that crawl it to calculate search ranking, the better the architecture, the better the user experience. Because of this, it’s crucial to have a distinct, logical structure that is reflected in a full, correct sitemap (that has been uploaded to your webmaster tool accounts). An effective URL structure is also crucial.

As far as possible, avoid using symbols or numbers when naming anything, and make sure it corresponds to the hierarchy of your website. Making sure all of your primary web pages are included in the website’s top navigation menu will help site visitors and search engine bots locate the information they need quickly and effortlessly. Internal links that move visitors and search engine crawlers quickly from one page of your website to another should also be included for the same purpose. By following these steps, you can ensure a solid site architecture that will help your SEO.

Check your Site’s Content

Content is a key component of on-page SEO and has a significant impact on how effective your site is. Google favors constantly updated, original material that is pertinent to a searcher’s requirements and tastes. This implies that in order to benefit from increased brand visibility and higher ranks, you must ensure that the material on your website adheres to this directive. A crucial component of that is a content SEO audit, so be sure to review any current material as well as create new content while wearing your SEO hat.

You should employ keywords naturally and consistently while writing content. You must find a balance between employing targeted keywords and not appearing “spammy” with your brand.

Check your tags

Concise, detailed title tags that clearly state the goal of the cited webpage. Less is more in titles since search engines may truncate longer ones. Whenever you can, try to incorporate a term that is pertinent.

The content of a webpage is described via a meta-tag. They will encourage a searcher to click through from your placement on a SERP to your website if they are optimized. For bots to properly explore a website, photos must include alt tags, which are text descriptions of the images. Your SEO and overall digital accessibility will be greatly impacted if you provide correct descriptions of the pictures on your site (again, utilize targeted keywords if it sounds natural).

To avoid concerns with duplicate material, make sure each of your pages has a rel=”canonical” link (also known as the canonical tag) in its HTML. Blog post tags will also help you arrange your site’s content for indexing, assuming you have a blog, of course. Check out our 5 easy steps to create a blog if you desire to do so!

Check your Backlinks

Sometimes, who you know matters more than what you know. Search engines frequently use the caliber of the websites linking to yours to judge the quality of your website and how valuable it is to users. In the past, a technique called “link farming” involves swapping reciprocal connections with other websites in order to improve SEO.

However, SEO techniques have improved with time, and algorithms have advanced in complexity. Focus on quality over number when it comes to backlinks since if a search engine thinks that dubious websites are connecting to you, it might hurt the reputation of your website. In a similar vein, it’s crucial to confirm that your connections originate from several domains rather than just one.

SEO Audit Tools

There are a lot of tools available that may assist you in conducting an efficient audit, which is fortunate for the majority of us who aren’t SEO specialists. Some of the top SEO audit tools are listed below.

SEO Spider from Screaming Frog

500 URLs can be crawled for free, after which a license costs $209/£149 per year. The program will do an analysis for you once you enter the URL you wish to crawl.

Internet Analytics

Any digital marketer in any business has to have this. It will provide you with crucial measurements for all types of metrics and will in many ways direct you toward improved SEO. It is a tool that may be continuously used to monitor and track traffic. Screaming Frog can connect Google Analytics so that you can compare site statistics like sessions, page views, and bounce rates. This will provide you a more detailed, comprehensive understanding of what’s occurring with your site.

Google Webmaster Tools (including Google Trends and Search Console)

Google offers various accessible tools that anybody can use to run routine SEO audits and assist you in viewing your page “as” Google sees it in order to evaluate the effectiveness of your website.

Verify My Links

You may examine your links with the use of this extension tool to make sure they are allpromoting traffic rather than hindering it. For instance, Check My Links will highlight any broken links, the proper link density, and the internal and external link structure. Even though it’s not too difficult to accomplish manually, it just takes a few seconds.

SEO Grade Card

Your site will be examined by SEO Report Card to see how well it is performing in contrast to the competition. Things like rank analysis, link-building strategies, trust measures, and authority baseline will be examined. Additionally, it will evaluate how fast and user-friendly your website is overall.

Crawl Test Tool for MOZ

When you purchase a MOZ pro membership, you’ll also have access to a tool that assists you in improving your page ranking for certain keywords and provides growth data. This analyzes your pages using MOZ’s crawler and then sends a report. Depending on the demands and size of the organization, it might cost anywhere from $99 to $599 each month.

Browseo

With Browseo, you can see your web pages just like a search engine would. This will enable you to evaluate the more technical aspects of your material and make any required adjustments.

Majestic

Majestic, a program that claims to be “the world’s largest link index database,” can assist you infinding out who is connecting to you so you may determine whether or not that relationship ispertinent and beneficial.

SEMRush

This is an effective SEO tool, but it may be especially helpful for assessing how well your visual material is performing. For instance, you may use YouTube’s site audit tool and Keyword Magic Tool to perform an SEO assessment. Plans range in price from $119.95 to $449.95 per month.

Utilize SEO to increase traffic, leads, and sales.

Finding and connecting with your core audience can be challenging given the abundance of material available. You will receive the knowledge and skills necessary to stand out in a crowded field with DMI’s Professional Diploma in Search Marketing, which is offered in collaboration with SEO master Neil Patel. You’ll discover how to leverage search analytics, optimize SEO, design successful sponsored advertisements, and much more.

#digital marketing #graphic design #branding #marketing #social media #website