People
often experience a dilemma regarding social media engagement. While they may
harbour an aversion to social media platforms and acknowledge the documented
negative impact on mental well-being, they remain reliant on them to access
essential or unique content. Simultaneously, a strong desire exists to disrupt
or fundamentally change the pervasive influence of social media. This article
explores strategies to navigate this conflicted landscape, examining methods
for utilizing platforms selectively while actively working to undermine their
detrimental effects. We will present actionable insights to guide this
approach.
Based on
the information about how social media platforms generate revenue,
you can choose to take actions that are within the bounds of a normal user's
rights and the platform's standard functionality that would naturally reduce
the value you bring to the platform's business model.
The
social media platform's primary sources of revenue and value are:
1.
Advertising: Which depends on user engagement, viewable content, and ad clicks.
2.
Data Licensing: Which depends on the volume and quality of user-generated
content (posts, likes, etc.).
3.
Subscriptions (Premium level/Badges): Which depends on paying users.
If your
goal is to reduce your contribution to its resources or value, you could
consider the following steps, which are simply ways to disengage or reduce your
activity:
1. Reduce
Ad Revenue Impact
a) Log
out or use the platform less frequently: This directly reduces the
number of ads you are exposed to and the ad impressions the social media
platform can report.
b) Avoid
clicking on any advertisements: Ad revenue is generated
primarily when users engage with the ads.
c) Do not
use the platform to follow links to other websites: The
platform tracks which links drive traffic from their platform, which is a
valuable metric for advertisers.
d) Use an
ad-blocker (if your browser allows): This prevents ads from
loading, reducing the platform's ability to show you advertisements.
2. Reduce
Data and Content Value
a) Stop
posting new content: Posts, images, and videos are the
"data" that social media platform licenses to researchers and
businesses for trend analysis and AI training. Stopping your posts ends this
contribution.
b) Delete
your old posts/content: A social media platform’s content moderation
and data licensing efforts may involve processing this older content. Deleting
it removes that data.
c)
Disable data sharing for AI: Go into your account settings
and look for options related to sharing your data, especially for AI or machine
learning purposes. Disabling this setting removes your content from
use in training the social media platform's AI models.
d) Stop
engaging with others' content: Liking, reposting, and replying
are all "signals" that feed the platform's algorithm and provide
valuable data on user interests and network connections. Stop using these
features.
3.
Consider Account Deactivation
The most
definitive way to eliminate your drain on resources (i.e., server costs for
your data/account) and your value to the company is to deactivate your account.
a) This
removes your past and future content from the active data pool (though it
usually takes about 30 days for full deactivation).
b) It
eliminates you from their active user metrics, which are a critical measure of
the platform's health for advertisers and investors.
Ultimately,
a company's overall profitability is driven by its large user base,
advertisers, and data consumers. An individual user's actions will only affect
the profitability of the company in a negligible way, but consistently choosing
non-engagement methods is the only way for you to ensure that your own presence
on the platform does not contribute to its success.
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Disclosure:
This article was developed with the assistance of an AI model.
