As professional social media fanatics, we at Metter Media spend a LOT of time online. Because of that, it should come as no surprise we have plenty of ideas that could make our (and everyone else’s) experiences better on social networking.
Sometimes that article about the new iPhone could really use a Macarena baby GIF — that Facebook won’t allow. Or you get a Twitter notification on your phone that you can’t read because someone sharing the account already opened it and it disappeared before your very eyes. And it’s beyond frustrating.
In the midst of scheduling posts, sharing cat pictures, and lightheartedly making fun of each other, the MM team came up with our top social media gripes that we’d love to see solutions to — soon.
1. Mobile Editing
Facebook’s mobile app is new-ish, but it’s not new enough to be so consistently frustrating. It flitters in consistency, oftentimes not allowing you to edit posts from a page or personal profile from your phone (even if you posted from your phone) and forcing those of us who are often on the go to find the time to access a desktop.
2. Working GIFs
We’re the GIF generation. Gone are the days of stationary images for marketing or general communication. We want our pictures to move more than the portraits at Hogwarts do (let’s keep them from talking to us, though). With the advent of Imgur, Giphy, and now Relay, GIFs are all over social media… but not on Facebook. You can link to them, sure, but the novelty of seeing a GIF comment is a beautiful thing that Twitter and Reddit have implemented perfectly. We’re waiting, Facebook.
3. Customized Featured Images
There is nothing worse than when you share a link on a friend’s page or on your business’s page, and the featured image Facebook suggests is ATROCIOUS, or worse, nonexistent! When you share a link on Facebook, you should have the ability to add a featured image of your own. Come on, Zuckerberg; even LinkedIn has that capability!
4. More Images on TweetDeck
This one breaks my heart. When scheduling tweets, you can only include one image. How is that fair? Some of the best posts on Twitter include multiple images (a relatively new feature), but not being able to schedule those in advance can be limiting for social media managers. Given that Twitter itself developed TweetDeck, the inconsistent features don’t really make sense.
5. Image Tagging on All Platforms
Speaking of photos, have you noticed Twitter’s cool new tagging feature? Yup, if you upload a photo on Twitter, you can tag up to 10 people! BUT it only works on mobile — not so great for businesses or for people who manage more than one account. Let’s make it possible to do this on Twitter for desktop — and for TweetDeck!
6. No More Disappearing Notifications
I’ve mentioned it once, but I’ll say it again: don’t you hate when you get a push notification and it disappears? When you’re running an account that multiple users are connected to, your notifications go away when someone else checks them on their device first, and when you’re managing numerous accounts, it can be a real pain to figure out where the notification came from in the first place. This leads to a lot of missed gold on Twitter that could be amplified tenfold, but isn’t.
7. Post Editing
Far too many times I’ve tagged a user in an Instagram post and realized it was the wrong handle far too late. Or worse — I’ve made an egregious spelling error. Let’s save the world from poor grammar and tagging confusion and let us edit Instagram posts! Even better, give us the option to edit geo-tags after posting, lest we tag the wrong place or forget to do so completely.
Yes, we realize we can treat it as a comment and delete/redo accordingly, but longer posts morph into “[…]” on Instagram instead of appearing in full, and if others have already commented, your original message could get lost in the mix.
8. Switching Between Accounts
For those of us managing multiple accounts, it would be a damn SAVIOR to switch accounts within the app (similar to Twitter) without having to log out and back in every time. We have the technology. Let’s utilize it.
9. Simple Group Board Requests
How do you join a group board on Pinterest? Many people don’t know right off the bat, but it should be as easy as a click of a button (hint: it isn’t). Board owners all have their own instructions, ranging from commenting on a photo, to visiting their personal profile and commenting on a specific board, to running around the block and doing a handstand while you perform a rain dance (okay, slight exaggeration). You have to be invited to a group board, and a lot of them make it pretty much impossible to figure out how.
Foursquare/Swarm
10. DOWN WITH SWARM
I’m counting on Lauren to deliver a Metter-style thought piece on this, but until then, I’ll just say this: Swarm turning back into Foursquare would be the BEST thing to happen to social media in 2014. Why? Because Foursquare turning into Swarm was the worst. I just want my Mayorships back. WHAT’S THE POINT?
Google Hangouts
11. Away Messages
Welp, little complaint here; the new Google Hangouts app rocks. It takes GChat to a whole new level and decreases my daily productivity by 600%. The only thing that bugs us is a lack of statuses and custom messages – it’s kind of a basic feature, isn’t it? This may become the new AIM and I’m so fine with that, just one special tweak and I’m all yours, Hangouts.
What suggestions do you have for your favorite social media platforms? Let us know what features you’re looking for in the comments, or tweet us at @mettermedia!
Metter Media LLC is a Boston-based social media management company that implements community-based, localized social engagement strategies for small businesses and corporations alike. Need help with your social media? Email Lauren today.
