WordPress recently announced that the auto-sharing of blog posts to Twitter ended on the 1st of May, 2023. You can read their announcement by clicking the following link – Why Twitter Auto-Sharing Is Coming to an End.
Does This Mean That Twitter Is Dead?
No. Despite many users deleting their Twitter accounts when Elon Musk took over (and some continuing to do so), Twitter is very much alive.
Although I’ve lost over one-hundred followers on Twitter, I still see traffic to my blog coming from it. As you’ll see from the following image, Twitter outperforms any other social media platform in the number of shares my blog gets.
Only the WordPress Reader and search engines outperform Twitter in the number of shares they bring to my blog. I am curious why so many people have shared my blog posts via Skype, though.
Has Twitter Become Worse Since Elon Musk Took It Over?
Many users feared that Twitter would become more hate-related. I’ve not seen any increase in hate-related content. That may be because I always avoid it. And like on other social media sites and WordPress, I block users who publish hate-related content or who leave nasty comments.
I’ve had a Twitter account since 2010. Four more years than my WordPress blog, and I’ve had more trolls visit my blog than have visited me on Twitter.
What’s The Best Way To Deal With Trolls Or Nasty Comments, Tweets or Blog Posts?
Never engage with them. Trolls move on when they don’t get any kind of reaction. Ignoring, blocking and marking their comments as spam is the best form of action.
If I don’t like something on television or the radio, I switch off or switch channels. Likewise, if I see anything I do not like on any social media platform, I move on. Any spam or hateful comments directed at me get reported, and I block the user.
While I have not liked all the changes that have occurred on Twitter, nothing has made me delete my account yet.
Am I Sad That WordPress Is Ending Auto-Share To Twitter?
You may be surprised by my answer, but no. While WordPress did its best to get a good deal for users, I’m glad it decided to walk away from negotiations. WordPress put its users first. Had it agreed to the inflated rates Twitter wanted, users would have been hit with price increases.
Will The Twitter Sharing Buttons On Blog Posts Still Work?
Yes. WordPress has confirmed that the Twitter sharing button will still work. No need to delete it. Users can still tweet your posts even if you do not have a Twitter account.
And although auto-sharing to Twitter is ending, you can still copy links to your blog posts and paste them into new tweets.
Is Auto-Sharing On WordPress Now Dead?
No. Users can still auto-share their posts to the following social media platforms.
- Tumblr
In their announcement, WordPress also mentioned that auto-sharing was coming to Instagram and Mastodon (due mid-June 2023). However, I have heard that only those with an Instagram business account will have the ability to auto-share their blog posts. That may not be true, but more information will follow.
On May 3rd, I published a Wordless Wednesday post and was surprised to find that auto-sharing to Twitter was still working.
On May 5th, I published my Flash Fiction Friday post, and auto-sharing to Twitter was still working. By the time this post goes live, it may have stopped working, but I mentioned it to WordPress, and they came back with this response.
I guess it’s a little like WordPress themes that are no longer supported. They may become unreliable with no support, start to cause problems, and eventually stop working.
And a further update from WordPress on Twitter dated 9th May 2023.
Update 18th May 2023 – Auto-sharing to Twitter from WordPress has now been switched off.
Does Social Media Bring Traffic To Blogs?
Yes, but you must give it lots of time to work properly. Spreading yourself too thinly on social media by having too many social media accounts does not work. When I cut the number of social media accounts I had to two, I saw my blog stats take off.
Is It Worth Joining Instagram And Mastodon Now That WordPress Are Introducing Auto-Sharing To Them?
Only if you can give them the time to make them work for you and your blog.
You must engage with other users to gain followers. When I started engaging with other bloggers on WordPress, my stats boomed. When I started engaging with other users on Twitter, my stats boomed.
Don’t expect things to take off if you’re not prepared to give your time engaging with other users.
My recommendation is to stick with two or three social media platforms. Stay with those that work best for you.
What Is Mastodon?
I heard about Mastodon last year but only decided to create an account when I heard that auto-sharing to Twitter was ending.
It’s early days for me, but it has the look and feel of Twitter. I’ve added a Mastodon button to my social media widget. It’s the second button on the following bar.
Clicking on it will take you to my Mastodon account. If you already have a Mastodon account, please consider following me, and I will follow you back.
If you want to join Mastodon, start here on the Mastodon startup page.
If you want information about Mastodon, I found this unofficial guide to Mastodon very helpful.
However, it may take time for Mastoden to take off, so be prepared to wait. New social media platforms are being launched all the time. Remember to stick to just a few. Don’t spread your time too thin.
I will give Mastodon time, but I will delete my account if it does not work for me.
So far, it’s looking good because I am engaging with other users and, in turn, they are engaging with me. Some have been very helpful, although I’ve failed to find many WordPress users. So, if you’ve a Mastodon account, please consider connecting with me.
Instagram was one of the social media accounts I deleted a few years ago. I’ve no plans to rejoin Instagram.
Not Sure What Auto-Sharing Is Or How To Set It Up On WordPress?
This document, Post Automatically to Social Media, gives full details.
Layout, content, settings, and format might differ on self-hosted blogs.
This is an updated version of a post originally published on Hugh’s Views And News in 2020.
Have you already cut ties with Twitter? Do you have a Mastodon account? Do you have any questions about auto-sharing on WordPress? Leave them in the comments section.
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