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Twice weekly show providing social media updates, trend alerts, original content ideas, strategy session, industry guests, tutorials and more!
Why Social Media Needs Older Creators. Welcome to the Muthership Creator Strategy. That's our topic for today and I'm going to tell you how I got here and why. But first I'm going to kick off with our Creator of the Week shout out Penny Pounds, and long overdue because she is a creator in the studio who is always willing to share her finds. And when I mean finds, the learnings about how to make money inside the app of TikTok.
Helen:She is very well versed in all of the little nuances of how you can take advantage of the extra money TikTok is offering for creators to promote music, to do TikTok one, promote travel, and all the little things she finds. She's also really good at doing shop content. What I love about her is her just joy. She doesn't really overthink her content. She's always willing to try a trend and she is a positive force in the studio.
Helen:Thank you Penny. Alright, on we go. I'm going to do first an open invitation for you guys who are listening to share this with someone who needs to hear it because we have a lot of folks who are not willing to put themselves out there on social media for one reason or another. They feel that they're older, maybe they have nothing to say, they don't like how they look on camera, whatever the things are that are holding them back, I urge you to pass along this episode. I think it's an important one.
Helen:I have so much to say about it being on the side of having grown a following, having dealt with negativity, having dealt with even friends and family and and feedback and things like that. I I just think I have so much to say about this. And let me tell you why the topic even came this week. This was not the planned topic for the week, but I was at the gym and I'm trying really hard to be consistent with my gym attendance and I was in a workout class and the trainer was giving me a pump up, you know, go, go, go, and I said, yeah, I'm gonna slay. And he actually said to me, and I'm not going to throw any shade or insult or anything about the trainer himself, but he actually said, did your daughter teach you that word?
Helen:The fact that he didn't think that I would know that word because of my age was a blow. And of course I said to him right away, oh, I have a million followers on TikTok, so no, my daughter didn't teach me that word. And that's what was a little playful bit of a response, but it made me realize that it's still here. Even with as many older creators who are putting themselves out on social media, it is still assumed by a lot of a younger demographic that once you get to a certain age, you don't know terminology, you don't know technology, maybe you don't know, hip trends or what's happening in pop culture. And I feel so frustrated by it because I it's a constant almost an ageism thing that comes with me.
Helen:And I remember another time being at a store with Julie, a long time ago now, this is years ago, but it was a year when I was already on social media and somebody the the person at the at the checkout said, Oh yeah, there's an app that you can use for this. You can download that for your mom. Like, no, she's not downloading an app for me. I'm not Anyway, I'm not going to even say anything insulting or anything more, but you get it, right? There is a viewpoint in the world that is very much the norm that people think if you are a certain age or you're over a certain age, you don't have certain skills.
Helen:And I feel so incredibly frustrated by it. Do I know that, yes, it's true, a lot of people my age and even younger don't embrace technology. Maybe they didn't have a reason to. Maybe they were doing something else in their career. I have always been very on top of technology because being in production, it's right in front of me and I've been very interested in it so it's very easy to keep up with something when you're interested.
Helen:And it's difficult when you're not and you're pushing back and you're blah blah blah AI or blah blah technology. I've never been that person. But I feel, I don't feel I'm in the minority. I think there's many, many older adults who completely understand technology. We have computer programmers.
Helen:We have people who are doing digital marketing for years of their career. So it was so frustrating and it just brought it to a head. And I thought, yes, we need to talk about it. So first to really recap why social media needs you. Because storytelling is a superpower, and a lot of creators who are younger curate their content versus narrate.
Helen:And so I feel that my whole presence on social media has been more like vlogging, more more sharing my day to day, more, I guess, narrating things that have happened in my life. And I think a lot of younger creators are looking for the shot or the perfect aesthetic. This, of course, is more Instagram than TikTok. But even on TikTok, young people are trying to make their life look so amazing, and they the editing makes everything look so incredible. And I think there is a difference in older creators' voices.
Helen:We don't feel as pressed to do that. We are okay being who we are and I think that speaks to it speaks to experience and being around enough and not being caring as much what people think. So we'll get into that. But the other part, the other reason why social media needs you is because representation matters and having more of us showing who we are presents a sort of digital safety for younger people growing up and seeing, oh, it's okay to be older because look at her, she's my inspiration. Or look at him, he's like doing it.
Helen:There are so many the internet moms and dads that want to be there for younger people. And they want to have younger people leaning on them. And I think that's such an important part of the socialization part of social media. You know, we have our, he's our dad, he's our dad now, he's all of our dads now when one of the dads does something really cool as a girl mom, girl dad or something. So there's so much of that and I think that helps us as a society be more connected and intergenerationally.
Helen:Alright, so now what does creating do for you as a creator? Okay, so if you are an older creator, let's talk about what it can actually do for you. You ready? My favorite things. So number one, when you're engaging with new tools and you are practicing editing and you're keeping your mind sharp and you're learning things, that actually, it's proven that it lengthens potentially your lifespan.
Helen:It helps to ward off, what is that, dementia and the things that happen to older people when they just get stagnant and they lack socialization. So number one, it's good for your health. Okay? Number two, it is good for your sense of purpose. A lot of older folks, when their kids leave, they are feeling a loss.
Helen:When they have changes in their life due to the decade that they're in, they feel a sense of invisibility or really like a lack of purpose, I'm going to say. So putting yourself out there gives you a sense of purpose. You could potentially reach people who need what you have to offer, your expertise, what you have to say. It's a way of passing down skills that you have or making a connection with the generation. There's a lot of times where the Gen X, folks talk about drinking from the hose outside.
Helen:And that has sparked lots of intergenerational conversations and videos. So this and I don't think a lot of younger people even knew about that, like what that even meant until social media. So it provides a conversation. It also can give you some purpose, and it also gives you a sense of legacy. Like I often think about, I don't want to think about it too much, but I think about through the years and I'm like wow I have created a digital footprint.
Helen:So as I get older my grandkids will have access to me as a younger person even though they won't know me at this time. So that's sort of an interesting thing. And I think as we age, the other part of this is we are less concerned about being liked. So therefore putting yourself out there on social media gives you a thicker skin. It allows you to face things that maybe would have bothered you when you were younger, and they're less cumbersome now.
Helen:I've talked about this on other episodes where I used to a people pleaser way more and now I'm like, Meh, that person doesn't like my video, they can move on. It doesn't even bother me. And I will be honest with you, that bothered me in the beginning. It just was like, Ugh, I've to win this person over. Or How could they write that comment?
Helen:How could they think that of me? And now I don't even give it a second thought. So it does help. Okay. So that's some of the things.
Helen:It's the brain work. It's the ability to just not worry about things and take it as seriously and also to be able to have a sense of purpose and pass on your expertise to someone who needs it. I always say it's to reach someone who doesn't, wouldn't normally be able to reach you and that's really, really an important part of it. Now let's get to navigating the outside forces. What does that mean?
Helen:It means your friends, your family, the judgment. All of the things that are going to come into play. Because yes, they are going to come into play. Especially if you I mean, I started years ago and I know there were people. I know it.
Helen:I'm not gonna say who, what, when, and where. But I know there were people who were judging me for putting myself on what is she doing or rolling their eyes and just maybe how ridiculous I was being. It didn't bother me. Now other people are very disturbed. My own mother cares so much still at the age of 88 what people think.
Helen:And I'm always like, why do you care what people think at this point? I can't even grasp it. And I think it's so much because of what social media has given me. It has given me a sense of confidence, like I said already, that thick skin, and it's just given me freedom. I used to be so much more judgmental of myself, physically even.
Helen:I didn't want to, oh, does this make me look fat? Does that make me look old? Does this does that? I don't even think about it anymore, honestly. And I I have social media to thank.
Helen:Maybe it's from this idea that some I've seen some creators talk about the idea that you are seeing yourself on camera and you become more accepting of yourself because we use the selfie camera a lot even though I don't look at myself directly. I'm editing my videos, so I'm seeing myself constantly as I'm editing. And I think we become more accepting and we like ourselves better. I think I like myself more now than when I was younger. So it can help you accept yourself.
Helen:It can even though you think the judgment is from others, a lot of times the judgment was actually from ourself, ourselves. And it was self imposed judgment that we were projecting what other people might be thinking of us. So yay to that all being behind. And now let's talk about the last little section of the aging thing. I made a few bullet points just to keep myself on track as if.
Helen:But the strategy of authenticity. So it is very, very hard for a new creator to feel confident. It takes time. It doesn't happen like you pick up a phone and all of a sudden you're confident. No.
Helen:It takes time. It takes practice. It takes repetition. All of those things. It's a fact.
Helen:And what I see a lot of older creators doing and it drives me absolutely bonkers is they think, oh, other creators are getting more views because they're giving social media advice of how to grow on social media. So they just copy the same type of things. They pick up their phone and they're like, if you want to get more followers, engage from the bottom up. Meanwhile, this is a new creator who doesn't even have followers. Why are they even giving it advice in the first place?
Helen:So right away, I'm like, oh, phew. I just, like, scroll on by. But I also know this is a formula they saw in another video, they're just mimicking it. They're just copying what they see and they think that's what the algorithm wants or something. What the algorithm actually wants is your real voice, your real hobby, your real interest, your real expertise.
Helen:It wants something different. If you are feeding it the same crap that other creators are feeding it, you might, oh yeah, are you going to land on the For You page? Perhaps, but I'm going to scroll right by. And most of the people who are on social media now, we are onto it. We know it's the canned BS and we are moving on.
Helen:We are ignoring. All of the creators in my studio will tell you. They always say like they're going to make a thing about like what would Helen not do or something like that. And I mean, they know. I've alerted them.
Helen:Like when you see someone jiggling the camera and putting it down, that's they're trying to get tricky with a visual hook. We all move on when we see that. So where I'm encouraging you as an older creator to lead and not copy. Of all people, we should be leading and not copying. Young people, it's a known fact.
Helen:Groups in high school, they wear the same clothes. They wear the same, you know, uniforms to things. It's the way you learn to fit in as a teenager. The club feeling. Being a part of something.
Helen:But being a part of something as a teenager looks very different than being part of something as an adult. As an adult, we want to be unique and add value to our group. As a teenager, you just want to fit in. I have to wear the same thing. I have to have the same haircut.
Helen:Have wear the same knee socks. And I feel sad that unfortunately young people have to live through life to get past that part, but it's just part of growing up. That's what we do. So that's why young people tend to mimic. They tend to get on the social media apps and do the perfectly curated selfies and post the perfect things with the looks and the things.
Helen:That's just what they are doing to fit in and be comfortable, but we don't have to do that as older creators. We do not. We can I want to be me kind of thing? We can just be ourselves. I'm sure there's so much more I can say about this authenticity thing, but if you just think about wanting to have growth to make connection with like minded folks or trying to find your tribe without having to fit in and be a carbon copy of your tribe, that is far more valuable.
Helen:An audience built on respect, built on shared values is definitely more durable than one that's like, oh, we just got a bunch of followers because we went viral. In my case, it's helpful because if I have a viral, it's usually a tutorial. It's only almost always a tutorial. And then it's like, great. I get a bunch of followers who wanna learn.
Helen:They're not necessarily a tribe of people that are like minded. They are just people who see my value. So there's different ways to grow as an older creator. You can be a person who imparts value, shares knowledge, and grows an audience that needs what you have to offer from a standpoint of expertise. Or you can be a creator who's bringing people together who are like minded and going through on the same path.
Helen:And it's so funny because I say that and then I'm like, think I'm doing both of those things. So I'm going to leave you with this because I think there's a lot of people who are wanting to try but haven't put themselves out there. If somebody sent you this podcast and you made it to the end, hooray, your perspective is a service that is needed. Whatever that perspective is, and I know that I have studio members who struggle with I don't know what I want to make videos about, and they'll share quotes. And they're feel free to share a quote but follow it up with what it means to you.
Helen:Follow it up with why that quote speaks to you. What happened in your life that makes that quote speak to you. Follow it up with personal perspective because your life of experience, however boring you think it is, has value to someone. Trust me, it does. So don't just sit back and watch the conversation.
Helen:It's time to enter it. To take a little toe dip in the water and see if you can join the conversation. It's gonna really make a difference in your life. I guarantee that you'll get a sense of confidence, especially when you make a video and you're proud of it. Me and Julie used to talk about this all the time.
Helen:We'd watch our own videos because we're like, isn't that funny? Isn't that good? Isn't that great? Isn't that edit perfect? Whatever it is.
Helen:It just makes you feel better. It's like I used to say, go for a run, you'll feel better. That's what I used to always tell Julie when she was younger. I'm like, go for a run, you'll feel better. Because I know the endorphins that I would get from doing that one kind of thing.
Helen:And now I get a very, very similar type of endorphin rush when I put a video out and I love it. And then if I get some comments on it and I can comment back. There is such good energy when you have a sense of purpose, when you have a sense of adding to a conversation, and you will feel seen. So if you need help feeling seen, come to the Mothership. Thanks for listening.