In the old days of social media (way back in 2011) when I first began blogging, I set myself up with a WordPress, a Blogger, and a Tumblr account, and settled down to cross-post entries on all of them. However, I quickly discovered that Blogger wasn’t very user friendly in terms of design or customization of posts, and I didn’t really understand how to properly use Tumblr. The dashboard was more of a feed than a true administrative dashboard, and the blog didn’t behave the way other blogging platforms did. I discarded my Tumblr and Blogger accounts, and settled for only using WordPress.

Flash-forward five years later, to 2016, when blogs are beginning to decline but Tumblr is still going strong. I’ve been intending to get back into the Tumblr-verse, but have been hesitant as to how best to do it. So I sat down with two friends of mine who are avid, proficient, (and semi-famous) Tumblr users, and asked them how I should go about it. “Teach me to Tumblr!” I told them. After all, entering a new community is a much smoother transition when you already know people who know the community, how it works, and who you should get to know.

I quickly discovered that Tumblr, more than any other social media platform I have experienced, is about VOLUME. It is also about curation. Publishing original content is not so important as gleaning the content that you, and your followers, are most interested in, and re-posting it for them. In order to establish a well curated blog, you have to sort through a lot of material. One of my friends follows around 100 blogs, the other around 400. Both are active Tumblr users, both use it almost every day.

After sitting down with them I now understand how to use Tumblr in a way I didn’t understand back in 2011. The reason Tumblr is still running strong is that it has become a microcosm of the Internet. It is possible to follow a vastly diverse group of people on Tumblr and to view a vastly diverse amount of material. There is something for everyone. There is also the ability, more than any other site I’ve found, to develop a niche and a performative identity space while maintaining a great deal of anonymity. Tumblr is definitely a social media site to watch for the future, and while a few libraries are beginning to explore it, particularly those with niche interests, like special libraries, I think there is still more possibility to be discovered there.

The experience of re-learning Tumblr has also forcefully reminded me of some early advice I was given as I began managing social media accounts professionally in my workplaces:

Social media is not simple. It takes knowledge and experience to use it correctly and efficiently.

Social media is time consuming. If you want to have a well run social media profile, you must ensure you have the time to sit down and make it happen.

They are good lessons to keep in mind moving forward.