6 Ways Social Media Has Changed Christmas
Deck the halls with boughs of holly as #Christmas is here! Obviously a lot has changed in the ways we celebrate the holidays, with the continual rise of smartphones, social media, and selfies – just try and stop your Christmas dinner from showing up on Instagram.
Rather than send Christmas cards via post or invite friends over for the Christmas party with a call, we now drop emails and invite them via Facebook Events.
While you may bemoan over how technology has changed the traditional Christmas spirit (curses!), it is time to observe the change of time. So in lieu of this festive season, we present to you 6 ways social media has changed the way we celebrate Christmas.
12 Strange Christmas Customs You Probably Don’t Know
Christmas is mostly about celebrations, gift-giving, merry-making and church-attending. There are so many different elements that contribute to... Read more
Spruce Up Your Accounts
If you have the time, the first thing to do to get into the festivities is to dress up your accounts. Like updating your Facebook cover picture with a Christmassy wallpaper or giving your Twitter display photo a Santa hat.
And why stop at one social network when you have multiple? Change your Tumblr theme colors and take a new selfie for Instagram; update them all!
Construct Your Wishlist
Because sometimes (or most times) people just don’t know what to get you for presents and end up giving you the boring old mug to add to your collection. It ends this Christmas and with the power of technology.
It can be as simple as a Facebook status with a picture of the object of your desire or an entire Pinterest board with everything you want in it. Complete your not-so-subtle hints with the hashtag #ChristmasWishlist or #IWantThis.
All I want for Christmas is…what? #ChristmasFail pic.twitter.com/Egi7QritZS
— Country 101.1 (@country1011fm) December 3, 2013
Send Season’s Greetings
With 1000+ followers/friends, ain’t nobody got time to wish them all. So a festive tweet would have to do when the clock strikes midnight and you take a little more time to craft a touching and thankful Facebook status because you are #deep.
Then you spend the next hour or so refreshing and going back and forth between social media to reply, retweet, and check for likes.
Oh and you can’t forget to mass WhatsApp your contact list. Or LINE them. Or send them a KakaoTalk. Or WeChat. And then there’s that Skype call you have to make…
Document The Festivities
You put in a lot of effort wrapping that present for your bestie by customizing the wrapping paper and carefully tying the ribbon with add-ons. It’s a piece of art (!) so you Instagram it. Heaven knows how much time you took to put up tinsel and baubles and lights all around the house and the Christmas tree. You stand back to admire your handiwork and Instagram it.
Your mom spent close to 8 hours cooking up the Christmas feast that now sits on the dining table. Before anyone could dig in, you take a picture and Instagram it. And hashtag your post with #Christmasdinner, #turkey and #blessed.
Just Take All The Photos/Videos
Vines are the new family videos. Vine the carollers who stop by your front door with their sweet voices. Vine everyone’s reactions when they open their presents. And when you run out of moments, do it (read: make some up) for the Vine.
Besides, you can send a couple of the decent ones as Season’s Greetings to far off relatives who are “joining” the festivities via WhatsApp.
Count Down Till Midnight
…to be the first to wish/tweet all your followers Season’s Greetings and have a Happy New Year. Hey, it’s much more comfortable doing it in your warm house and in your jammies than counting down out in the streets and in the cold with too many people singing too loudly for your liking.
But if you’re out there because life is too short to stay holed up at home and because YOLO, you have got to take that selfie.
Have a #MerryChristmas!