Moving on from Bluesky
It simply lacks interaction, unless you only want to talk about politics.
The day that Elon threw out two Nazi salutes was the day I closed my Twitter account and went all-in on Bluesky. Honestly, to hell with that guy.
At first, things at Bluesky seemed encouraging. I noticed a lot of my contacts on Twitter were joining as well. There was a buzz of activity and a skyrocket of growth. It also didn't feel as toxic as Twitter, which was a welcome change.
But as time went on, that excitement dissipated. Turns out, those in my network who were joining also kept their Twitter accounts, and they went back to using it on the regular.
Not me, though. From the day I joined, I made a point to post something every single day (just as I did on Twitter). The difference was stark.
No One is There
Okay, that's an exaggeration. Specifically, no one is there to talk about anything other than politics. The posts with the most comments, likes, and reshares are all political. Full stop. That's what it is, a political echo chamber.
Look, I'm not opposed to political echo chambers. For me, that's what my Mastodon account is used for. I wanted to use Bluesky for something else. I wanted to talk about entrepreneurship, software, WordPress, and occasional life stuff. Similar to what I do here on this site.
So, that's what I did. And the engagement was very underwhelming. No one freaking interacts on the platform! It's like talking in an empty hallway. The occasional passerby will “look in my direction”, but that's about it. This isn't after a few weeks, but months and months of continuous posting.
Twitter is Better
The sad thing is, Twitter would have been way more enjoyable, and a better home, for these posts. There is an audience beyond politics. Actually, I had done a good job filtering out all political rage-bait posts from my feed before I left. I enjoyed the experience on the platform.
To me, this is the biggest downfall of Bluesky. If you're interested in interacting with like-minded political advocates, then it's a fantastic place to be (and so is Mastodon). Just know that there is a very limited scope of other popular topics beyond that.
Twitter is, and probably always will be, the best option for this kind of social media medium. But to be fair, I haven't tried Threads (I currently can't stomach using another one of Zuck's platforms).
LinkedIn for the Win
In my attempt to find a home for conversations around the topics I enjoy, I turned to LinkedIn. In one week, I had more social interactions, from ONE post, than nearly my entire time on Bluesky.
Think about that. Just one post.
For me, it's time I move on. The topics I like and the audience I want to reach are not on Bluesky. They are still on Twitter, but also on LinkedIn.
Going forward, I'll post now and again on Bluesky, but probably with the same frequency as my Mastodon account. If Elon ever sells Twitter (not going to happen), then I'd jump back there.
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