Ep 40: Social Media Sucks Now- What I'm doing about it
Listen to the Podcast Episode for a deeper dive
Social Media Sucks Now — What I'm Doing About It
After a year of showing up consistently on Instagram, Jenna stepped back — not from community, but from platforms that no longer feel trustworthy. Here is what broke down, and what she is building instead.
- After a full year of intentional, consistent Instagram engagement, Jenna stepped back — not because community stopped mattering, but because the platforms themselves have changed in ways that make genuine connection harder to sustain.
- Four specific shifts drove the decision: the removal of third-party fact-checkers accelerating misinformation, AI-generated influencers replacing human content, algorithm design that rewards provocation over depth, and eroding privacy protections.
- For interior designers specifically, the time and energy cost of social media has become disproportionate to the return. The platform demands constant visibility in exchange for reach that is increasingly algorithm-dependent rather than relationship-based.
- Jenna is building a dedicated community platform for interior designers — chronological feed, no divisive content, industry-specific networking, and structured learning opportunities. A space built for the profession rather than adapted from general-purpose social media.
- DAIly members get exclusive beta access in February — the first opportunity to experience the platform, provide feedback, and help shape what the community becomes before public launch.
What Changed — And Why It Matters for Designers Specifically
Jenna spent 2023 fully committed to Instagram — showing up daily, engaging intentionally, building real relationships through the platform. And it worked. The community response was real. The connections were meaningful. But as 2024 progressed, something shifted — not in the community itself, but in the infrastructure around it.
Social media began as a genuinely connective tool. Myspace, Facebook, Instagram — each one created space for people to stay in touch, share ideas, and build something together. The shift happened gradually, then suddenly: as platforms grew, their incentive structure moved from facilitating connection to maximizing engagement — and those two things are not the same. Engagement can be maximized by provoking reactions. Connection requires something slower and more intentional.
"If I no longer trust what I see on these platforms, why am I still creating content for them? That question eventually had an honest answer."
— Jenna GaidusekThe Real Cost for Interior Designers
Interior designers did not choose social media because they wanted to become content creators. They chose it because it was free, it was where clients were, and it worked. For a long time, it was genuinely effective marketing — showing work, building relationships, demonstrating expertise, staying visible to past and potential clients.
That calculus has shifted. The platforms that once rewarded consistency and quality now require a level of content production and engagement management that functions like a part-time job. Reach is increasingly algorithm-dependent rather than relationship-based, which means the time investment required to maintain visibility keeps growing even as the return diminishes.
The specific cost for designers: time that should go toward creative work, client development, professional development, and actually running a business is being redirected into feed management. The mindless scrolling Jenna describes — losing an hour to content without real purpose — is not a personal failure. It is the platform functioning exactly as designed. Recognizing that distinction matters for making a different choice.
The question Jenna asks — and that every designer should ask — is not whether social media was once a valuable tool. It clearly was. The question is whether the current version of these platforms, with their current incentive structures and their current content environment, still serves the profession well enough to justify the cost of showing up on them.
What's Being Built Instead — A Platform Designed for This Profession
Jenna's response is not to retreat from community — it is to build a different kind of community. One that does not adapt general-purpose social media infrastructure to the specific needs of interior designers, but starts from those needs and builds from there.
The platform is designed around four principles that directly address the problems that made Instagram feel unsustainable. Each one is a deliberate inversion of a specific frustration with existing platforms.
The goal is a community that feels like what social media felt like before the incentive structure changed — where showing up consistently and engaging genuinely actually builds something. Where the time you invest is proportional to the connection you receive.
Jenna is the go-to educator for design professionals who want to use technology without losing their creative edge. A designer turned tech advocate, she's a nationally recognized speaker, podcast host, community builder, and custom app builder based in Charleston, SC.
Disclaimer: This blog was written using AI as a recap from the recording then edited by the author for accuracy and details.
