No matter how much emotional weight you put on social media, knowing the best way to support your bae on the various platforms can be tricky. But the reality is that social media is important to the vast majority of millennials, and knowing that bae has your back (even virtually) is definitely a good feeling. The things a good partner will do on social media might not be exactly the same for everyone, but (as with most things) if it's important to you, then your partner should 100 percent be making an effort to be one of your biggest social media fans.
Once you start dating someone, it's totally normal to feel hesitant before breaking the ice on Instagram with pictures and posts galore. But once you're official, your partner shouldn't be acting like you're just another one of their followers by hitting you up with the occasional like. Putting your life on blast can be intimidating for a lot of people. No one likes waking up to a well-crafted seasonal 'gram of a pumpkin patch they posted, only to find that it got a grand total of three likes, none of which were from bae. If your partner isn't good about doing the following things, then you are well within your rights to let them know you need to see a bit more social media love.
TBH, this one is a given. If your ex from three years ago can make it a point to creepily watch every single one of your Instagram stories like clockwork, then it goes without saying that your current bae should be doing the same. Now, of course, if your partner makes a point of avoiding social media whenever possible, then expecting them to carve out time to like every single one of your posts may be a bit too much to ask.
There's pretty much no good reason why the person you're dating should be in any way apprehensive about putting your relationship out there. This means that posting pictures of the two of you together, tagging you, and mentioning you in their stories are all ways to semi-regularly show you off to the world – and to keep any thirsty admirers at bay.
I can't even remember the last time I posted something on Facebook, but that doesn't mean I don't troll it on the regular to watch hilarious videos and see memes that my friends tag me in. The internet is a black hole of endless entertainment, and at some point, after your partner gets to know you better, they will probably develop an eye for things you'd be interested in and hopefully tag you in them to make you LOL.
Adding your friends on social media is an important step to take. It's a good way of saying "We're a unit and your friends are now part of my circle too." And while adding your old BFF from middle school might be overkill, adding your close friend that they've actually met is always a nice gesture.
We all know that getting the perfect angle and finding your light can take a bit of trial and error. For the person taking the pictures of you, this can certainly get tiresome AF, but your bae is the one person that shouldn't be giving you sass — within reason, of course. If frequent photos are your thing, no worries, just try not to stage a full-on photo shoot every five minutes. Making date night a photo-free zone so you can fully focus on each other might not be a bad idea either.
If they're on social media, then special occasions like anniversaries or Valentine's Day are definitely days to acknowledge. And a nice way for you to see that they care about you and that they're proud of your relationship is for them to bite bullet and hopefully post something sweet!
While it's important to keep in mind how much of a role social media plays in your partner's life, if you'd like them to step up their game as it relates to you, then there's no reason to feel bad about bringing it up. At the end of the day, social media isn't everything, especially when it comes to relationships. However, if it's something that matters to you, a great way to approach the situation is to casually open up a conversation and make your feelings about it known.
Check out the entire Gen Why series and other videos on Facebook and the Bustle app across Apple TV, Roku, and Amazon Fire TV.
Check out the “Best of Elite Daily” stream in the Bustle App for more stories just like this!
