Jim’s Cover Pass: The pros and cons of welding on social media

Q: How do you think social media has changed today’s welding industry?

A: The welding community has a strong presence within all channels of social media, and just like anything else, it has its pros and cons. It can leave us enlightened or grossly misinformed.

Let’s start with some of the negative aspects of welding on social media. We all know you can’t believe everything you see on the internet.Over the years I have followed numerous welding forums, am a member of several welding-related Facebook groups, follow hundreds of Instagram pages, and have watched countless welding videos on YouTube. Not all of the advice that is shared through these channels is trustworthy.

Second, not every weld bead photo that gets posted is actually made by the person posting it. I posted one of my welding photos on my college’s welding website, and a couple of years ago I found out that an overseas equipment manufacturer was using my photo without my permission! It is amazing how easily images and information can be taken from anywhere in the world and used in ways that are deceiving. I guess that’s why it is called the World Wide Web.

Pardon my rant, but I think welders are putting too much emphasis on uploading photos of every weld bead they create and every welding project they’ve completed. I have first-year students who post photos of some really awful welds because, well, they just don’t know any better. And then, of course, just like watching Sunday night football with a bunch of armchair quarterbacks, everybody chimes in with their “expert” advice on how to make a better weld.

Finally, there are a lot of well-intentioned yet uninformed people who share advice and post videos, and their message can be confusing to both novice and expert welders alike. Viewer beware.

It’s not all bad. Using social media to connect with the welding community has many positives as well. Because of social media, we have access to more welding information at our fingertips than ever before. Several real-world experts can consult followers on a variety of tricky welding and fabrication issues almost instantly. Also, many talented welders use social media as a platform to post truly awesome weld images. And last, welders of all abilities who want to sharpen their skills have a variety of quality educational options they can turn to, including video, blogs, and discussion forums. These online resources are available to everyone, everywhere.

At the beginning of my career, a few “old guys” at the shop taught me how things were done. This was important since we only had our small circle of friends to share ideas. Now, largely because of social media, I have welding buddies from California, Virginia, Florida, Alaska, and everywhere in between. I’ve even made a few friends who live in Europe and Australia.

Social media, in its many forms, allows those who share the common interest in welding and building cool projects to connect with one another and to stay informed. And that, my friends, is a really wonderful community!