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TikTok Will Teach Small Businesses How to Build a Following
TikTok Will Teach Small Businesses How to Build a Following
TikTok has announced a new training program, called Follow Me, aimed at helping small businesses use the social media platform. The six-week program was created to "empower more small businesses to dive into TikTok," according to a press release Monday.
The platform has become a tool for building community and reaching new audiences for small to medium-size businesses especially. Research from Hello Alice, a resource for small businesses, found that 58% of small businesses owners surveyed felt TikTok has positively impacted their business, while 47% said it helped expand their marketing reach to new geographic markets.
Read more:Ready to Join TikTok in 2022? Here's What You Need to Know
The trainings will be led by small business owners Cassie Sorensen, owner and founder of Tassel Armor, and Jacob Zander, owner and founder of Feel Your Soul, both of whom used the platform to promote their businesses.
The announcement of the program comes amid increased government scrutiny of the platform. Last month, FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr warned that TikTok, owned by a Chinese company, is "a serious national security threat" and he's pushing to get the app removed from Apple and Google app stores.
What is 'twee' and why is TikTok debating its return?
What is 'twee' and why is TikTok debating its return?
In 2021, TikTok unseated Google as the most popular domain on the Internet, and now it's looking like it'll take over Instagram as the ultimate home for fashion influencers.
With one of the largest audiences on the planet, TikTok is responsible for the rise and fall of many a trend. When TikTok speaks, people listen. Lately, however, TikTok fashionistas have been divided over the potential resurgence of a very specific and iconic trend: twee.
@flashesofstyle How are we feeling about this resurgence? Idk yet 😅 #twee#tweestyle#tweefashion#fypã‚·#fyp♬ Why Do You Let Me Stay Here? - She & Him
Even if you're unfamiliar with the word, you'll likely recognize the look. Think early 2013 ModCloth aesthetic -- swooping bangs, Peter Pan collars, cutesy cardigans, skater skirts with patterned tights, red lipstick, ukuleles and typewriters.
Essentially, look at almost any image of Zooey Deschanel circa 2011-2014 to be smacked in the face with twee, or hipster fashion. It was an incredibly popular aesthetic, especially among the Tumblr crowd.
@steffydegref It's back, and I've been waiting forever. #twee#indie#indiesleaze#tumblr♬ Why Do You Let Me Stay Here? - She & Him
On the one hand, some users are adamant that the trend is returning, warning fashion followers to ready their ballet flats and berets. Others, however, are dismissing it as the latest in a line of TikTok algorithm bubbles destined to burn itself out on speculation and drama.
Regardless of whether it's back, though, it's already facing backlash. So why is an aesthetic causing so much division?
Here's the thing: It's not really about fashion at all. When you boil it down, the underlying issues of the debate aren't based on clothing choices. They're based on deceptive algorithms, negative online behavior and the fear of a cyclical internet.
The TikTok bubble effect
TikTok's algorithm is designed to know you better than you know yourself. It serves you endless customized videos that pay attention to your interactions, all to ensure you see the exact content you'll enjoy most.
But the funny thing about humans is that we actually have a very poor understanding of scale and relevance outside of our own bubbles. So, if you're getting inundated with a particular sound or trend on TikTok, your brain will likely think that it's a much bigger deal than it is.
Despite not having that many actual videos comparatively -- just under 7,000 for the main TikTok sound -- the twee revival debate is causing real-world trend forecasters to pay attention. Why? Because, as was the case when TikTok witches caused a real-world fuss by "hexing the moon," even microcosms and pockets of the internet have the capacity to create great social influence and change.
What's so scary about twee?
The initial wave of twee came at a time when Tumblr popularity was paramount -- the more reblogs you had on a cutesy photo with a poetic caption, the more indie and iconic you were. It was an attitude as much as a fashion movement, similar to what we'd now call hipsters.
Unfortunately, however, it also came with some deeply concerning attitudes toward body types and elitism.
@wannabehayleywilliams We still have time, audio still has less than 550 videos under it. #tumblr#2014tumblr#aesthetic#twee♬ Why Do You Let Me Stay Here? - She & Him
Between 2011 and 2014, Tumblr had itself a serious eating disorder and self harm problem, with countless blogs devoted to promoting and striving for anorexia and "thinspiration." Coinciding with the peak of twee popularity, the aesthetic went hand-in-hand with harmful "thinspo" propaganda – anyone who wasn't thin enough wasn't considered "twee" so much as "frumpy." It was elitist and dangerous.
As a result, the lingering perception of twee and indie sleaze for people who were on Tumblr in those days is often one of perilously thin legs clad in tights or sepia-toned cardigans covering self-harm scars.
We've learned a lot since the Tumblr days. We grew out of the mustache trend, we learned that Tom was the real villain in classic twee film (500) Days of Summer, but the Internet hasn't fully caught up with body neutrality and progress.
To this day, social media sites struggle to keep a lid on pro-anorexia content, with Instagram coming under fire for its failure to protect teens from that sort of content as recently as last month.
With TikTok already having faced similar issues, people noticing the resurgence of twee are concerned that, while we may dust off the cardigans and tights, we haven't come far enough to leave the harmful attitudes behind.
@rebxtat Maybe sharing a hot take whilst cleaning out my fish tank x #twee♬ Why Do You Let Me Stay Here? - She & Him
@vonmunster i looked like this and listened to chelsea grin #twee#indie#tumblr♬ Why Do You Let Me Stay Here? - She & Him
Do we need to worry about this?
As is so often the case online, the discourse surrounding the twee debate is bigger than the debate itself. What started as a simple trend revival has grown legs in part due to the attention that naysayers have brought upon it.
But as for whether we should be worried, it really comes down to how much faith people have in their own capacity to regulate content and how much they trust social media to keep the dangerous ideas at bay.
The concern is that if the negative associations with twee come back alongside the trend, there could be microcosms and TikTok algorithm bubbles circulating the same dangerous ideas and mentalities that caused such uproar on Tumblr.
In an article from The Guardian, it's suggested that TikTok could actually end up being more dangerous because of the demographic of its users. It's not hard to circumnavigate word restrictions -- we've already seen users get around TikTok censorship with intentional spelling mistakes -- and with so many young users it's a concern.
Sure, there may not be that many videos about it now, but for the people who live within that bubble, it feels big, and the power of teenage girl influence shouldn't be underestimated.
Let's just remember for a moment that nobody is arguing the merits of the actual clothes, though I'm sure nobody wants twee revival to venture into mustache-core again. Nobody is scared of a plaid skirt and tights combo.
But given the damage that the wider twee-thinspo Tumblr pairing did in the early 2010s, it's little wonder people are apprehensive.
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What is 'twee' and why is TikTok debating its return?
What is 'twee' and why is TikTok debating its return?
In 2021, TikTok unseated Google as the most popular domain on the Internet, and now it's looking like it'll take over Instagram as the ultimate home for fashion influencers.
With one of the largest audiences on the planet, TikTok is responsible for the rise and fall of many a trend. When TikTok speaks, people listen. Lately, however, TikTok fashionistas have been divided over the potential resurgence of a very specific and iconic trend: twee.
@flashesofstyle How are we feeling about this resurgence? Idk yet 😅 #twee#tweestyle#tweefashion#fypã‚·#fyp♬ Why Do You Let Me Stay Here? - She & Him
Even if you're unfamiliar with the word, you'll likely recognize the look. Think early 2013 ModCloth aesthetic -- swooping bangs, Peter Pan collars, cutesy cardigans, skater skirts with patterned tights, red lipstick, ukuleles and typewriters.
Essentially, look at almost any image of Zooey Deschanel circa 2011-2014 to be smacked in the face with twee, or hipster fashion. It was an incredibly popular aesthetic, especially among the Tumblr crowd.
@steffydegref It's back, and I've been waiting forever. #twee#indie#indiesleaze#tumblr♬ Why Do You Let Me Stay Here? - She & Him
On the one hand, some users are adamant that the trend is returning, warning fashion followers to ready their ballet flats and berets. Others, however, are dismissing it as the latest in a line of TikTok algorithm bubbles destined to burn itself out on speculation and drama.
Regardless of whether it's back, though, it's already facing backlash. So why is an aesthetic causing so much division?
Here's the thing: It's not really about fashion at all. When you boil it down, the underlying issues of the debate aren't based on clothing choices. They're based on deceptive algorithms, negative online behavior and the fear of a cyclical internet.
The TikTok bubble effect
TikTok's algorithm is designed to know you better than you know yourself. It serves you endless customized videos that pay attention to your interactions, all to ensure you see the exact content you'll enjoy most.
But the funny thing about humans is that we actually have a very poor understanding of scale and relevance outside of our own bubbles. So, if you're getting inundated with a particular sound or trend on TikTok, your brain will likely think that it's a much bigger deal than it is.
Despite not having that many actual videos comparatively -- just under 7,000 for the main TikTok sound -- the twee revival debate is causing real-world trend forecasters to pay attention. Why? Because, as was the case when TikTok witches caused a real-world fuss by "hexing the moon," even microcosms and pockets of the internet have the capacity to create great social influence and change.
What's so scary about twee?
The initial wave of twee came at a time when Tumblr popularity was paramount -- the more reblogs you had on a cutesy photo with a poetic caption, the more indie and iconic you were. It was an attitude as much as a fashion movement, similar to what we'd now call hipsters.
Unfortunately, however, it also came with some deeply concerning attitudes toward body types and elitism.
@wannabehayleywilliams We still have time, audio still has less than 550 videos under it. #tumblr#2014tumblr#aesthetic#twee♬ Why Do You Let Me Stay Here? - She & Him
Between 2011 and 2014, Tumblr had itself a serious eating disorder and self harm problem, with countless blogs devoted to promoting and striving for anorexia and "thinspiration." Coinciding with the peak of twee popularity, the aesthetic went hand-in-hand with harmful "thinspo" propaganda – anyone who wasn't thin enough wasn't considered "twee" so much as "frumpy." It was elitist and dangerous.
As a result, the lingering perception of twee and indie sleaze for people who were on Tumblr in those days is often one of perilously thin legs clad in tights or sepia-toned cardigans covering self-harm scars.
We've learned a lot since the Tumblr days. We grew out of the mustache trend, we learned that Tom was the real villain in classic twee film (500) Days of Summer, but the Internet hasn't fully caught up with body neutrality and progress.
To this day, social media sites struggle to keep a lid on pro-anorexia content, with Instagram coming under fire for its failure to protect teens from that sort of content as recently as last month.
With TikTok already having faced similar issues, people noticing the resurgence of twee are concerned that, while we may dust off the cardigans and tights, we haven't come far enough to leave the harmful attitudes behind.
@rebxtat Maybe sharing a hot take whilst cleaning out my fish tank x #twee♬ Why Do You Let Me Stay Here? - She & Him
@vonmunster i looked like this and listened to chelsea grin #twee#indie#tumblr♬ Why Do You Let Me Stay Here? - She & Him
Do we need to worry about this?
As is so often the case online, the discourse surrounding the twee debate is bigger than the debate itself. What started as a simple trend revival has grown legs in part due to the attention that naysayers have brought upon it.
But as for whether we should be worried, it really comes down to how much faith people have in their own capacity to regulate content and how much they trust social media to keep the dangerous ideas at bay.
The concern is that if the negative associations with twee come back alongside the trend, there could be microcosms and TikTok algorithm bubbles circulating the same dangerous ideas and mentalities that caused such uproar on Tumblr.
In an article from The Guardian, it's suggested that TikTok could actually end up being more dangerous because of the demographic of its users. It's not hard to circumnavigate word restrictions -- we've already seen users get around TikTok censorship with intentional spelling mistakes -- and with so many young users it's a concern.
Sure, there may not be that many videos about it now, but for the people who live within that bubble, it feels big, and the power of teenage girl influence shouldn't be underestimated.
Let's just remember for a moment that nobody is arguing the merits of the actual clothes, though I'm sure nobody wants twee revival to venture into mustache-core again. Nobody is scared of a plaid skirt and tights combo.
But given the damage that the wider twee-thinspo Tumblr pairing did in the early 2010s, it's little wonder people are apprehensive.
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The iPhone at 15: How Apple's Phone Became the Center of Your Life
The iPhone at 15: How Apple's Phone Became the Center of Your Life
This story is part of Focal Point iPhone 2022, CNET's collection of news, tips and advice around Apple's most popular product.
What's happening
On June 29, 2007, the first iPhone went on sale. A decade and a half later what defines the iPhone has shifted away from just design and hardware specs to dozens of Apple-centric features and services.
Why it matters
For better or worse, the iPhone has become home to our photos, music, conversations, ideas, games, identity, work, social media, shopping, keys and money. It will likely continue to do so for the foreseeable future.
Today marks 15 years since the first iPhone went on sale. When Steve Jobs introduced the original iPhone he wryly hyped it as three revolutionary products: an iPod, a phone and an internet communicator. The first iPhone only came in one size and the only decision you had was whether to get 4GB of storage or 8GB. As far as carriers, only AT&T supported Apple's first phone in the US.
At the time, the idea of carrying an iPhone instead of a flip phone and an iPod was enough to convince some people to buy one. For others like me, the iPhone's main appeal was the touchscreen, which seemed unreal and futuristic.
"From the very beginning, one of the unique things about [the] iPhone was that we wanted to fuse together software, services and hardware to create a simple, powerful kind of magical experience," said Bob Borchers, Apple's vice president for product marketing. "And with the original iPhone, it was that interaction of multitouch and pinch to zoom, where you started to see that come together."
Fifteen years later, Apple sells eight different models of iPhone, five of which have launched in the past 10 months. There is at least one version that works with pretty much every major phone carrier in the world. The iPhone is available in an array of colors, finishes, sizes and storage options that now top out at 1TB. And while the screen is where most of the magic happens, it's no longer the main appeal of the iPhone.
Over the past decade and a half, what defines the iPhone has shifted away from just design and hardware specs. Instead, the iPhone and iOS have become a gateway into Apple services and features like iMessage, FaceTime, Siri, Apple Music, Apple Pay, top-of-the-line cameras and apps like Uber, TikTok, Twitter and WhatsApp. For better or worse, the iPhone has become home to our photos, music, conversations, ideas, games, identity, work, social media, shopping, keys and money.
In 2022, the iPhone continues to extend beyond its svelte metal-and-glass chassis into the world around us. It's the backbone for products like the Apple Watch and AirPods, and will likely play a role in future Apple products like rumored AR glasses.
It also serves as the foundation for Apple's digital services, which have become an increasingly important factor to differentiate the iPhone from competing mobile devices. These services have evolved rapidly in recent years along with the iPhone.
Find My, which started as a tool in 2010 for locating a lost iPhone, has grown into a network for finding Apple devices and pretty much anything you can attach one of Apple's tiny AirTag trackers to. Some products, like VanMoof's S3 bike, even have built-in Find My support, eliminating the need to add an AirTag entirely. As of 2021, Apple's Find My network had hundreds of millions of devices, most of which were iPhones.
Just weeks ago at WWDC, Apple's annual software developers conference, the company announced iOS 16 with expansions to its nearly decade-old Wallet app and Apple Pay service. Essentially, Apple wants to make your physical wallet obsolete. There's also a new feature called Apple Pay Later that lets you split the cost of an Apple Pay purchase into four equal payments spread over six weeks, with zero interest and no fees. It's done entirely through your iPhone.
The 2022 iPhone SE is nearly identical to the 2020 version but gets more durable glass, 5G and the A15 Bionic chip that debuted in the iPhone 13.
Kevin Heinz/CNET
In fact, you need an iPhone to access or use most of these services. Keep in mind that, for years, the iPhone's premium price made it inaccessible to many, and that's still true of Apple's top-of-the-line iPhone Pro models. The recently upgraded iPhone SE gives Apple the opportunity to expand the iPhone's reach even further. It's the purest example of what defines an iPhone in 2022. The SE blends the body of an iPhone 8 with the glass and processor from the iPhone 13. At $429, it's currently the most affordable way to get people into Apple experiences.
I spoke with Borchers ahead of the iPhone SE launch in March about the phone and why Apple added an A15 Bionic chip to it.
"It's actually a really easy decision to put as much capability as we can in today, in order to invest in and create opportunities for those future experiences. It's something that distinguishes us from others," said Borchers.
No other phone maker takes this approach. It would be like Samsung using the body of its Galaxy S8 and putting the Galaxy S22's processing power inside. The upcoming Pixel 6A will be the first budget Android phone that uses the same processor, Google's Tensor chip, as the flagship Pixel 6 and 6 Pro. Of course, Google isn't putting it into the body of Pixel 2 and instead is introducing a new design.
It makes sense that Apple's cheapest phone has the same processor as its most expensive: It's all about giving people access to Apple experiences. For example, if you buy an iPhone SE, you can use the Live Text feature in iOS 15 to grab text with your camera or copy it from a photo. And while the 2016 and 2020 versions of the iPhone SE sold well, it seems the 2022 version isn't breaking any sales records yet. Apple doesn't disclose a specific model breakdown of how many iPhones it sells, but analyst Ming-Chi Kuo lowered his shipping estimates for the iPhone SE (2022) by 10 million. The lower demand could be an effect of rising inflation and the fact that the 2022 and 2020 versions of the iPhone SE look identical.
The SE showcases how iOS and Apple Silicon become the bedrock for everything you do on your iPhone. Obviously, not every model in Apple's iPhone lineup is equal. More expensive phones like the iPhone 13 Pro come with a contemporary design, high refresh-rate screens, larger camera sensors and tools like the U1 ultrawideband chip and lidar.
These extra perks mean you can use your iPhone in more ways. For example, if you've got the right car, you can unlock it and start it with your iPhone. Borscher describes moments like these as "automagic," meaning it just works. The same way a pair of AirPods can switch from your iPhone to your Mac for watching a video, or the way you can unlock your Mac using your Apple Watch.
Apple first introduced AirPods in 2017 with the release of the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus, which lacked a physical headphone jack.
Sarah Tew/CNET
Such growth has consequences. Antitrust concerns over the app store and mobile payments, debates about screen time, Apple's contentious dealings with the FBI, criticism that all these services are part of a strategy to lock people into Apple's ecosystem and, more recently, privacy questions over AirTags are just some of the concerns that have grown alongside the iPhone's meteoric success. There are even questions as to whether Apple can launch another product line that is even half as successful as the iPhone. My CNET colleague and Apple reporter Ian Sherr points out that products like the Apple Watch and AirPods are lucrative lar gely because of their connection to the iPhone.
Over 15 years, the iPhone has become ubiquitous and helped Apple become a nearly $3 trillion company. The next iteration of the phone, likely called the iPhone 14, is expected to launch this September. It will no doubt run on iOS 16 and have the newest version of Apple's A-series processor and will continue to support the Apple experience. As for the long-term, my colleague Lisa Eadicicco thinks the most important part of future iPhones will be how it works with everything around it.
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Stock Market Secrets: My Smartest Investment Tips After 16 Years of Reporting
Stock Market Secrets: My Smartest Investment Tips After 16 Years of Reporting
This story is part of Recession Help Desk, CNET's coverage of how to make smart money moves in an uncertain economy.
If there's one thing I've learned in all my years of reporting, it's this: The stock market is moody.
In 2006, I began a new role as a financial correspondent reporting from the trading floor of the New York Stock Exchange. My job was to make sense of why the market was up or down each day. I'd start out each morning interviewing mostly older, white male brokers who were in charge of buying and selling shares on behalf of large institutional investors. (Also true: I was required to wear closed-toe shoes and a blazer. The dress code then was strict and a bit ridiculous.)
I learned if tech stocks slumped just after the market opened, it might have been due to lower-than-expected earnings the evening before from an industry giant like Apple. Any hint of turbulence in the tech sector induced panicked brokers to drop shares at the opening bell.
The market doesn't actually reflect reality. It measures the moods and attitudes of people like the brokers I used to interview.
"Today's stock prices aren't because of how businesses are performing today," said Matt Frankel, a certified financial planner and contributing analyst for The Motley Fool, in an email. "They are based on future expectations."
That's the problem: Current prices serve as a gauge of investor confidence, but stock market predictions are, at best, educated guesses. And to further complicate matters, "the markets are not always correct," according to Liz Young, head of investment strategy at SoFi.
Reporting from the floor of the NYSE during the May 2010 "flash crash," when major stock indices crashed and then partially rebounded within an hour.
Screenshot/CNET
Sound discouraging? I hear you, but it's still worth investing. Here's why.
While the stock market represents an elite class of investors (the wealthiest 10% of Americans hold 89% of stocks), it has proven over time to be a reliable way to grow your money for anyone with the tools and information to try. And technology has made it cheaper and easier to access. Now, a whole new generation has the chance to start investing and building wealth. If you can afford your basic needs and have some emergency savings set aside, there's no better time than now to invest -- even if it's just $20 a month.
Of course, the stock market feels particularly risky right now and it's natural to want to safeguard your money when the economy is volatile. If you're on the fence about investing because you're worried about a recession, or you just don't feel comfortable taking financial risks right now, you're not alone. Over 40% of Americans surveyed earlier this spring said that the bear-market downswing made them too scared to invest.
But waiting to invest is an even bigger risk. Here's what I know for sure about how to overcome worry and invest for success.
The 'Right Time' to Invest Is Right Now
Yes, the market is risky. Yes, there will be more crashes. But there's a high probability that the market will recover, just like it bounced back (and then some) a few years after the 2007-09 global financial crisis.
"Things will get better again. They always do," as my friend David Bach, author of the New York Times bestselling book The Automatic Millionaire told me on my podcast So Money.
Sure, it's better to buy at a low price so that you can cash in later from as much appreciation, or compound interest, as possible. But since it's very hard to predict where prices will go, the "right time" to strike is often something we only realize in hindsight. Waiting to invest until the time feels right, when you think stocks have hit a "bottom," can set you up for more failure than success.
Your time in the market is more important than timing the market. Lying low until stocks rebound just means you're going to pay more. Instead, invest consistently and continuously, and let compounding interest build. You'll buy the dips and the highs, but ultimately, over the years, you'll come out ahead. "If you're in your 30s, or your 40s, or your 50s, and you're not retiring in the next year or two, guess what? Everything's on sale," Bach said.
For example, had your parents invested $1,000 in the year 1960, it would be worth close to $400,000 today. That's after a presidential assassination, multiple wars, a global pandemic and many recessions, including the Great Recession. If the past is any indicator of the future, it's proven that markets will eventually recuperate from a downturn, and that they have greater periods of growth than decline.
Read more: Investing for Beginners
Diversification is your best tool against volatility and market tumbles. Investors who are more cautious could try US bonds, which are considered "safe haven" investments because they are backed by the Treasury and offer a predictable return.
Right now, with inflation at 8.5%, Americans are flocking toward Series I Savings Bonds, a government-issued investment that's protected against inflation. I bonds have both a fixed rate and an inflation rate that's adjusted every six months. Right now, I bonds will deliver a 9.62% annualized interest rate, which means they'll get you higher guaranteed returns than any other federally backed bank account.
Technology Makes Investing Cheaper and More Accessible
Investing can be unnecessarily complicated and exclusionary, and the financial industry as a whole can do a lot more to break down barriers to entry. Guests on my podcast So Money, especially women, people of color and young adults, have shared how they wish they'd learned about investing sooner.
My advice? Lean on technology, as well as the proliferation of social media and podcasts, to gain better access and education. At CNET, we are big fans of robo-advisors, such as Wealthfront and Betterment, that provide low-cost portfolio management. There's no need to wait until you have $1 million in the bank, which is what some professional investment advisors require before working with clients. You can start with just a little cash.
And whether you're a fan of TikTok, Instagram or YouTube, there are some reputable experts there offering free education. One cautionary tip: Be sure to check their backgrounds and ensure whomever you're following is not a salesperson disguised as an investment educator!
Read more: Investing Doesn't Have to Be Intimidating. Pros and Cons to Robo-Advisors
Once you're investing, embrace automation so you never go astray. Automating our savings or retirement contributions is a smart move that, honestly, saves us from ourselves. With money in our hands, it's much easier to spend than it is to save, but technology can automatically move that money into an account. We're more likely to save for our future if we're already enrolled in a company retirement plan as opposed to choosing to opt in with each paycheck. Start your contribution with the maximum employer-match rate and try to increase your contribution to 10% or even 15%. That could net you thousands of dollars more each year.
Pro-tip: If you're saving for retirement, see if your plan provider will automatically increase your savings rate each year (60% of employers offer this feature, according to the American Benefits Council).
For all other types of long-term investments such as a brokerage account or Roth IRA, create a calendar reminder at the beginning of the year or on your birthday to increase your contributions.
Read more: Need to Save for Retirement? This Is the Easiest Way
You may also be able to set your portfolio to auto-rebalance so that it adjusts and automatically scoops up more stocks after a down period in the market, which can give you the right balance of stocks and bonds in your portfolio.
Auto-rebalancing is a feature many banks and brokerages offer to ensure your portfolio's allocation doesn't fall off-kilter, says David Sekera, chief US market strategist for MorningStar. For example, let's say you set up your portfolio to have an equal mix of stocks and bonds. A bear market like the one we're in now may reduce the weight of stocks and be too heavy with bonds. But an auto-rebalance can fix that by buying more stocks when prices are low again, according to Sekera.
I've seen first-hand how market volatility is creating a lot of uncertainty, and I know why it's hard to feel confident about investing. But history shows that staying on the sidelines as an investor can be riskier than participating in the market and riding out the dips and highs.
Getting into the market sooner rather than later can be one of the smartest decisions on the road to building personal wealth and economic security. Along the way, be mindful of your risk tolerance, stay diversified and rely on automation to help you stay the course.
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Elon Musk Pulls Out of $44B Deal to Buy Twitter
Elon Musk Pulls Out of $44B Deal to Buy Twitter
What's happening
Elon Musk sent a letter to Twitter saying he's ending an agreement to buy the influential social media company for $44 billion.
Why it matters
Twitter says it still plans to close the deal, so Musk's move is setting up a legal battle between the company and the billionaire. The company's ownership also impacts the future of Twitter, which has struggled to attract more users and ad dollars.
What's next
Twitter says it plans to pursue legal action to enforce the agreement.
Billionaire Elon Musk said Friday that he's pulling out of a $44 billion deal to buy Twitter, adding another twist to an ongoing saga in which the mercurial entrepreneur presented himself as the savior of free speech on the influential social network.
Musk, who also runs Tesla and SpaceX, said in a letter sent by his lawyer that Twitter breached multiple parts of the merger agreement by failing to provide more information about how it estimates the number of spam accounts on its platform. Twitter has reported that in the first quarter, fewer than 5% of Twitter's 229 million daily users were fake or spam-focused, but Musk says that number might not be accurate.
"This information is fundamental to Twitter's business and financial performance," reads the letter to Twitter from Musk lawyer Mike Ringler. The letter also said that Twitter "appears to have made false and misleading representations."
Bret Taylor, chairman of Twitter's board of directors, tweeted Friday that the company still intends to close the deal. "The Twitter Board is committed to closing the transaction on the price and terms agreed upon with Mr. Musk and plans to pursue legal action to enforce the merger agreement," Taylor tweeted. "We are confident we will prevail in the Delaware Court of Chancery."
Ringler didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.
The letter also outlines other information Musk says Twitter hasn't handed over, including information about the company's financial conditions and more details about how Twitter calculates daily users who can see ads. The letter says that Twitter has provided Musk with some data, but it calls some of the information "minimally useful." Musk also alleges that an early analysis suggests some of Twitter's public disclosures of daily users are "either false or materially misleading." The letter further alleges Twitter breached another part of the agreement that said the company had to seek and obtain consent before straying from "its obligation to conduct its business in the ordinary course," after the social network fired key executives, laid off staff and froze hiring.
The decision to terminate the deal caps a tumultuous period for Twitter, which found itself in the crosshairs after Musk revealed a roughly 9% stake in the company in early April. Musk appeared on the verge of joining Twitter's board of directors but pulled out before proposing to buy the entire company and take it private. The board tepidly accepted Musk's offer after he cobbled together highly leveraged financing for the deal.
Musk, the world's richest person, said he wanted to acquire Twitter because he believes the company no longer adheres to the principles of free speech, a term he's used both loosely and often. On April 26, he tweeted, "By 'free speech', I simply mean that which matches the law."
Under the US Constitution's First Amendment, free speech refers to protection from government interference. It doesn't apply to companies such as Twitter.
Dan Ives, an analyst with Wedbush Securities, tweeted Friday that Musk's move is a "disaster scenario for Twitter and its Board as now the company will battle Musk in an elongated court battle to recoup the deal and/or the breakup fee of $1 billion at a minimum."
Carolina Milanesi, a principal analyst at market intelligence and strategy consulting firm Creative Strategies, said forcing Musk to buy Twitter could be a mistake for the social network.
"What company wants to be owned by someone who does not want it?" Milanesi said. "I personally never believed Musk had a concrete and viable plan to reinvigorate Twitter and its revenue."
Twitter has struggled to compete for ad dollars and users with larger social networks such as Facebook and TikTok. The company's calculation of daily users who can see ads hasn't always been accurate, either. In April, Twitter revealed it inflated its daily active user numbers since 2019 because of an error involving how it calculated linked accounts.
The deal's potential collapse could also prompt the Securities and Exchange Commission to further scrutinize Musk, who fell afoul of regulators for tweeting about a plan to take Tesla private. Musk's disclosure of his stake in Twitter was filed late and on the wrong form.
Musk has railed against the SEC, which alleged that Musk and Tesla had made "false and misleading" statements when he tweeted on Aug. 7, 2018, that he had "funding secured" to take the electric-car company private.
The SEC struck a deal with Musk and Tesla that required fines of $20 million each. It also required Musk's tweets to be vetted by a lawyer if they contained material information regarding the company. In April, a federal judge denied Musk's request to have the oversight lifted.
Investors never wholly believed Musk would buy Twitter. Though the company's shares jumped after Musk unveiled his stake, they didn't reach the $54.20 price he pledged to pay. (The price includes the number 420, slang for marijuana and a running Musk gag. His proposal to take Tesla private included a suggestion a deal could be done at $420 a share.)
Twitter shares immediately fell nearly 7% in after hours trading to $34.25 per share on news that Musk wanted to end the deal. Twitter's general counsel, meanwhile, asked employees not to tweet, Slack or otherwise discuss the deal now that the company's board of directors has threatened legal action against Musk.
"I know this is an uncertain time, and we appreciate your patience and ongoing commitment to the important work we have underway," he wrote in an internal memo Friday. A Twitter spokeswoman declined to comment further.
