When you think of Aging & End of Life Planning, your social media presence probably isn’t the first thing that comes to mind. It might even sound kind of silly to consider including something like your Facebook account in your Last Will & Testament.
But if you’re like most people, the Internet houses a lot of your important memories and information about you. Our friends over at Epilogue hit the nail on the head when they said this:
For some of us, our social media lives are our lives. Just like a shoebox of old photos and letters, our accounts hold a collection of our memories, interests, feelings, and expressions. Choosing which of these pieces to preserve might seem strange to think about, but it’s important. Not just because they can live on forever, but because, just like the shoe box, they are something others can hold on to.
I couldn’t have put it better myself.
Platforms like Facebook and Instagram have evolved so quickly that traditional approaches to Aging & End of Life Planning haven’t quite caught up.
But think about it: after you pass away, what’s going to happen to all those photos of your grandkids that live on Instagram? Will your Facebook page just sit there forever, unchanged? Do you want it to be memorialized, or do you want it to be deleted altogether? How do you want people in your extended network to learn about your passing?
Thankfully, Epilogue has created an amazing, FREE tool to help you think through questions like these, and to record your answers in a Social Media Will online.
Social Media Will: Free Template
This much-needed project is a collaboration between Epilogue and the late Sharon Hartung of Your Digital Undertaker.
As an Estate Planning professional, I know very well the importance of what they’ve created — and I knew that I was personally overdue in making my own Social Media Will. So I decided to film myself going through the process, and then share it for you all to see:
- How simple this is;
- How detailed it is (without being hard and time-consuming!); and
- The importance of protecting your digital legacy.
It took me all of 10 minutes to complete (the video is shorter!) and now my husband and loved ones have a record of what I would like done with my Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google Accounts. Do yourself (and more importantly your family) a favour, and take 10 minutes to create your Social Media Will today.
Check out my video review below.
Great job Epilogue!
