There is a lot of valuable information on the web that will direct you to build your social media platform. These blogs, articles, and tweets will tell you when, what and where to post. The most recent I read was:
I’m including that here because I felt it had a lot of relevant information for Indie publishers and offered good advice for promoting your book.
I’ve been spending a lot of time on social media lately. In fact, so much so, that the first thing my seven year-old asked me after school yesterday was, “Did you make any new Tweetster friends today?” Aside from the moment I wanted to about die from the cuteness, I was pretty pleased to say, “Yes, over 100.” Maybe that’s a lot in a day, maybe it isn’t, but I’m very happy with the forward progress my Twitter feed is making – you can drop in and like me @ALWyss411. I like back!
Here are my Dos and Don’ts to posting:
- DO comment on other people’s posts: People will often like you when they know you’re a real person not some floater on Twitter
- DO Be careful what you say. It’s tempting to turn Twitter into a political platform or a passing entertainment. Remember your comments can come back to haunt you later. Just look at James Gunn.
- DON’T be rude. Your mom taught you that and I feel like it’s applicable on social media, too. Your goal is to gather people in, not send them away.
- DO post often. Comments quickly roll down people’s feeds. To stay in the game you need to be posting/commenting frequently to stay at the top of the pile.
- DON’T just post to post. It’s important to have relevant content or you’re just another voice shouting into the wind. Use the top tags as a writing prompt, comment on current events, promote your book (page, etc.) or retweet other people’s posts.
- DO Retweet. People like to like people that support them. Retweet what you like and feel comfortable with, but remember Rule #2.
- DON’T spend more time Tweeting then writing…that’s just a little pointer because when those follows start coming in it’s tempting to keep going and check back often. Setup a Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, Bedtime schedule if that works for you. The less you’re on, generally, the slower your followers will build. Unless you’re simply awesome and come up with the next viral Tweet.
- DO like back and check people’s follower count. I have a pretty firm rule, “Don’t follow more than you are being followed” It’s very common for people to have the same number of follows/followers. It’s also common for people to follow very few people and have lots of followers. Follow someone if they inspire you or you want them in your newsfeed, but don’t overwhelm yourself following other people hoping that they will follow you back. If their “follow/follower” percentage is low they aren’t likely to be another number in your follow column.
Bottom line, enjoy it! If you don’t like Twitter, don’t do it. Share on Facebook or Instagram. Pick the forum you like and do that. It will be obvious whether you’re just on there for likes or if you are truly connecting with the people you’re conversing with.
I’ll keep updating this as I think of things, but now I’m off to writing – I’m taking my own advice. Back to work.
Carnelian & Quills Publishing 