Social media can be daunting for anyone, especially writers. I used to only use Facebook for personal use and really didn’t understand Twitter.
But more recently I have discovered that social media can be a great way of establishing yourself as an author and being able to market your work.
Maybe you are new to social media and don’t know where to start, or what to do.
This list will help you avoid some of the mistakes I’ve made and save you a lot of time and frustration.
- Dismissing social media as unimportant.
I use the thing that social media such as Facebook, was just a bit of fun or for people to share with far too much about their personal lives.
The social media is important for any writer. Not only is it a great way to drive traffic to your site, but it’s also a fun way of building connections and gaining readership.
You could get people interested in your book before it’s even published.
- Concentrating on one or two many social media platforms at a time. I’ve tried using Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and LinkedIn. But these aren’t the only sites you can use to promote your website, blog, book or work.
I mainly use Facebook and Twitter to promote my blog.
It’s best to start with just a couple of networks and then expand more as your blog grows and you get more followers. It can take time to learn how to use different social media platforms.
- Not using social media buttons.
I found a good way of being successful on social media is to use social media buttons. They should be embedded onto your website or blog so people can easily share your posts.
If, like me, you use WordPress you should have social media sharing buttons at the end of your posts and this can be a good way of promoting your blog or website to get it noticed.
- Not using SEO.
Besides the benefits of driving more traffic to your site from social media networking, there are many benefits of using SEO. SEO or Search Engine Optimisation as it’s called is a great way of getting your website or blog monitors.
Check out my other posts to find out more about SEO Writing and Writing an SEO article
- Sharing content shouldn’t only be from your blog.
You shouldn’t only share content from your blog. If you network and share content from other blogs and websites you will get noticed more and then get more followers.
- Not knowing the difference between a personal and a business profile.
Most social media sites, except Twitter, treat personal and business profiles differently. Facebook has the Facebook business page and Google + has the Google must sign for business.
It’s best to first create your personal account, then your business account. Use your personal account to promote things from other websites and use your business profile to promote posts from your own website.
- Using automated tweets or posts
There are many different tools that automate social media tasks for you. I’ve never used any of them myself but some people do. I prefer more personal touch.
But, of course, you can’t manage everything yourself if you do use more than one social media platform.
Buffer is good for scheduling tweets.
- Posting irrelevant or unnecessary content.
One of the nice things about social media is that it lets you be a bit more personal. But you shouldn’t be posting things about what you’re eating. Sometimes it’s best not to be too personal. Try to pay attention to your posts and see whether or not what you’re sharing is relevant to your brand/services/products
- Neglecting to realise that people may “like” or “favour” your post without reading it
I’ve noticed a few times when I’ve shared blog posts on Twitter that lots of people have either liked or favoured my post, but that I haven’t had many visitors to my blog.
It’s important to have catchy titles and attractive descriptions as this will get your posts more noticed.
- Not using hashtags
This is one big mistake I made when I first started using Twitter and created my blog. A hashtag is the easiest way to follow something on any social media platform. For example, if I posted something about writing SEO I would #amwriting #seo #socialmediamarketing. This is a good way of getting the post noticed by a wider audience.
Mary, Living a Sunshine Life
Love this list! My opinion on social media platforms is to definitely be present on several platforms at the same time, but initially put more focus on one or two to learn them. But still post to the others because it’s never too early to start building a presence there. I’ve kicked myself for not being more active on G+. Though most of my traffic comes from Pinterest and Instagram because I’m a highly visual blogger. It’s still good to be present even if you’re not as active on the platform right away.
Dora Moua
What great insight! Thanks! I’ll have to step out of my comfort zone & use more social media to promote my content.
ByBeck
I’m really enjoying this post, keep them going 🙂
tiffanyshand
Thanks!