Newbie Author's Guide

Helping new and aspiring authors navigate the publishing wilderness

Guest Post: 7 Deadly Sins Of Social Media Marketing That Are Seriously Hurting Your Brand by Eilidh Edgar

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I would like to welcome Eilidh Edgar to NAG today. She is here to share some of the most deadly sins that can hurt or even kill you brand.

Personal Aside: the example used in Sin #6 is never ok anytime or anywhere. Just sayin’.

Enjoy!

Deadly Sins of Social Media Marketing

Image credit: Salesforlife.com

Social media can truly make the image of your brand. But at the same time, if done incorrectly, it can also break your brand and ruin its entire image.
The deadly sins of social media do not just turn off your customers; in fact, their impact is more severe than that. It gives off a bad impression about you as a company and also generates negative publicity, which can seriously hurt your brand. Read on to know more about the seven deadly sins of social media marketing:

1. Mixing Religion And Politics With Your Brand
These are two topics that will seriously antagonize your customers no matter what side you take. When friendships can be severed over religious or political opinions, keep in mind that you are only a business. It would be much easier to sever ties with you.

2. Mixing Personal And Professional Accounts
Your business social media account should be strictly for business. Granted, you need to introduce a personal anecdote or two to add a personal touch but before you post your personal drama, ask yourself these questions:

  • Will it help me to sell my products?
  • Will my audience still respect me?
  • Would my customers care to know?

Refrain from posting if the answer to any of these questions is “No”! The only exception to this rule is when you want to clarify something to your customers. For example, “I will not be taking orders today due to a death in the family”.

3. Losing Your Cool
When you lose your cool in a physical store, the effect is generally contained. But if you lose your cool on social media, it puts the brand’s image on stake because any bad incident has the potential of going viral through either a picture or a video. Remain courteous to customers at all times, no matter how many times they test your patience. This will help you get out of the situation with your reputation and integrity intact.

4. Tooting Your Own Horn
Highlight your achievements but donot make it sound as if there is no one else in the world that is better than you. Firstly, that is not quite true. Secondly, there is nothing more off-putting than arrogance in almost any field. Let others decide how good you are at what you do.

5. Sounding Too Greedy
Yes, you are out there to make money but do not keep going on and on about it. Your customers know very well that you are in a business and you will be making money from it, but rubbing the ‘money part’ in their faces will only annoy them. Social media gives you the opportunity to connect with your customers on an emotional and personal level; take advantage of it.

6. Resorting To The Distasteful
A rape joke may be OK within a selected circle of close friends but in a business setting, this will only alienate your customer base. Not only everyone has different taste when it comes to jokes but also there are limits that should never be crossed especially when you are doing business.

7. Using Cheap Tactics
The best way to get your customers to “like” your content is to make it genuinely likeable. Avoid resorting to cheap tactics such as posting content that include things such as: “like this post if you have guts” or “share it at your own risk”. It only makes you lose credibility and respect in the eyes of your customers.
If you are guilty of any of the above, take a good look at your social media strategy and revamp it if you have to. Be honest with yourself, and do what is required.

Author Bio:
Eilidh Edgar is a career consultant at write my coursework mainly specializing in developing next gen leaders and entrepreneurs. She also loves to blog about the changing trends and methods in the online business industry.

Guest Post: The Application of Social Media in Business Administration by Katherine William

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I would like to welcome Katherine William to NAG today. She is here to share some information about using social media in business administration which authors and writers can glean from since being an author is a business in itself and social media is necessary. Enjoy!

Technology has touched every single aspect of human life and picturing life without it is awkward and unmanageable. Social media is a novel and an impressive product of technology, around which our lives are dependent, absolutely and completely.
By saying our lives revolve around social media is actually true in a literal sense. People are more impressed by this new approach rather than any other thing. Social media is defined as online communication through different mediums such as websites and blogs.
This approach is novel in its sense because no other such development has taken place. Social media is used for a variety of purposes that include exchanging information, expressing opinions, defining strategies, sharing photos and manifestation of speech.
This is defined as a vast and huge medium through which one corner of the world is actually connected to the other corner. Initially, used for entertainment purposes and commitments, the scenario has again taken a turn and social media serves purposes other than entertainment as well. Social media, hence is used and adopted by different business oriented folks who are learning and are on the verge of expanding their business and what better and a perfect way could there be other than the social media?

Advertising
Social media has enough space for advertising purpose, these new websites allow young entrepreneurs, financiers as well as other business agencies to promote their work and communicate with other businessmen as well. This result in exchange of information, which is benefiting both sides not only that, but also businessmen can advertise and promote their industries through this forum.

Publicity
With the help of paid services, business companies can advertise on social media through which exposure and publicity is given to their respective companies. Since, social media connects different minds, it helps to promote and publish the work of businessmen and their companies. Moreover, new business strategies are appreciated and acknowledged throughout with the help of social media. In a nutshell, social media is a perfect opportunity for the purpose of business publicity.
Information
Social media is an exceptional way to study and receive information as well. Business related tips are available online and also posted on different social media websites by professional expert businessmen. Hence, to increase business related information one can also pay a visit to social media websites to keep themselves updates and enhance a bit of knowledge relating to the field. Lastly, business related debates can help create a healthy environment that can bring the two poles together for one purpose.
Enhancement of Business
With the help of proper advertising, promotion and exposure many existing settled business companies can post job requests on social media as well, which helps them to gain maximum employees of experienced nature. This is how businesses are improved and enhanced and this is another way to open up different global branches across the world. There are different websites available, created solely for the purpose of professional communication and linkages. These associations are created to enhance professional relationships among people.

Author’s Bio

Katherine William is an employee at Chiefpapers-Academic paper writing. She has been working in the company as a Senior Assignment manger for 5 years. She has received her education in the field of Computer Sciences and has earned a Masters degree in Business Management.

Guest Post and Infographic: Social Media Etiquette by Russel Cooke

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I would like to welcome Russel Cooke to NAG today. He is here to share a guest post and an infographic about social media etiquette. I have had somethings along these lines going on in my head for a time and this will also give my colleague Rachel Thompson a break too. Anyway– Enjoy!

Minding your manners is just as important as your mother always told you. When it comes to the world of online interaction, etiquette still counts – just maybe not quite in the same way that you were told as a child.

Respecting the Basics

It’s important to respect that interactions via social media occur at a remove from typical face-to-face or even voice-to-voice interaction. Because of this aspect of social media, abide by a basic framework of rules with your online communication.

Ever had a conversation via text go awry when one or both people involved got confused by what was said? The same thing can happen on social media. Make your intentions clear by using the proper netiquette.

Be natural, polite and prompt. Don’t inundate your social media interactions with emoticons, CAPS,  improper grammar, or robotic language. Rather, mind your tone – and your manners! – on social media and treat each message or post as you would a conversation with a friend.

Be Appropriate

Just as you wouldn’t want to talk to your friends in a movie theatre, you don’t want to misuse social media platforms. Be aware of the format of each of your social media outlets:

  • Facebook – Facebook is a great place to share pictures, ask questions, and comment on industry news or trends. Don’t be afraid to get social and invoke fun on your Facebook page.
  • Twitter – Due to its short form, Twitter is best for quick messages, perhaps in metered succession. Directly tweet at followers as well as thought leaders – answer questions from your clients and ask your own.
  • Instagram – Instagram is a quick and attractive way to share snapshots and tell a story. Stagger your posts so that your followers aren’t inundated with photographs solely from your profile.
  • LinkedIn – Because LinkedIn is a forum intended for business professionals, keep your communications crisp and formal.

There’s no such thing as being too polite. Check out this infographic on more ways to use netiquette on social media.
Social Media Etiquette Infographic
About the Author:

Russel Cooke is a business consultant and writer who lives in Los Angeles, CA. Follow him on Twitter @RusselCooke2.

Guest Post: Five Ways of Conduct Regarding Professional Behavior as an Author by Lauren Todd

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I would like to welcome Lauren Todd to NAG today. She is here to share some thoughts about how authors should behave professionally. Being an author is a job in itself with public relations. Enjoy!

“Be professional.”

This line applies to authors everywhere, be it a newbie or a seasoned and well-known writer.

But, what does being professional means and who defines it anyway?

Being a professional isn’t just with your talents and skills. It’s also in the way you carry yourself through your words and actions. This means a lot and is a reflection of your personality. Put your best foot forward always.

And here are some tips on how to behave professionally, as an author and person:

1. Being prompt and on time for everything

One thing that defines a professional person is being on time always. This isn’t only applied to book authors and writers, but to everyone who ever has to work and live.

Why do we always have to be on time? Well, think of it this way: the world doesn’t revolve around us. We are living and working with other people, too, and they also have a time to manage. This is the basic thought behind being on time. Not only that, it also helps us to manage our schedules better when we do things at the right time, like submit a manuscript a week before the deadline or arrive at an appointment 15 minutes beforehand. When we do and finish tasks on time, this leaves us room for other activities and relaxation.

Authors always have to deal with deadlines, which makes time an important priority for them. Manage your time wisely so you’ll be known as the writer who’s always on time. That’s a good image to have.

2. Being considerate

An author is considerate when s/he thinks of people and situations before insisting what s/he he wants or thinks about. When a person’s inconsiderate, that may come off as rude and selfish. An author must be considerate of the people around them. Basically, an author is considered as “public property,” especially if they’re the really prominent ones. One thing they speak or an action done can weigh so much on them and their professional careers. Think of the people who will be affected if ever you had a rash misdeed.

3. Accessible

Social media has made it easier nowadays for authors to interact with their fans and other important people in their lives. If before, they would get fan mails, now there’s Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and email to help fans reach out to them. In return, they get to interact with the fans as well, even if they chose to remain anonymous to help maintain their private lives.

But, still remain professional even if you’re accessed easily through social media. Respond to reviews with a simple “thank you,” and you don’t have to talk too much through your comments. If you receive negative comments, just shrug it off, and let that reflect the poor behavior of the person who commented. You don’t have to be defensive always.

4. Think first before reacting

It’s so easy to get carried away with your feelings if someone bashed your work or your boss gets mad at you over something. But before you get mad and pick a fight, think things over. You don’t want to be known as that hot-headed writer, right? Any kind of behavior you manifest is a representation of your publishing company, or yourself, if you chose to go indie. Present the best version of you. It’s difficult if you really want to react especially if you know you’re right. But think of the consequences that comes with negative behavior, whether online or in real life. So many people had their reputations tainted because of an online remark or a fight with someone.

Don’t be that kind of author.

5. Always do your best

It’s not always a field day for authors. Not all of their works are bestsellers, with rave reviews and skyrocketing sales. There are times that it goes slow for them, and it’s so easy to get disheartened when things don’t go your way. Don’t let bad days get you down. Keep on doing your best and improving in your craft. Most of all, don’t make fame the motivation for your writing. It’ll only frustrate you when you don’t get the fame you want. Write, because you want to. People easily know if a story has potential. Being recognized for your works and people liking you are only results.

Unleash your love for writing, along with good training and proper behavior expected of a professional author, and this will help you in achieving your dreams and goals.

About the author: Lauren Todd wrote her first story in her old notebook and it’s been with her until now. She plans to join the growing field of online literary writers. Now she’s busy with her full time job and also works as a freelancer for a uk essay writing company.

Interaction on Goodreads Hazardous to Your Health and Your Career?

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Interaction on Goodreads

There has been quite a bit of content already about the general bullying, carpet bombing, and all those fun things going on on Goodreads before and after Amazon bought it. A lot of this ire seems to be pointed at authors, but I am beginning to find out more and more that professional reviewers, companies, as well as the casual reviewer are getting burned here.

A very prominent reviewer that I know simply asked a question in a discussion and all fiery hell broke loose. She also owns a company. The “readers” and “reviewers” descended upon her like a school of piranhas and started making incorrect assumptions and accusations against her within seconds and ran her out after tarring and feathering her. That is the point of a discussion among real readers and reviewers, isn’t it? To discuss books? You would think! She had just recovered from a different attack, so this was uncool on so many levels.

Another author I am friends with was discussing how he stays off of Goodreads except for the menial tasks and avoids discussion and interaction due to all mudslinging that goes on there with a newbie author. There has been a lot cleaned up but it’s not all the way clean yet.

I know quite a few businesses and blog tour companies that use Goodreads in their marketing plans in how they shelve books, utilize lists, and post reviews there. Authors and publishers do giveaways with ARCs there in hopes of reviews. They censor their connections so none of this crap happens to them or their clients.

As for me, I only respond to private messages on GR. I shelve books for my company for clients. I list books I would like to personally read and rate and review books that I did read. For author tasks I do the occasional giveaway and list the books there and upload the epub. I censor and respond to friend requests.

There is tremendous potential for the site, but staying clear from the minefield is key. The minefield seems to be with the interaction on the site in the forums and some group discussions. If you don’t know, then steer clear. Never, ever comment on a review on the GR site definitely if it’s negative. There are still some legit negative reviews there, but there are quite a few shill negative reviews. There are some questionable positive ones as well. Some reviews attack the author and have nothing to do with why the reader didn’t like a book. If a reader says the main character is stupid, that’s fine, but not so if the reader says the author is stupid. A negative review saying the formatting is terrible or the editing has a lot to be desired is okay, but it’s not okay to say the author’s face needs to be rearranged with a hammer. Get the idea? Find something that crosses the line? Flag them as inappropriate to the GR staff. Block people who attack you. Never engage.

You can find good readers and reviewers there to friend, but I would check their profile. Do their shelves have unfriendly names? What is in their reviews both positive and negative? What do they read? Are they in questionable groups? Is their review average very, very low? Do they have one star ratings (no reviews) on hundreds and hundreds of books (which they probably didn’t read)? Maybe even go to their site! There have been some top ranking people of Goodreads such as librarians and top reviewers that have done some of these things, so titles mean nothing! So check EVERYBODY out!

This could be advice for readers, reviewers, businesses, and authors alike. Know who you’re friending. Censor your connections. You don’t want to let a fox in the hen house do you?

The questionable people that are making the biggest stink are only a small percentage, but they do a lot of damage. They are known for causing so much trouble that people’s careers have ended, hazards to health, threats to person and property, and the list goes on. Books were even sunk before release because people wrote fraud bad reviews when the ARCs weren’t even sent out. It sucks to have to use street smarts on a book site, but if you have something to loose, then it’s prudent to do so. Stop by STGRB to ID known offenders or report some you know, so others can avoid them too. They’re here for everyone and the founders are reviewers, so it’s not all about authors.

It’s great to interact with readers, but it seems to be safer elsewhere like G+, Twitter, Linkedin, and Facebook. GR has tools to find these people on Goodreads as well or you can find people from your book tour on Goodreads on their sites. They may invite you to their groups. That’s a safe way to build relationships there.

Have questions? Comments? A story to share? Leave them below!

Why Auto DMs Are Out of Style

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Automatic DM

Auto DM by TrueTwit Photo Credit: Ricecracker.net

Automatic Direct Messages (Auto DMs) are tweets that are sent out as private messages when someone follows someone else on Twitter. As far as I know, Twitter is the only social media platform that has ever had these automated messages. Something that was once a convenience thing has backfired–it has become an inconvenience, an annoyance, and something that is trying to be undone by Twitter.

When they first came out they were super cool and everyone who was cool had to have one. Because of the spammers and the spam problem, they’re not-so-cool.

Where Do They Come From?

Social media management platforms such as Social Oomph, TweetAdder, and JustUnfollow have these come with the package or for a small fee. Consequently, they are not very hard to set up.

Last but not least, setting up the automatic DMs also come with the little handy-dandy link shortener so it’s easy to stick a link in there.

It’s a set it and forget it type thing.

Ready, Get Set, Spam!

Due to the ease of set up and set it and forget it, it’s so very easy to set up to spam so to speak. Some are just following the crowd or simply uninformed. Since Twitter has become the dense jungle of spam, keeping up with what is considered spam will help you keep good with Twitter and other tweeps. We are there to connect and develop relationships, not spam.

Since this auto DM situation has become such a problem, even these without links are being ignored or viewed as spam by others. Some research has been done by professionals to find this be true among normal, everyday users.

The auto DM with a link or links is the most insidious. Different people have their own variations of how this appears. For me it is like welcoming you to the neighborhood after you just moved in and asking someone asking you to buy something from their child’s fundraiser in the same conversation when you don’t even know them,. Or even asking for a cup of sugar. Or both. How would this make you feel? This  is a real-world example of what this looks like. Even if it’s a favor that is just a sign of courtesy, that feels awkward, doesn’t it? If R. Lee Ermey lived at this house I may have to drop down and do 25…

The two programs that have the most annoying DMs with links are TrueTwit and JustUnfollow. TrueTwit is a bot that asks you if you are a bot. To me this appears as R. Lee Ermey coming out on the font deck yelling, “Identify yourself!” with thrusting finger and all. I just wanted to come by and say hello. I don’t feel very welcome. I wonder if he has a gun. I may just excuse myself with my tail between my legs like I had been shot at.

JustUnfollow is probably a good program for the other things it does, but unless it lets you forgo the auto DM not so much (I don’t use it). Case in point it has a link to hawk their program and someone can also add a link to their stuff. So, then it becomes hawking two different people’s stuff. Not cool.

Before the winds changed Social Oomph had the coolest auto DM function (I used it when it was cool). You could choose between 2 or more different messages that would also rotate. It used to be free before the spammers ran with it, so not it’s pay to play. After it wasn’t cool any more I ditched it. I never had a link in the DM when I had them, and I had been given advice that it was a good idea to have a welcome DM with a branded message by someone I casually/kinda-sorta worked with. After the change in the wind I ditched it.

Social Oomph also has an opt out program I learned from Rachel Thompson. Just follow @OptMeOut. That should help you with the spam coming from Social Oomph at least. A little help is better than none.

Social Oomph is a good program to use for other functions like scheduling posts, but just omit the Autofollowback and Auto DMs!

How to Show a Tweep some Goodwill?

It’s up for debate on how to welcome a new follower. You don’t have to send a DM at all or welcome them on the stream. If you do and it’s all “Thank Yous”, people may get bored an leave.

How to reward your tweeps:

  1. Follow them Back
  2. List them
  3. Retweet something of theirs that you like
  4. Provide them with good content
  5. Respond to them when they mention you

It’s actually unnecessary to have an automatic DM. So if you have one, ditch it now. If you absolutely must insist on keeping your auto DM, get rid of the link or come up with something better than: “Thanks for the follow. I am looking forward to your tweets.” Lame and boring. Come up with something fun or a conversation starter.

It’s best to omit it completely, but if you have to have one, I hope the tips above will be a bit more tolerable than. “Hello, thanks for the follow. Buy and like my crap!”

Don’t be a Social Media Commercial

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tv commercials

Rachel Thompson, several others, and I have spoken a little about the prevalence of spam in social media, discussion forums, and everywhere in between. It’s not just authors doing it, but that is the community we reside in so that is what we mainly see, and this blog is for authors–especially for the new and aspiring ones.

Newbies are more inclined to spam because that’s what everyone else is doing, or they have been given wrong information.

Today I want to write about the same ol’, same ol’ in a new perspective. Instead of talking about that funky canned meat; I will write about this in a new perspective for 2 reasons:

  1. It is a new flavor for an old idea
  2. It is an expansion of a section for my upcoming book that this blog is built around: The Newbie Author’s Survival Guide

This section and this post has it’s foundations on ideas I have learned from Rachel Thompson with the ratio of promotional stuff to content stuff. Rachel puts more emphasis on Twitter since that is where she is 98% of the time, but this can be applied everywhere: Facebook, Google+, your blog…

Anyway, promotional stuff is basically centered around your or someone else’s (if you cross promote others) book stuff (since this is mostly for authors) or other secondary services that are offered. Or, it can be liking your Facebook page, friending on Goodreads, or some other type of social media activity. Most of the time it can be summed up as something that can lead outside of somewhere to something promotional or to a book or service.

Content is the fun stuff (most of the time without links) unless you are sharing someone else’s content from their blog or an article. This is the stuff that entertains, teaches, or informs your connections.

The general rule is to have more content than promo. 2 content for every 1 promo is the minimum. Even more content is better. Am I perfect? No. I try to be as entertaining and helpful as I can. Some days may be more linky than others, but that depends. I try to “bank” some content on non-promo days if some big promo thing will be going on. Topic for later?

Promo = TV Commercials

Liken your social media stream(s) and blog posts to TV if you will. Everyone has their favorite shows or a movie they like to watch, right (when it comes on a different channel than HBO)? Your content is basically like that said TV show or movie for the people who like to read your posts, tweets, etc. Promo is the commercials just like those on the TV or the radio. Doesn’t everyone hate it when the movie or TV program stops for commercials and have to wait for the movie/program to come back on?

You should be nodding. Unless, of course, you want to have a break to grab a snack or make a mad dash to the bathroom before the movie comes on!

Some channels seem to “love their commercials”. The last hour of the movie or the last few minutes of the program seems to have more commercial interruptions on certain channels–when there wasn’t enough commercials during the other part of the program… Annoying huh? What do we do? We record the movie or program with TiVo or a cassette (if you still have a VCR) or DVD to skip the commercials or we skip the channel unless there is nothing else on or that movie is not on any other channel or not in the “movie drawer”.

Other channels, on the other hand, seem to have “the right amount” to where it is not annoying, but still have commercials. The movie channels have commercials in between movies as “filler” with none during. These channels are the ones that are watched most of the time, right? You see what’s on these before the former channel example, right? That’s what you want to be!

The Superbowl: The Epitome of Commercial Coolness

During the Superbowl is probably the only time that I know of when people enjoy the commercials as much as the game. They actually want to see what comes out and these are the commercials everybody talks about. They talk about these just as much as what the cool/dumb things their favorite teams do during the game. What comes back to the via the “viral word of  mouth” is what is repeated after the weekend on other channels for a set period of time.

You can make your promo just as cool and as entertaining as the Superbowl commercials. People talk about your promo as much as your content or stuff you find to share for content.

There isn’t a TV channel that exists today that has Superbowl-grade coolness commercials at the right amount with the best programming (at least in my opinion). Movie theaters and DVD’s seem to be close here.

That’s what my goal is to be.

Now there is no formula or order of operations to become this. It takes time, and it takes experimentation. It takes feedback from your followers and other people, research, and observation. That’s how the Superbowl found the “right ingredients”.

I’m still experimenting–I’m still pretty much a newbie author with a little bit of age on her. I am nowhere near “veteran” stage. Still finding my way.

Keep Social Media Social

Now social media is still to be social, so interact with others when they try to interact with you! The digital age has made it possible for fans to interact with their ‘entertainment’ to some extent. This is another general rule to keep a cap on the promo. Sharing a bit about life (only as personal as you want others to see) is another form of content and creates interaction. It makes you a person rather than an intangible “commercial” (if all that is posted is promo).

Life is not a commercial, so I don’t know why some folks behave this way. It’s a little strange. Will likening promo to commercials help? Won’t know unless people tell me 😉

So to keep people coming back to your channel tone down the promo, turn up the content, and work on making everything cool!

Comments or Questions? Like to hear them! 🙂

Automate or Not to Automate

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twitter automation

Social media automation has become the hot, controversial topic of the blogosphere, twitterverse, or any other ‘sheres’ or ‘verses’ that exists out there. Some of it can be justifiable because of the ‘fakers’ and the spammers. Some argue that being ‘real’ is the way to go. It is, but it’s not completely possible. It’s not possible to be on every single social media platform, 24-7-365. People have lives, work, family,  and basic needs to cater to as  well.

Just like everything, there is a wrong and right way to do things.

My philosophy is to always take the middle road. Avoid the extremes on anything. Both sides have good arguments so equip the good of both.

Most of the time where people automate is on Twitter. This is also where the most  complaints happen as well. There are automation doodads galore for this social media platform alone. These same tools are the ones that are abused by the spammers and bots and where automation gets a bad rap–with good reason.

Automated DMs

This is probably THE most talked about automation feature. Everything is OK here as long as it is done the right way. Of course I tried to do this organically in the beginnings of my platform since there were so few new followers, but essentially though, as my platform grew up so did people following per day. Greeting everyone by hand became a chore and tiring. I tried not leave a boring message, but after a while my ideas became sparse.

Then I was introduced to the DM automater through Social Oomph. It used to be free, but thanks to the abusers and spammers, we now have to pay for it. It is a small fee. This is the best DM automater out there since you can rotate between two or more messages. It is less likely that every single person will get the same  message. I try to make the messages more fun and branded.

HOWEVER, if you choose to do this, do not put a link into the DM!! There are more and more people complaining about this and it is SPAMMING. You will turn people off rather than get them to your site or check out your book. There are places for that on your Twitter profile. Tweet it in the stream maybe 1-3 times per  week, but make sure you add some content or share something else.

Automated Followback

This one I don’t do. I check every follower and read their profile if I want to follow them back. I do this in the morning and in the evening. Of course, I receive notifications from Twitter if someone follows me, and I can read their profile there if I wish. In the profile I look for keywords (i.e. book reviewer, book blogger, author, publisher, reader, book lover, etc) if I want to follow someone back or looking for people to follow.

This one can depend on a person. I just prefer to do this on my own. I check my followers twice a day: in the morning and evening. If I follow someone, I go ahead and list them in one of my lists. This is good for karma and it also is helpful for me to find people when I need to. I do all this from Hootsuite.

Automated Tweets

I don’t view this as the same thing as docking my tweets on Hootsuite since I actually write out the tweets and schedule them to post sometime  in the day. I do use an automated tweet from Bookbuzzr.com and it only tweets one time a week. Bookbuzzr does have an option to have it post everyday, but I feel like that may be pushing it.

I do not want to tweet something over and over and over again on the same day and every day. Now, THAT would get annoying. You don’t want to be a broken record on Twitter. I hate repeating myself a lot in real life, so I don’t want to do it on Twitter.

In short this can be a good thing if it is done moderation and done the right way.

In summary a little Twitter automation is good since it can free up time to do other tasks such as writing and family and everything in between, but at the same time try to keep things as real as possible too. That’s what social media is for!

Just Say No to Spam!

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social media spam

Everyone knows what spam is, and it is an unfortunate part of our internet lives. Spam doesn’t exist in email only; it exists in social media. If you are on a lot of social media or on a platform any length of time you will see spam or be spammed.

social media spam

Here’s my sign!

Some of my author friends have written a piece about the infectious disease of spamming among authors, so I am picking up my sign and adding my piece. Indie and traditionally published authors alike are doing it. Some authors and readers are saying, “Enough already!” It’s better to nip the problem in the bud before it starts by not doing it in the first place. I am mostly talking about new authors when I say that. If you are spamming, then–stop it! Start over with a fresh start and change you MO. I will pass along knowledge I have learned and get some great tips to promote yourself here and recommend a friend’s (Rachel Thompson) blog Bad Readhead Media.com or follow on twitter @badreadheadmedia. There are plenty of other ways to promote yourself without spamming. Mark Levine also has some nice words to say on the subject by calling it “Tweet Pollution”.

For new authors the temptation to  spam is most insidious. I know because I was a newbie not too long ago, but now I have a little age on me and a little wiser. Am I perfect? No. I try my best by not to spam. Anyway with that being said, the temptation to spam for a new author is strong since they enter into a superfluous spam zone aka Twitter. It doesn’t happen as often on Facebook or other social media, but it can, especially if you connect anything to Twitter.

When a new author opens their twitter account and starts following people, especially other authors in their genre, they are drowned with spam. I know since I’ve been there and it still happens today. They get an automated DM that says to “like my page” or “check out/buy my book”, etc, etc. Seasoned veterans say that’s not the way to do things. I was sorely tempted to start, but my gut said no. I trusted my instinct, so I was on the right path. Instead, I welcomed people with a personal DM until my load became too much. Then I equipped Social Oomph’s auto DMer (a later topic).  I rotate between three or  more branded messages to welcome the person and say something fun and branded, but with no link. Since I am from the backwoods and that is part of my brand (and an interesting fact) I mention that. If someone responds, I respond back. TrueTwit is a definite no-no (last week’s post).

Spamming also occurs in the stream with “Buy my book” in just about every tweet. My book is at X Amazon rank at every hour; sharing a milestone is okay here, but don’t browbeat us with it! After a while this kind of behavior makes you appear narcissistic. You may not be that kind of person,  but most of us only see your Twitter-life.

Twitter has a field to add your website and your facebook page should have a link on the site. Other platforms have a space to add that in your bio. Put it on your blog on the ‘about’ page and put a widget right at their eyeballs (upper right works best). Stick it up everywhere! Doing guest posts or blog tours give you chances to share these links with folks since the host will ask you for them and your book links (another post, later).

Another twitter tip:  You can put your book link (shortened) in your Twitter bio. People do read your bio, and if they want to check out your book, they’ll click on it. That’s the way it works everywhere else too. If people are interested they’ll find and click on the links. An occasional tweet is OK (1-3 times a week), but it is best to add content (without links)–and lots of it–to compensate. There is also clever ways to word it so it’s not so egregious.

What about promotions, guest posts, events, and milestones? It’s okay to share! But do so in moderation and don’t forget the content. You can rearrange a promo tweet into a content tweet by rephrasing and removing the link. I’ve learned to do this by being the Twitter Coordinator for two IBC streams. You can mention your host by inserting their Twitter handle (which they will appreciate). Since Twitter moves so fast it’s best to mention promotional (like giveaways, book launch, etc) stuff 2-3 times a day so people can catch it, but keep in mind content. Hootsuite helps you space out your stuff throughout the day so you can dock it and forget it (later). After a promotion you may want to halt any book promo tweets for a week or two and start back to restock on your “brownie points”.

Social media is all about talking and sharing and helping each other. Help stop spam before it starts and help new authors resist the urge to jump on the spamwagon by not spamming.

social media spam