The title of this blog post says it all, Why AMI on Facebook? Or twitter for that matter? I opened my social media accounts because a marketing
Oh the horror!
“guru” told me that I had to have one. Why? To promote my book of course.
But that’s not what social networking is about. Social networking is about, well, being social.
Here is the problem, writers by nature are introverts. We sit by ourselves and tell stories about people we make up in our heads. Trust me, there is nothing “social” in that job description.
I’ve participated in events with large groups of writers being social to help promote their work and charities. Everyone puts on their game face for these events. They chat, and smile and are social butterflies. After the public leaves these ersatz socialites shut down. They’re exhausted. Most complain of headaches and fatigue. I even saw one poor author break down into tears.
I blame Jacqueline Susann and other writers like her who actively pursued the spotlight. Writers shouldn’t be celebrities, and I’m suspicious of people who think they’ll become famous as a writer. Chances are you won’t. Especially with the explosion of indie authors. You are now one voice in a very large crowd of people shouting.
The proof for me that writers are not social people can be seen crystal clear on twitter. When you read a tweet that looks like this:
#Buy #Kindle #99cents #D #5Stars #Novel #(Book Title)
And that’s what they send over and over. Why? Because some marketing guru, told them they had to promote on twitter. The problem is they 1) don’t know how to be social and 2) don’t want to be social because they are introverts.
People who enjoy social networking and they know when you’re not being genuine. Most will tune out the tweets, unfollow the author, or just block the tweeter, because that’s not why they’re on these sites. People who are on these sites want to connect with others, not be preached to or sold.
My facebook page posts are sadly few and far between. I am an introvert. I would be happy to be shut in a room for the rest of my life. Let alone to churn out stories. When I hear people are sent to solitary confinement in prison I actually wonder why that’s considered a punishment.
So I’m wondering how much can these social marketing campaigns really be helping if all that is sent is spam?
For those authors who are genuinely social and can connect with their audience on a genuine, personal level maybe they’ve sold some books.
For those author’s who are socially awkward (and you know who you are), who are just posting buy my book, buy my book, I doubt their campaign has had much impact.
My guess is most of my socially awkward posts have now been hidden on most news feeds, so I struggle with the relevance of Facebook and the like.
If you are connected with me on a social networking site and you’ve wondered why I rarely post, I am sorry. I am not a person who lays bare the minutia of my day for the world to see.
I can only be who I am.
Follow Me on Social Media:
I think you need to find the platform that you are comfortable with. I am very much the same as you. I opened up a facebook account, Twitter, and a blog. I had no idea what to do with any of them.
Honestly, I still am not sure what to do with Facebook, but I do find and ask questions of people on Twitter.
My blog, however, has become a home away from home. I have made a ton of new friends, and I have hundreds of followers in only 11 months.
I found that blogging was comfortable for me. Find which outlet works for you, and go for it.
I like my blog too. But that just flows with being a writer, so it really doesn’t feel like there’s any social pressure there. We’re all friends here!
Yes, but if you are gaining followers, SURPRISE! You have acheived a marketing platform (wether you know it or not)
You have me there!
An interesting take on the subject of social network platforming by authors – and one I find a lot of sympathy for.
Comrade! Thanks for dropping by Joe!
There are times to post links and times to interact on groups. I blend them on my main page. I try and post other things or things that engage people to respond, posting good morning every morning has done well for me. Asking questions can be fun too if people are online. Twitter doesn’t leave much room for more than a quick tweet as you have shown. Of course it’s great to post inspirational tidbits, but with Twitter the window is so small who knows who even sees it. I don’t look at it like spam unless I’m sending an email to all my friends something I’d never do. I also don’t post my links on the pages of any of my friends. I figure if they want to share my link great. At this point I’m an extrovert, but it’s much easier to be that way online than in person. I don’t think most of us will really get the spotlight our books deserve but it’s not a reason not to try. Good luck with the writing.
I don’t really want to try to be an extrovert. I’m comfortable being “in”. I give all the credit in the world to those who want to be and are “ex’s” though. Thank you for commenting!
We all form our own system for what works for us. I have the people that say “oh don’t do that or that,” but I know what is working for me. I’m having fun so that’s all that matters.
That’s exactly right. If it’s fun for you then you should soldier on!
As an introvert and an indie author, who has mostly failed in social networking, do you have other suggestions on how to market successfully?
I took out a Facebook ad that I was able to target to specific genre readers that had an 80% click rate return. I think that was a great investment. I did a blog tour that was really painless. I only had to write 2 guest posts for a month long tour. For me the best advertisement though is still word of mouth. I advocate giveaways so you can get people talking about the book. I gave away 10 on GoodReads and now I just heard about http://www.dreamonus.com/ giveaways where people entering the contest have to tweet or Facebook post about your book. I like that idea. Let someone else socialize for me!
I consider myself an introvert also so I understand what you mean. I keep my Twitter open to enter contests and such but never really got into the whole thing. My Facebook I like more because of family on there so I write more on it. I recently opened a blog in hopes that it would make me want to be more open and social but it seems to be more of a diary to me lol I have no followers and that’s ok. If nothing else maybe it will help in my failing memory 😉
I always thought that too about solitary confinement. I’m like “oh please, don’t punish me like that!” lmao
Ah, my kindred spirit! When my family says they want to keep in touch with me on Facebook I want to shout, “Pick up the phone!” Phones – the first social network and still the best.
Send me a link to your blog and I’ll follow you!
I think you’re on there 🙂 Here’s the link http://asparklymortal.blogspot.com
Thanks!
Yes, I’m following Sparkly Mortal on Networked Blogs! YAY!