Support for Indie Authors discussion

Hi,
I realize I spend a LOT of time in social media, and it's taking my time from working, duh. So I have a webpage, Facebook, kind of a bloggish on Goodreads, and now I am pondering, should I start a Twitter account? Is it worth it? I read a title : The best book reviewers on Twitter, and I don't get that? How many words can one write on twitter, like five? Anyway, please share your experiences! Thanks folks!

Twitter is an excellent tool for authors. Use the right hashtags and you will reach your target audience. Just don't use it only for ads. Be interesting and amusing.Build an audience!

I use about two dozen images (ads) that I created and post over time. That means that you won't see the same ad twice in one day, or even in two or three days. Some of the ads are funny, some are eye-catching, and they often get comments and retweets. That said, it seems to drive a few curious people to my website but I don't think it has any impact on sales. On the other hand, people do become familiar with me, and my work, whether they buy or not. I think it has been a benefit: very useful in getting my name out there, for better or for worse. I've recently started an account on LinkedIn. Not sure how it works yet, but I'm learning, and I've found new people and new outlets.

I would agree with most of the comments here. Using Twitter seems to be like spitting into the sea: a bit of froth and then its gone forever. I tend to use it for announcing blog posts, giveaways, and for posting links to articles that I like, in order to build up a personality profile for anyone following me.

Blog posts, reviews, author interviews, and presence on sites such as Good Reads seem a better use of time. It is hard work, and more a labour of love than a commercial concern at the moment.

I'm still hoping though 8-)

Twitter has transformed my approach to marketing - I cannot promote the use of it enough. However, everyone's experience of social media - Twitter included - is different. The trick is to find a mix that works for you. Twitter can be daunting - but I find Facebook more so (and more confusing) - there is a lot of advice out there for authors especially, to make it work.

Happy to share more if you have specific questions. My advice is to persist for at least a year with it - I now have 11k followers from zero in February 2015.

Alp Mortal

Alp,

What method did you find that increased your number of followers the most?

One thing I would recommend is using smarturl or some similar (free) service. You can create custom shortened links to blogs, interviews, stories, competitions etc and then track how many times they are clicked, rather than just whistling in the wind.

I guess, new year, new games. Tomorrow, I start tomorrow. Hmmm, I think I've bee saying that for a month already. Maybe it's my New Year's resolution! Any body usingTwitter on computer only? And how is that?

Martin wrote: "Alp,

What method did you find that increased your number of followers the most?"

Hello Martin,

The best methods for me were as follows -:

1) Tweeting a variety of stuff that interests me (first and foremost) because that attracts like-minded accounts - and that builds a connection - and I always follow back if at all possible, and retweet content if it is appropriate - twitter works best if you are prepared to reciprocate.
2) Keep promotional tweets to a minimum - I post 100 tweets a day, of which maybe 5 will be promotional tweets for my own work.
3) Always answer DMs, always thank new followers and retweeters.
4)Use lists to curate content and build up subscribers who follow such content.
5) Post everyday come what may.
6) Always use images where possible - 80% of tweets without an image are ignored (they say).
7) Follow accounts recommended to me by Twitter
8) Use hashtags - I use #tw4rw, #IARTG, #LPRTG, #bookbangs, #LGBT, #ebook and #supportindieauthors regularly and find they work well to increase the reach of a tweet.
9) Cull dormant followers, unfollow those who unfollow me, regularly change up my private list of accounts that I follow more closely, follow trending topics
10) Link Twitter to Facebook, link blog to Twitter, link Goodreads to Facebook
11) Always follow/like a Twitter account's Facebook page if there is one.
12) Test all links included in tweets (nothing worse than tweeting a broken link)

I enjoy it - the key - else I couldn't spend 8 to 12 hours on it everyday - does that sound like a lot? Time better spent, in my opinion, than writing posts on Goodreads lamenting the lack of sales. Twitter has had a direct beneficial impact on my sales this year, without a doubt.

Alp Mortal
@carterseagrove

Thanks man!

Martin wrote: "Thanks man!"

You're welcome. Wishing you every success and happiness in 2016.

Regards,
Alp

Alp wrote: "Martin wrote: "Alp,

What method did you find that increased your number of followers the most?"

Hello Martin,

The best methods for me were as follows -:

1) Tweeting a variety of stuff that inte..."

That's exactly what I did to build my twitter audience. Like almost word for word, though I admit, I've been ignoring it lately in favor of other networks. Still the great thing about your profiles, is they'll stay there until you're ready to return!

Twitter what you think relative to what you write. Repetition works.
I learned that after thirty years in advertising.

Best luck.

I joined a Tweet Group with about 30 other writers around the world a couple of months ago. We have a daily thread on a FB page and if you post a tweet link in the thread, you have to retweet everyone else who does the same. Because of the time differences, my tweet then goes out multiple times during the day and the exposure is huge. I pick up new followers everyday and lots of additional retweets by strangers.

I have noticed a pick up in sales, so it looks promising. Best part is, I don't have to spend much time on the process other than coming up with creative tweets and images.

Twitter is my least favorite social-media platform for promoting, but this is only my own personal opinion. I have no idea why, but I'm really good with my Instagram. I'm actually quite surprised by how many people request my book (which isn't even published yet!) and I get so much support there! I have 19k followers already and I think it might help with sales once Give it Back comes out.

Twitter is a strange beast. I always just wonder at people that follow you and then unfollow you 2 days later. I definitely haven't figured out how to use it to great effect, but then I don't spend 8-12 hours per day on it. If I'm on it for more than 10 minutes, that's a "long day" on Twitter for me.

Danielle wrote: "Twitter is my least favorite social-media platform for promoting, but this is only my own personal opinion. I have no idea why, but I'm really good with my Instagram. I'm actually quite surprised b..."

I'm also on Instagram, Tumblr and Pinterest, but have no idea how to use them ye They all look promising, but it's hard to find the time to check them out properly.

Good luck with your book!

I use twitter and have gained over 50 followers in the last week. I haven't noticed any sales increase, but I also only post maybe twice a day at most. I really need to start using it more...

Twitter is an excellent venue for writers to make friends, connections, promote themselves, support other writers, etc... I've gotten a lot of benefit from Twitter. I've made new friends, I've met great book reviewers. You'll be surprised by how many people will support you there if you are supportive of others in turn. You have to be engaged, on a regular basis, and build a community of friends there.

I recommend posting 5-6 times a day (a couple self-promoting tweets, and the rest could be quotes on writing, inspirational quotes, or - most importantly - tweets supporting, promoting, and retweeting other authors. Twitter is a very supportive community for writers and other creative types. Band together, make friends there, make new connections, and support each other. It's highly valuable if you do it right.

Hi everyone!

here I go, or went. My Twitter account:
@KatjaVartiain1

Follow me!

Katja wrote: "Hi everyone!

here I go, or went. My Twitter account:
@KatjaVartiain1

Follow me!"

Done so 8-)

Nia wrote: "Katja wrote: "Hi everyone!

here I go, or went. My Twitter account:
@KatjaVartiain1

Follow me!"

Done so 8-)"

yeaah!

I spend about an hour on Twitter a day. Yes, I market my work, but I also tweet about favourite books, shows, current affairs and observations. I don't have that many followers but I've had the odd reader say, "I found you on Twitter," so I must be doing something right. I also announce blogs and new posts on my Facebook page.

Katja wrote: "Hi,
I realize I spend a LOT of time in social media, and it's taking my time from working, duh. So I have a webpage, Facebook, kind of a bloggish on Goodreads, and now I am pondering, should I star..."
---------------------------------------------------------------
Hello.
I love twitter. I love all social networking sites. Twitter is nice, because you can connect it to any message boards and anything you write will be shared on twitter.
Twitter works well for me, because I'm all over the place and have connect it to everything I do. So my twitter account is always busy with information I write about.
Even though it only has 140 characters it actually shares links from places you have been writing on. Your blogs, and other social networking areas you continually write on. I never have a bad experience with it. It's a great choice.
Have a great day. :-)

I think Twitter is fun and drop in several times a day to quickly go through posts and tweet/retweet here and there! :)

I have two Twitter accounts. The first one I've had for seven years; it's mostly political. The second one is about two years old. It's the same as my pen name, Jens Lyon (or @JensLyon in Twitter-ese). I tweet about a variety of subjects, all of which are connected to my writing in some direct or roundabout way. I have an ad for my current book pinned to the top of my Twitter page. I *think* I've sold a few books via Twitter, but I can't be sure. It does bring traffic to my blog.

For those who are new to Twitter or don't use it much because they don't know what to tweet, my advice is to follow some accounts that interest you. It can be news, cute pet photos, your favorite TV program, whatever. Then retweet the tweets you like best from those pages. If you want other writers to follow you, use the hashtag #amwriting. Other effective hashtags are #amediting, #amreading, #books, #writerslife, #indieauthors, and #IndieBooksBeSeen.

Thanks for the hashtags.

Hello! I am @edmond_derousse

I think Twitter is a really great way to connect with your readers! It's quick. It's easy, and you can reach numerous people in a matter of seconds..so why not?

Hi,
yeah I'm on twitter, uh, I see even twitter dreams now! I still wonder, how can you really see what everyone is posting if you follow more than 50 people?I Help!
But true it is efficient, and i think one can reach wider audiences.

oh, @KatjaVartiain1

I have been considering Twitter for quite awhile. After reading all the comments on here I do believe I will give it a shot.

I also made note of the #'s on here so I have someplace to get started.

Thank you everyone for the input to help make these sometimes stressful choices.

The problem with twitter is that it is hard to work out how track the effects your tweets may have in the twittersphere. I have started using smarturl (google it). It's a free service where you can create shortened URLS to embed in your tweets - linking to blogs, book pages, amazon pages etc. The big advantage is you can log in and track which are used, thus showing you who has clicked on those URLs, and thus has seen and actioned your tweets.

Very useful!

One thing that I found out about Twitter is I'm not as good at condensing what I wanna say in 150 characters as I think I am. Lately when I want to do a quick promo I find I go over the limit way too quick. I haven't the slightest idea how many characters photos take up but by the time you add that along with links and hashtags there's no room left to write anything.

You would think being a member for two years and seeing countless of others doing it that I'd have an idea but nope, it still leaves me scratching my head as to how they do it.

@Justin I didn't realise photos took up any characters... I'll have to pay more attention.

@Nia, have you looked at any of the analytics twitter gives you? I only found them a couple of weeks ago - click your profile picture in the upper right hand corner of Twitter, and you'll get a drop down menu. If you go to Analytics there's a whole lot to explore and it tells you things like how many times a link was clicked. Also, if you look at one of your own tweets there's a little bar graph picture along the bottom. Clicking that gives you some info on that individual tweet.

Justin wrote: "One thing that I found out about Twitter is I'm not as good at condensing what I wanna say in 150 characters as I think I am. Lately when I want to do a quick promo I find I go over the limit way t..."

Twitter Hack: Use a graphics program such as Gimp and make yourself twitter cards. Then you're only limited by how much text you can fit in the picture. Save your characters for hashtags and mentions.

I just heard on the radio that they may raise the character limit to over 1000 characters, which I think defeats the point behind twitter, that it's a list of short comments you can dive into as you wish.

It will also remove the pleasure of a tweet hitting the magic zero with the last character.

Nia wrote: "The problem with twitter is that it is hard to work out how track the effects your tweets may have in the twittersphere. I have started using smarturl (google it). It's a free service where you can..."

thanks Nia! And lists, are very uselful.

I have been using a twitter promotion company - 10 targeted tweets a day; it started 24th Decemeber and so far I've had no sales. Draw your own conclusions.

Nia wrote: "I have been using a twitter promotion company - 10 targeted tweets a day; it started 24th Decemeber and so far I've had no sales. Draw your own conclusions."

I invariably get sales immediately after a tweet blast - I don't think there are any hard and fast rules - a lot depends on who is following you, whether they're interested in the type of story that you're promoting - and if they saw the tweet at all.

We found that our readers (military sci-fi) are not on Twitter in sufficient numbers to justify the effort. Romance appears to do much better. The one YA author I know well has yet to see significant impact on sales from it after ~8 months.

So, like everything, it varies. If you like Twitter, like the people you meet there, and share interests with them, it will likely do some good. If not, it probably won't.

I think it boils down to this: Twitter (and other social media) are not marketing platforms, and I believe it is unhelpful to think of them as such. They are social venues. Marketing on Twitter (or FB) is like the guy on the subway or the street corner asking for money. People tend not to like that guy. They aren't there to be marketed to. They are there to chat and socialize.

If we authors socialize, rather than market, we may eventually build up some word-of-mouth about our work. Word of mouth, how ever it is spread, is one sure way to get noticed and (hopefully) make a sale.

But (again) this depends on finding groups we want to socialize with, who want to socialize with us. For some, that may twitter. For many, it may be something else.

April wrote: "Twitter is an excellent venue for writers to make friends, connections, promote themselves, support other writers, etc... I've gotten a lot of benefit from Twitter. I've made new friends, I've met ..."

April has lots of excellent advice on using twitter, here and in other threads. If you intend to try twitter, it is worth seeking out.

Twitter (and other social media) are not marketing platforms, and I believe it is unhelpful to think of them as such. They are social venues. Marketing on Twitter (or FB) is like the guy on the subway or the street corner asking for money. People tend not to like that guy. They aren't there to be marketed to. They are there to chat and socialize.


Love that one too Owen. Succint, and an excellent way to put it.

Riley wrote: "Twitter (and other social media) are not marketing platforms, and I believe it is unhelpful to think of them as such. They are social venues. Marketing on Twitter (or FB) is like the guy on the sub..."

I agree about Facebook, but I have found Twitter very good for marketing, as long as I constantly vary my infrequent posts and make them visually interesting.

Unlike FB, where you can stop and converse properly without word restrictions, Twitter is very much fast-moving eye candy and I find people will stop at an arresting image and click a link and, once there, often buy a copy of my book.

Twitter is both a social venue and a marketing platform. It is marketing, but I believe that side of things is done best when it's combined with the proper etiquette. It's entirely up to the individual to make it work. Be interesting, share engaging and relevant content that's useful to people and somebody will take notice. That's when (occasionally) you should notify people of your own work. It might lead to a sale, it might not, but it's better than doing nothing. I'm still surprised at the amount of people who send me DM's after I follow them screaming at me to buy their book. Ehh, no thanks! It's a long game, treat it so.

Dylan wrote: "...."

No it didn't, still right here.
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

I am told twitter is awesome, and I do use it sometimes, but I really don't know how much traffic I really get from it.

Ottilie wrote: "I am told twitter is awesome, and I do use it sometimes, but I really don't know how much traffic I really get from it."

What do you mean by traffic in this case? Just that you can't tell how many sales it gives?
I was surprised at the analysis Twitter provides in terms of tweet impressions, link clicks, profile views, hash tag clicks - they tell me what my best performing tweets are, how often I've been mentioned by others, what my average and per tweet engagement rates are. I know how many times people have viewed my profile, and I can tell if a specific tweet sent them there.
You just need to click on your picture in the top right hand corner and choose analytics from the menu.

L.S. wrote: "Ottilie wrote: "I am told twitter is awesome, and I do use it sometimes, but I really don't know how much traffic I really get from it."

What do you mean by traffic in this case? Just that you can..."

I don't know how many are actually interested readers vs just other authors who are promoting or whatever else there is lurking online these days. Hm I will look for those thank you :)

Riley wrote: "Dylan wrote: "...."

No it didn't, still right here.
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/..."

Hmmmm... strange... I couldn't find it. Even a keyword search didn't show it. Oh well. hahaha

L.S. wrote: "Ottilie wrote: "I am told twitter is awesome, and I do use it sometimes, but I really don't know how much traffic I really get from it."

What do you mean by traffic in this case? Just that you can..."

I agree. Twitter analytics is pretty impressive.

Here's something to think about. I just had to reformat my computer because of a stealth program that took control of my browser and hijacked the search engine to Yahoo. While I was reformatting and trying to set everything straight, I missed more than a day of posting my mini-ads on Twitter. My website traffic dropped like a stone. As I've said before (probably somewhere in this thread), Twitter posts don't seem to increase sales, at least for me, but they do drive traffic to my website. That can't be a bad thing.