10 IDEAS TO HELP YOU GET
the most from Facebook
We have all heard stories of how some writers doubled the sales of their book because of Facebook, we then try ourselves by sitting down at our laptops reaching out to as many people as possible for a couple of weeks, this only leads to becoming disillusioned and eventually going back to using it once a fortnight.
I think most of us know that it can work but are at a loss as to how, so here we have compiled ten ideas for you to consider prior to starting back over with Facebook.
I think most of us know that it can work but are at a loss as to how, so here we have compiled ten ideas for you to consider prior to starting back over with Facebook.
Who do you want looking at your page?
Whatever articles you write upon your Facebook page will of course attract those who find the subject interesting to themselves; your page shouldn’t just be designed as one continuous advert for your new book. Think about the content you're adding, if it is quality then you’ll find your followers & friends will be more likely to share your page with others and your reach will grow.
Create lists
Facebook gives you the feature of being able to manage your friends, followers and associates in to separate lists, from here you can be very specific in your posts and target a launch for example just to any publishers you may have connected with.
Whatever articles you write upon your Facebook page will of course attract those who find the subject interesting to themselves; your page shouldn’t just be designed as one continuous advert for your new book. Think about the content you're adding, if it is quality then you’ll find your followers & friends will be more likely to share your page with others and your reach will grow.
Create lists
Facebook gives you the feature of being able to manage your friends, followers and associates in to separate lists, from here you can be very specific in your posts and target a launch for example just to any publishers you may have connected with.
Be careful with ‘info overload’
Posting too frequently from fan pages is one of the top reasons why followers hit the ‘unfriend’ button, be wary also of using the auto-update options which enable every Tweet you make to appear in your Facebook stream. Yes keep your followers updated but posting something every hour will indeed turn them away from you.
Hard sales tactics
Try to stay away from the hard sales approach, you can and will post adverts which will be advertising your latest book or launch event, but if you keep selling in every post you make you will only succeed in losing friends.
Keep it personal
People buy from people they like so building rapport with your followers is important, this is something that will be done over time and should be looked at as a longer term strategy. The people I know who have used Facebook and Twitter successfully have done so over a twelve month period.
Posting too frequently from fan pages is one of the top reasons why followers hit the ‘unfriend’ button, be wary also of using the auto-update options which enable every Tweet you make to appear in your Facebook stream. Yes keep your followers updated but posting something every hour will indeed turn them away from you.
Hard sales tactics
Try to stay away from the hard sales approach, you can and will post adverts which will be advertising your latest book or launch event, but if you keep selling in every post you make you will only succeed in losing friends.
Keep it personal
People buy from people they like so building rapport with your followers is important, this is something that will be done over time and should be looked at as a longer term strategy. The people I know who have used Facebook and Twitter successfully have done so over a twelve month period.
Design your page
What will your followers see when they first view your page? Have you a great profile picture and banner image which is both professional and attractive? You want to connect with your followers but at the same time project an image which will help the success of your books, take a look at the biggest authors and you’ll see how they have spent time here and it maintains their image of professionalism.
Be prepared for hard work
The fan pages of the better known authors will have thousands of genuine fans following them, if you’ve just launched your first book then you will need to put some effort in. Reach out to writers groups, forums and publishers via Facebook (but doing so in a courteous way of course), also advertise your page via your website or blog and you could even add the address to your business cards.
Invites for events
Be realistic, if you are having a launch event in central New York or London (for example) and the majority of your fans are based outside of the city or even country then be specific in your invites. Sending out a blanket invite to someone who lives in Brazil or Italy may be a waste of time as they’ll see the invite for what it is. Be specific when inviting people to your events.
What will your followers see when they first view your page? Have you a great profile picture and banner image which is both professional and attractive? You want to connect with your followers but at the same time project an image which will help the success of your books, take a look at the biggest authors and you’ll see how they have spent time here and it maintains their image of professionalism.
Be prepared for hard work
The fan pages of the better known authors will have thousands of genuine fans following them, if you’ve just launched your first book then you will need to put some effort in. Reach out to writers groups, forums and publishers via Facebook (but doing so in a courteous way of course), also advertise your page via your website or blog and you could even add the address to your business cards.
Invites for events
Be realistic, if you are having a launch event in central New York or London (for example) and the majority of your fans are based outside of the city or even country then be specific in your invites. Sending out a blanket invite to someone who lives in Brazil or Italy may be a waste of time as they’ll see the invite for what it is. Be specific when inviting people to your events.
Advertising campaigns
Facebook allows you to advertise to specific people who match the criteria of those who you’re targeting to like your page, they are chargeable but cost very little to use (for a smaller campaign) and are incredibly easy to manage too. Any post you make can also be boosted to a wider audience in this way also.
Be aware of the figures
Facebook will tell you how your interactions are going but you will need to be aware of how people interact with fan pages, 25% - 90% will see your posts (in their stream) but only 0.1% - 4% will like or comment upon the post. The more engaging your updates are the better chance of people sharing and growing your audience for you.
So with some patience you can design a strategy which will draw people to your Facebook page and ultimately help to sell you book, it will take time so be realistic with the focus you give it and don’t try to complete it all in one week, a long term goal will ensure you carry on using it and in a more genuine way to your fans.
Facebook allows you to advertise to specific people who match the criteria of those who you’re targeting to like your page, they are chargeable but cost very little to use (for a smaller campaign) and are incredibly easy to manage too. Any post you make can also be boosted to a wider audience in this way also.
Be aware of the figures
Facebook will tell you how your interactions are going but you will need to be aware of how people interact with fan pages, 25% - 90% will see your posts (in their stream) but only 0.1% - 4% will like or comment upon the post. The more engaging your updates are the better chance of people sharing and growing your audience for you.
So with some patience you can design a strategy which will draw people to your Facebook page and ultimately help to sell you book, it will take time so be realistic with the focus you give it and don’t try to complete it all in one week, a long term goal will ensure you carry on using it and in a more genuine way to your fans.
