Blog

Using Social Media to Get What You Want

So often when we turn around, yet another person is drilling into our heads the necessity of social networking for building an author’s platform. To be effective, authors must: understand their audience, have a plan to utilize said audience, faithfully employ quid pro quo and remember that competition for their audience is everywhere. It’s interesting, however, that in this age of free content there seems to be scant information available on how to effectively manage all of this. Most articles tell you what social networking is and why it’s important, but they rarely go far enough. They don’t tell you how to apply it which can leave the marketing un-savvy author out in the cold. Sure there are paid courses you can take, books to buy full of marketing nuggets, but that right there kind of taints the spirit of social media. Genuine relationships are the cornerstone of networking: support cannot be cajoled for the long haul, it must be earned.

Much of marketing relies on the idea that giving away free information will increase sales of expanded/customized information. This makes sense in the business world, but social networking can be more complicated than that. There is no end goal for the audience; they are in it for the ongoing experience. By giving their time and attention, your audience expects quality in return. This is why planning is so important for the author. For a small fee, a slew of marketers will make it their business to get you “x” number of followers for your Twitter feeds or “x” number of friends on your My Space. The problem is, quantity does not necessarily equal quality and that’s an important distinction. The purpose of marketing via social media is to grow your social capital because that’s how you earn the respect of your peers (and that’s how you can get what you want).

Smart authors will lay out a plan of their wants/needs/expectations for social networking before getting their feet wet. To that end, identifying your target audience is crucial. For some people, networking online is a competitive sport, an ego trip if you will. They like the bragging rights that a large number of connections brings so they may not care who follows them. You, as a smart author however, do. Your ultimate goal is to gather a core group of 1,000 or so people who are interested in what you have to offer (word of mouth recommendations should push you forward from there). This means you have to know what you’re offering and how to make it useful, funny, entertaining or educational. This is where generic advice is of absolutely no use, so I’ll try to be as specific as possible.

Let’s use this blog as an example. My target audience is authors (primarily novelists) and those interested in book publishing as a business. Trying to target book lovers in general is way too broad and impossible to satisfy, as would be fans of the red-haired community or women in the workforce. I chose this audience because 1) I understand the needs of authors, 2) it’s in my best interest to stay on top of the publishing industry; passing along what I learn is a win/win for all involved and 3) rumor has it that these people actually still read in this modern age. This approach works for me because it plays to my strengths and provides the motivation to continue writing. The topics I choose to discuss vary, but they remain consistent with my central premise: publishing industry analysis from an author’s perspective. The people who choose to follow me appreciate that.

Author B however, is a bookish mystery writer who lives to research medieval history and architecture and write about them. She would likely gather her community from history buffs and mystery fans. She has a niche expertise that allows her to share her knowledge for the benefit of like-minded people while inspiring her to continue learning more. What her audience expects: medieval history/architecture/mystery chat and lots of it.

Author C is a stay-at-home dad writing children’s books about how to handle peer pressure. His target audience could be anyone from tuned-in parents/grandparents, child care givers, teachers and beyond. His problem is that he may have too many choices which could dilute his attention. He could concentrate his platform on offering advice, relating his own experiences with peer pressure and how he learned from them or funny anecdotes on life as a stay-at-home dad. Nevertheless, even though he writes in a particular genre and is known for a series, it doesn’t mean he has to focus on it. Author C can be as creative as he wants about how he delivers his message, but his audience demands he be consistent with the premise. Again, this goes back to planning.

Here’s a question: what do you intend to do with your audience, assuming you get one? While you’re at it, how much time do plan on investing in them and what sites will you frequent? You wanted them, right? Now what?

You’ll do yourself a huge favor by first identifying your limitations. You don’t like writing articles? Maybe a blog and sites like Digg and Technorati aren’t for you. You don’t want to be bothered with updates several times a day? Perhaps you should re-think your Twitter campaign. Effective social networking shouldn’t be seen as a chore or you won’t stick with it. Figure out what you can reasonably manage initially and commit to it. Below are some popular sites and how they fit into the social strata:

Ning: links people with common interests/passions
Twitter: good for keeping up with news and real time events
LinkedIn: connects people on the basis of their professional identity
Facebook: good for keeping up with people you already know

Now think about your target audience and where you’re most likely to find them. Remember, you don’t want to reach out to all people, only the right people. If this sounds elitist remind yourself that time is money because it is. Come up with a strategy that maximizes your impact on the community in the smallest amount of time possible. Which is the best use of your Twitter time, sending out a stream of philosophical haikus or directing your audience to a hot debate? Is it better to crank out hourly blog updates of rehashed versions of Publisher’s Lunch or offer up answers to fan FAQs a few times a month? There’s no right way to use social media, there’s only effective and ineffective. Friending 200 people who expect you to care about their latest weekend debaucheries will not help you. Nor will involving yourself in a retiree group hoping to capitalize on their free time with mentions of your book. Invest wisely.

Once you and your audience agree on the expectations of the relationship, you must enlist their help to keep the energy flowing because you are not an island. The best way to accomplish this is to get them involved in projects on your behalf. It can be as simple as brainstorming for advice on where to find like-minded people to increase the community’s size or something more elaborate like this to get some publicity. Giving your audience things to do and ways to engage helps everyone. It’s much easier and more fun to manage a group of active, motivated people ready to hit the dance floor than to rally a bunch of lethargic stragglers who have forgotten why they’re still there. The best communities are those in which the audience gets to collaborate and share in its success, like this letter to Lily Allen. Lily dissed poor Mike Masnick of TechDirt and one of his fans stepped up to set her straight. This is just good, clean fun for everyone, but again, consistent engagement is the key.

No less important is the issue of quid pro quo (or you give me something and I give you something of equal value in return). Attention is a hot commodity in today’s economy because it’s so scarce. People will leave your butt in the dust without a thought if you don’t consistently appeal to their wants and needs. One way to counter this generational ADD is by getting people addicted to your content. Novelty and change are big draws because there’s always something new to discuss. This is why Digg is popular. If you write quickly you could make a name for yourself as the go-to person for your chosen platform, but this is not your only option. However you choose to brand yourself, be it with games and contests, in-depth research or celebrity interviews, you must present your content in the way that will best tempt your audience. Your content doesn’t have to be hot-off-the-presses fresh, but your approach does. A thriller author could take a current abduction case in the news and re-write it as something that would appeal to his readers. A sci-fi author could take requests from the audience on new appliances and technology and report on how she sees them taking over the world. Play to your audience, get them involved and you will have their attention. Give them a reason to care and you will have their loyalty. Once you have their loyalty, then you will have a voice (this is social capital). Together, with the help of your community, you’re on your way to getting what you want. After that, you’re on your own.