Social Media for the Self Publishing Author

Greg – Marketing and Advertising for over 20 years. Sold everything from Cadillac's to Insurance Policies.
Looking back I used to quote eye opening stats Facebook third largest country, a gazillion of of tweets sent each day, 24 hours of videos uploaded to YouTube each minute. 50% of blog readers say a blog influenced their decision to buy.That was back in the day when companies where just trying to understand Social Media. The point was to show that if you wanted to catch fish, you needed to fish where the fish spent their time. Now as we edge closer to 2014 this is know. It’s a fact.
What is more compelling is that the number one reason people buy things is because other people recommend it. And Social Media is where they recommend it. Now – if you are in the toilet business then that might not be relevant to you. Who is going to share about their new toilet. But your not. You are in the book business and other than maybe music, TV, and films that is the most shareable business to be in. Why? Because by sharing people are saying something about themselves. So… Social is huge, people like to share your product category – go out there and build a Facebook page and voila – start counting the Kindle sales and watch the On Demand printer break his equipment keeping up with the demand for your book.
We are not the first person to figure out that people like to share.
Social Media should not be everything you do. In fact, it is just a marketing tactic that should be tied into a larger marketing plan.
Making friends in social media is just like making friends in real life. The people who are fun to be around end up making a whole lot of friends.
Obviously the point of this slide is to be human and real. Consider social media a giant cocktail party and speak to people in a relaxed and open manner. Don’t shrill or sell. Let the conversations do the selling for you.
As you first venture into social media, you will find people who already have a strong relationship with you. Most likely they will find you without you having to do anything.
As you start engaging with people, leading, adding value and talking about your resorts passions, more people will find you and start digging you as well. They will tell others and write good stuff about you. The word spreads within their sphere of influence and their self defined communities.
As time goes on and you continue to participate in social media, more people will find you, engage with you and become advocates. They in turn spread the word to others within their communities.
This continues, especially as you lead, engage frequently, act quickly to complaints, thank people for positive reviews, ask for opinions on how to get better and carry on conversations.
And so on and so on… An important note, although it is best to engage with as many people as possible, not everyone has the same sphere of influence. It is important to find the online influentials and target them with specific initiatives.