Some writers claim that time spent engaging in social media is time wasted. But what is an author but a communicator of ideas, and what is social media but a platform for exchanging ideas (primarily by text, I might add). This session will focus on how the entrepreneurial author, even without a book yet to promote, can use social media not just for nurturing a potential readership but for nurturing story ideas as well.

1. Calebjross.com/Facebook
Calebjross.com/Twitter
Calebjross.com/Google
Calebjross.com/Goodreads
Surviving Online
Why Social Media is Not a Waste of Time for
Authors

2. 1. State of the Author
2. Why Social Media?
3. How Social Media?
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3. BUT I DON’T HAVE A BOOK TO
PROMOTE
“The best time to start
promoting your book is three
years before it comes out.
Three years to build a
reputation, build a permission
asset, build a blog, build a
following, build credibility
(authority), and build the
connections you’ll need later.”
- Seth Godin, author of 13 books. American Way
Magazine calls him, "America's Greatest Marketer,"
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4. HARD TRUTHS ABOUT WHAT NEW
AUTHORS FACE TODAY
• Little/No promotion
• Fragmented distribution channels
• Competing Media
• Talent Saturation
• Shorter Attention Span
All of this must be offset
only by the passion to write.
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5. PUBLISHING A BOOK DOESN’T MAKE
YOU AN AUTHOR.
To be a book writer, you need three things:
• a stack of paper
• an Amazon account
• $10 (for an ISBN)
To be an author, you need:
• to invest in the reading and writing
community
• to engage!
• to be seen as an authority
• to use unnecessary clip art in a
PowerPoint presentation
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6. Why Social Media?
Aren’t there better ways to promote my
writing?

7. THREE SOCIAL MEDIA FACTS
Google is the #1 search engine. What is the
#2 search engine?
The most popular internet site? Hint: It’s not
Google.
http://www.experian.com/hitwise/press-release-facebook-was-the-top-search-term-for-2011.html
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8. 8
Search for Social Conversation Wheel

9. WHAT CAN SOCIAL MEDIA DO?
• Traditional Direct advertising
– Facebook has one of the most robust self-serve
advertising models ever.
– Goodreads allows authors to market to specific
genre readers
• An overlay to all aspects of being an author
– R&D (Polls, Questions)
– Workshopping (using Groups)
– Promotion (Sharing)
• Advocate network
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10. WHAT CAN SOCIAL MEDIA DO?
Make your potential readers’ lives easier
– If nothing else, exist
– You aren’t spamming by simply
conversing
Engage with potential readers
– Media consumers expect the DVD
behind-the-scenes extras. Even if you
don’t, your readers do.
Social Media is Glorified Word of Mouth
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11. How Social Media?
Where to start and when to finish?

12. LEVERAGING YOUR INTERESTS
Visual media?
– Post videos at Youtube, Vimeo, DailyMotion
Statistics and Data?
– Infographics, charts, spreadsheets, lists
(people LOVE sharing statistics)
Talking?
– Podcast, interviews, video blogs
Journaling?
– Forums, niche communities
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13. TACTICS – BUILDING AUTHORITY
• Get a website
– Wordpress.com, Blogspot.com,
Blogger.com
• Single source of all
information
– Never leave your readers to
guess where they can find you
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14. TACTICS – BUILDING AUTHORITY
Be an authority by proving authority
• Content is King
• Blog often (3-4 x/week)
• Google Blog Search
• Blog tour/Guest posts
• Response posts
• Eventual book
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15. TACTICS – BUILDING AUTHORITY
• Thematic professionals
– Alan Emmins blurbed my first novel,
found on Facebook
• Media professionals
– Jane Friedman, AWP panel
• Reader influencers
– Book review bloggers
– Lit news sites
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16. TACTICS – BUILDING AUTHORITY
Your readers are here. You should be too.
For advanced distribution tactics, see cjrlit.com/advancedsyndication
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17. TACTICS – PERMISSION ASSETS
“Permission marketing is the privilege (not the right) of
delivering anticipated, personal and relevant messages to
people who actually want to get them.” – Seth Godin
• Newsletter
• Youtube subscribers
• Blog subscribers
• Twitter followers
• Facebook “likes”
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18. THE VALUE OF GOODREADS.COM
BOOK GIVEAWAY
2-book giveaway, 2 week duration, 398 entrants
had never heard of my book
had never heard of me prior
would come to a reading event if I were to visit
their town.
intend to read other books by me
subscribed to my newsletter
plan to connect with me on social networks
said they planned on purchasing the book
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19. IS IT ALL A WASTE OF TIME?
Does social media take away
time that could be spent writing
books?
Does writing books take
away time that could be
spent gaining readers?
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