Welcome to Writers Talkback. If you are a new user, your account will have to be approved manually to prevent spam. Please bear with us in the meantime

Facebook Author Pages

edited February 2018 in Writing
This may have been discussed before, but I can't remember where!

I have a FB author page, as do several of you, and FB keeps offering me a 'Bonus to reach 350 more people' and the like. It's probably a hook to get me to pay, but does anyone do this? If so, does it increase sales?

If not, how else can I reach more people? Nobody's bought one of my books this month :(

Comments

  • This might help - but use the search facility for Facebook and you'll find more.

    https://selfpublishingadvice.org/facebook-advertising-for-self-published-books-by-indie-authors/?affid=2339

    I doubt that Facebook alone will be enough, Lizy. Twitter can work. I've just written something about that but I'm not sure when it will be live.
  • edited February 2018
    No! *shudders* I don't pay.

    If you like your post as 'you', rather than as 'you, the author', that will show up on your normal FB page. You can also share a post from your Author Page on your other page.

    Does that make sense?
  • The trouble with Facebook is that most of the likes come from people who know you. If they were going to buy your book they might already have done so. Promotion is a WIP and it takes time.

    I'd recommend you begin sharing info about the inspiration of the book. Also, do that on Twitter.
  • edited February 2018
    That's what I thought. I certainly don't intend to pay!

    Publicity is a pain - I'd much rather be writing - but I also want people to read it.

    Thanks for the link, Baggy, and the advice, TN.
  • Yes, there are lots of platforms:
    FB (plus groups)
    Twitter (remember hashtags)
    LinkedIn
    Goodreads (more groups)
    iAuthor (Liz mentioned it recently)
    The Book Bazaar
    Blogs
    Websites...

    It is incredibly time-consuming with little payback unfortunately.

    I have only sold a couple (as per usual) this month.

    The ACTUAL secret is:

    '
    '
    '
    '
    '
    take your book into schools/libraries and read it (something I have yet to do!!!).
  • It doesn't need to be a pain and it doesn't need to take too much time. Thirty minutes a week might be sufficient to get some interest.
  • (Nice avatar, Baggy!)
  • The one on here? It's not new.
  • LizLiz
    edited February 2018
    Trouble is libraries and schools are cutting down on people coming in. We are atm discussing on the poetry summit the fact that schools (and libraries) are refusing to have authors in citing lack of funds and/or lack of time. When you are counting on it as your income, it is a disaster. I've been collecting accounts in the Children's Poetry group on FB.

    The trouble with getting 'interest' is you have to have people who have followed you retweet your tweets. That happens less than you'd think - I have brilliant stats for instance on Twitter for the Poetry Summit but when you go into their statistics page, which can be reached here when logged in: https://analytics.twitter.com/ you find that actually your reach isn't as far as you'd think.

    I think if you have a service which people are interested (ie. editing, proof reading) in it is VERY different to having a product that people have to buy which is not something that they must have.
  • My local library is very accommodating. They regularly host author talks and book launches. I think it depends on the library, so it's always worth making an enquiry. Bournemouth and Dorchester also support local folk.

    Engage>Entertain>Exploit.

    You can apply that to Facebook and Twitter. But - big but - it doesn't happen overnight. One tweet a month isn't going to engage or entertain anyone. Having said that, I do have a list on TweetDeck for authors who do that. They entertain me for the wrong reason.

    Posts with an image have a better reach. Use images associated with the inspiration behind the book.
  • Ha, this is true. But I tweet all day, every day from Poetry Summit. Certainly read by people who are interested in children's poetry - BUT I do wonder if they don't REtweet because lots of their reach isn't...
  • A lot of people filter out retweets (I do in most of my lists). I only retain retweets from accounts where I know they're not just doing it without thinking. Not having something retweeted isn't necessarily a negative. Stats can be misleading. I also filter out hashtags that clog up my lists.
  • I was offered £30 of free FB advertising which I accepted. The post was apparently seen by lots more people and did gain more likes and comments than I'd have expected without the extra push. It didn't result in more sales.
  • All hashtags, Baggy, or just that day's? For poetry summit I have to retweet as I just couldn't manage with having to comment on each one, but if someone is following, EVERY tweet or retweet is on the subject of children's poetry, which means nothing is irrelevant - do you think that is ok?
  • I wouldn't be impressed with a long list of retweets associated with one topic. You could be muted (and never know). Also, hashtags that generate a lot of traffic can result in topic blindness. If there's too many appearing in a short period of time it would be a negative.
  • I wouldn't be impressed with a long list of retweets associated with one topic.
    I wouldn't mind if the topic was one I was interested in and the tweets themselves interesting, not just sales links, and they came from a variety of sources. If they're all from the same source, I'd follow that account, not the one retweting them.

    Generally though, lots of retweets seem to indicate either someone who doesn't have anything to say themselves, so fills their feed with other people's stuff, or someone who is enthusiastically retweeting all their followers in the hope that these people will do the same for them. It seems nice to retweet your friends' stuff, but if most of what you're sharing isn't what your followers want to see then you're not helping anyone.
  • Gosh, they are all different tweets from different children's poets, from children's poetry publishers, some are poems that people have written (only the good ones!), children's poetry news, new books out, etc. etc. And I don't do it all in one go for that reason, I visit several times a day and do it in stages. The people who follow are following for children's poetry news so if that's what they are wanting they will certainly get it. It would be a bit weird to post things that aren't children's poetry.
  • You need to decide if people are following you or the event - if it's you, then they will appreciate the retweets (unless it's outside of the usual reason they read your tweets - in which case they'll filter out the hashtag). If they're following the hashtag there's the possibility they will already have seen the original tweets.
  • I am lost already!
    I have Googled 'How to use twitter' in the hope of learning enough to get it right. :-B
  • Lizy, it's best to just go on there and start slowly, see what works with you as a reader/book buyer, and what doesn't.

    I find that I think I've worked out some promotions, but then I learn differently. 8-|
  • Liz, in your case your followers will expect tweets about poetry, so I think what you're doing is fine. As Baggy has said, those who want to and know how might avoid those retweets, but if they've no interest in the subject anyway, then it doesn't matter.

    It's when people constantly retweet stuff apparently at random that I think there's a real problem. I've had people retweet me halfway through a conversation (not with them) so it makes no sense. When I've checked their feed it's a mish mash of totally different retweets - erotica books, childrens's birthday cakes, politics, kittens ... No one will be following their tweets in the hope of seeing all that (even if it does appear they have loads of followers).
  • Lizy, don't worry about it too much. Just try stuff and see what other people are doing.
  • It took me AGES to work Twitter out. I still wonder if getting the attention of ordinary people is possible, the people who follow all seem to have their own agenda or are interested in a professional or semi-professional way.
  • I have a different twitter account for everyday stuff- don't use it very often though.
  • We're all 'ordinary people', Liz. It isn't just followers who will see your tweets. Also, not all your followers will read them – retweets included. Don't be so focussed on followers.

    Why are you using Twitter? To get retweets, likes and new followers? Getting tweets read should be everyone's goal. The stats are irrelevant.
  • I disagree. People who retweet have read the tweet - in my world, the poetry one, anyway. My aim is to get the tweets interesting enough TO retweet, as far as I'm concerned retweeting shows an interest shows enjoyment enough to share. And it's measurable. Often a retweet has a comment which shows it's been read.

    I know we're all ordinary in one sense, what I mean is engaging people who heretofore have not been interested in poetry. Or who didn't realise just how important it is to children to get them reading, enjoying language. Piquing interest. Inspiring enthusiasm. Spreading the word. A 'read' is great news, someone knows what you have said. A retweet is making sure someone else reads that news. New FOLLOWERS are people who have been interested enough in what you are saying to follow - so they are massively important, because that way others will get to hear of what you are saying. How on earth can you say that isn't important?

    Of course I tweet to get followers and retweets. Of course they are important. And the stats are just one way to check how you are doing.
  • I don't necessarily disagree with you, Liz. I'm just trying to suggest that there's more than one way to use Twitter. Spending a long period retweeting tweets isn't always a positive use – even when they're associated with a specific cause.
  • I guess I'm seeing the benefits of more followers. Schools follow and are becoming interested in tweeting their pupils' work and discussing how they achieved it and more and more they have found poets to engage with and poetry lesson plans and help via the Summit. The more schools follow the more schools follow as they often follow each other's feeds. Plus we are one place they can get aLL the info pertinent, all the competitions form the myriad of poetry places and some rather obscure poetry accounts. and They get that because I retweet it.
  • Liz, I know your usual tweets are successful, and also the retweets.

    You asked if spending an extended period retweeting was a good idea.
    All hashtags, Baggy, or just that day's? For poetry summit I have to retweet as I just couldn't manage with having to comment on each one, but if someone is following, EVERY tweet or retweet is on the subject of children's poetry, which means nothing is irrelevant - do you think that is ok?
    As I said earlier, if someone is following an event with a hashtag they will already have the original tweet in their timeline. That's why some people filter out all retweets.



  • Liz, I know your usual tweets are successful, and also the retweets.

    You asked if spending an extended period retweeting was a good idea.
    All hashtags, Baggy, or just that day's? For poetry summit I have to retweet as I just couldn't manage with having to comment on each one, but if someone is following, EVERY tweet or retweet is on the subject of children's poetry, which means nothing is irrelevant - do you think that is ok?
    As I said earlier, if someone is following an event with a hashtag they will already have the original tweet in their timeline. That's why some people filter out all retweets.



  • Aha. Thinking about this is working (I don't much, usually). since this conversation, and looking at whose retweets bring in the most interaction including other retweets and comments and likes etc, I found Michael Rosen retweets work best. So am going to tweet something by him at least weekly as he always retweets Summit stuff if it mentions him. Also another follower who has a mass following. He is going to be nurtured, too. I use Tweetdeck which makes it easy to gather a group together whose tweets you can retweet or comment or like on. Mine is published children's poets.
  • Sounds like a lot more research is needed before I learn how it works!
  • Tweeting is like writing – you learn by doing it.
  • I just couldn't get my head round it for ages.
  • If you are just starting out, don't overanalyse it. Enjoy following people and connecting with them. Decide what you want to see in your feed. I follow children's writers, illustrators, publishers and agents so my feed is a good mix of industry news and writerly anecdotes. Approach it as a user rather than a supplier and pick up the rest as you go.
  • I find Twitter a bit strange to be honest and use it randomly . I have a mix of people I follow and who follow me ranging from friends or acquaintances I know in person, virtual writing friends and more famous people. I don’t really know what I’m doing and don’t Tweet regularly. In fact, my current practice is probably a good example of how not to do it lol

    But then again I don’t have a book or anything to sell, so I’m not really making any effort.
  • If you are just starting out, don't overanalyse it. Enjoy following people and connecting with them. Decide what you want to see in your feed. I follow children's writers, illustrators, publishers and agents so my feed is a good mix of industry news and writerly anecdotes. Approach it as a user rather than a supplier and pick up the rest as you go.
    Gosh, maybe I’m not doing so bad, Lou! :D
  • I found this earlier about Facebook author pages if anyone is interested. I don't know if it will be useful. http://www.theauthoronline.com/Power-of-Facebook.html
Sign In or Register to comment.