by Stephanie Bauchum
Social media marketing doesn’t always play to most writers’ strengths, but having a plan and a goal can help you effectively market your book on Twitter.
Looking to market your book on Twitter but not sure how to begin? Here are nine things to consider.
1. Be a thought leader
You don’t always have to come up with original content to establish yourself as a thought leader. Tweet links to current news in your industry to keep your followers up-to-date and show you know what’s going on outside your own four walls.
You should also Tweet content that makes you look smart and well-connected. If you have members of your team who are considered industry experts, give them some Twitter love when they speak at conferences, publish an article or blog post, or get recognized for an award.
Beyond Twitter, writing a guest post on a highly trafficked blog is a great way to garner some free company publicity and position yourself as a thought leader.
2. Engage your audience
Twitter is a two-way conversation: it is not meant to be your personal megaphone. If someone on Twitter mentions you or your book in a tweet – positive or negative – try to respond in real time. It’s a chance for you to show you’re involved and that you care.
3. Show some personality
Nobody wants to read a bunch of dry robotic tweets. Create a personality for you and your “brand” and give it a voice. If you have multiple people manning your Twitter feed, make sure they all know what you’re striving for and that they remain consistent with that voice. The trick is to bring the personality without allowing things to get personal.
4. Drive traffic to your content
If you’re not using Twitter to drive traffic to your content, you’re really missing the boat. You can promote the same piece of content multiple times by changing the text in the tweet and scheduling posts in different time zones. Try using the #ICYMI (In Case You Missed It) hashtag on recycled posts so people know they’re not new.
5. Scout other authors
See how other authors are using Twitter and scout what people are saying about them by searching their name, titles, and any hashtags they use regularly.
6. Keep it to 120 characters or less
There’s nothing more frustrating than trying to retweet a tweet that uses the full 140 characters allowed by Twitter. Bear in mind that Twitter adds your Twitter handle, an “RT,” a space, and a colon when someone retweets. If you keep your tweets to 120 characters or less, you’ll maximize your chance of a retweet.
7. It’s not all about you
Your content and books are awesome, but please don’t tweet about yourself ad nauseam. Your Twitter feed needs to tell a story when someone reads through a week’s worth of tweets. Make sure that story isn’t all about you.
8. Schedule for all time zones
Just because you’re awake at 7 am on a Friday, doesn’t mean the rest of the world is. Be conscious of who will see your tweets, and at what time. Use a good organizing tool to help you schedule tweets in all relevant time zones – and for goodness’ sakes, don’t schedule five tweets at the exact same time!
9. Pin a tweet
If you have a specific tweet that’s generating a lot of engagement, or you want to be sure anyone who visits your Twitter page sees a specific tweet, you can pin that tweet to the top of your feed. Find the tweet you’d like to be featured, click on the three dots (ellipses in the bottom right corner of the tweet), and choose “Pin to your profile page.” Refresh your page and voila! That tweet is now pinned to the top of your feed.
Looking to market your book on Twitter but not sure how to begin? Here are nine things to consider.
1. Be a thought leader
You don’t always have to come up with original content to establish yourself as a thought leader. Tweet links to current news in your industry to keep your followers up-to-date and show you know what’s going on outside your own four walls.
You should also Tweet content that makes you look smart and well-connected. If you have members of your team who are considered industry experts, give them some Twitter love when they speak at conferences, publish an article or blog post, or get recognized for an award.
Beyond Twitter, writing a guest post on a highly trafficked blog is a great way to garner some free company publicity and position yourself as a thought leader.
2. Engage your audience
Twitter is a two-way conversation: it is not meant to be your personal megaphone. If someone on Twitter mentions you or your book in a tweet – positive or negative – try to respond in real time. It’s a chance for you to show you’re involved and that you care.
3. Show some personality
Nobody wants to read a bunch of dry robotic tweets. Create a personality for you and your “brand” and give it a voice. If you have multiple people manning your Twitter feed, make sure they all know what you’re striving for and that they remain consistent with that voice. The trick is to bring the personality without allowing things to get personal.
4. Drive traffic to your content
If you’re not using Twitter to drive traffic to your content, you’re really missing the boat. You can promote the same piece of content multiple times by changing the text in the tweet and scheduling posts in different time zones. Try using the #ICYMI (In Case You Missed It) hashtag on recycled posts so people know they’re not new.
5. Scout other authors
See how other authors are using Twitter and scout what people are saying about them by searching their name, titles, and any hashtags they use regularly.
6. Keep it to 120 characters or less
There’s nothing more frustrating than trying to retweet a tweet that uses the full 140 characters allowed by Twitter. Bear in mind that Twitter adds your Twitter handle, an “RT,” a space, and a colon when someone retweets. If you keep your tweets to 120 characters or less, you’ll maximize your chance of a retweet.
7. It’s not all about you
Your content and books are awesome, but please don’t tweet about yourself ad nauseam. Your Twitter feed needs to tell a story when someone reads through a week’s worth of tweets. Make sure that story isn’t all about you.
8. Schedule for all time zones
Just because you’re awake at 7 am on a Friday, doesn’t mean the rest of the world is. Be conscious of who will see your tweets, and at what time. Use a good organizing tool to help you schedule tweets in all relevant time zones – and for goodness’ sakes, don’t schedule five tweets at the exact same time!
9. Pin a tweet
If you have a specific tweet that’s generating a lot of engagement, or you want to be sure anyone who visits your Twitter page sees a specific tweet, you can pin that tweet to the top of your feed. Find the tweet you’d like to be featured, click on the three dots (ellipses in the bottom right corner of the tweet), and choose “Pin to your profile page.” Refresh your page and voila! That tweet is now pinned to the top of your feed.
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