If you’re depending on social media to magically sell your books, forget it. Sure Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ could score you some leads or “customers,” but that shouldn’t be your only method to promote your books. You could be the King of Twitter and still not sell a dime. Don’t believe me? In December 2010, “Twitter Superstars” Kim Kardashian, Ryan Seacrest and Lady Gaga declared they wouldn’t tweet anymore unless their followers donated $1 million dollars to an AIDS charity. Guess what? They only raised a marginal amount and somehow the stunt got brushed under the rug. Can you say #TwitterFail?
Why Was This Such An #EpicFailure?
Most of them had over 10 million followers and got little, if no response. Why?
- They all made the mistake of overestimating their importance on Twitter. They’re not funny, informative, or even remotely interesting. So who cares if they stop tweeting?
- They use pay-for-followers sites like Twiends and those people are like bench warmers, sure they dress like part of the team, but they never get in the game.
- Hardly any of them interact with their followers or fans. Most of them just announce concert dates, television appearances, or products they’re hocking.
- They should have donated FIRST then asked others to match it. It would have shown they actually cared about the cause!
Tweeting Alone Won’t Cut It
Recently, there was a conversation on Facebook where a bunch of authors seemed stumped on how to use Twitter to market their books. I nearly fell out of my chair. I naturally referred them to my posting: Schmoozing on Twitter: The Who, What and When. Not just because it’s an awesome post, (I know that was shameless!) but because it answered most of their questions!
The part they couldn’t seem to comprehend was: It’s a platform where you connect with other authors, people in the media, and book fans. It’s all about leveraging that network to your advantage which may indirectly sell books. Think about it, being on Twitter can get you an interview with a popular radio personality, or even get your book reviewed by that A-list blogger and that’s what sells book! Social media is the ultimate soft sell platform for people looking to market a product.
Now go, and try NOT to sell your books;)
Filed under: Networking, Social Media Tagged: Author Platform, Social media, Twitter
