Guest post by Kirsty LaVier

If you’ve kept up with any of the latest marketing trends, you know that Facebook marketing is big – and only getting bigger. After all, how can you ignore a website that has more than 800 million users?

But just because you’ve created your own Facebook page doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s working. Here’s how you can tell if your Facebook page is a success – or a dud:

1. You’re making more money

This is what Facebook marketing boils down to – profits. If your Facebook marketing campaign is truly successful, you’ll see a boost in profits. How you see those extra profits, however, can vary. You might just notice little things – like more traffic to your website, an increase in email subscriptions, or an increase in phone calls to your store. At the end of the day, though, it’s all going to translate into more money!

If you really want a good way to keep track of Facebook-related income, add a shopping cart to your page or offer Facebook-only coupons.

2. You have quality fans

Having 50 highly-targeted Facebook fans is better than having 500 fans that aren’t part of your target audience. While you should always be looking for more fans, just having any ol’ fan isn’t good enough. If you want to make the most money off of your Facebook page, you need quality fans that have a legitimate need or desire for your products and services.

And, if that number of quality fans keeps increasing on a steady basis, that’s the best you can hope for!

3. People are always commenting and “liking” your posts

When people take the time to comment on what you’ve posted, that’s a great sign. Not only did they make it all the way through your status update, picture album, embedded video, or outside link – but they also thought enough of it to share their thoughts! Even if people just take a split second to click the “like” button, it means you’re making an impression on them.

Conversely, if you’re the only one who ever participates on your Facebook page, you’re doing something horribly wrong!

4. You update your page – but not too much

By updating your Facebook page on a regular basis, it shows that your business is anything but stagnant. However, that doesn’t mean that you need to add something new every few minutes. Even if you just update your Facebook page once a day, it shows people that they need to come back frequently and check out your new stuff. And, let’s face it – even the busiest businessperson can find time to do a daily update!

Kirsty LaVier is editor for AShop Reviews, and loves social media just a little bit too much for her own good.

More on Facebook:

• The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Facebook, 2nd Edition
• Facebook Marketing: An Hour a Day
• Likeable Social Media: How to Delight Your Customers, Create an Irresistible Brand, and Be Generally Amazing on Facebook (And Other Social Networks)

Image: creativedoxfoto / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

The list function in Twitter has really been a lifesaver for me. Many people complain that there is so much info on Twitter it’s almost too confusing to use. I think it’s a good resource, and the way to manage it all is with organization. Lists are one way you can do that.

Following Someone Else’s List

If you click on Working_Writer’s Twitter page, you’ll see that I follow three different people’s lists.

These are from:

• @Girlfriendology/friendship-circle
• @kdawnbyrd/acfw-friends
• @Bookgal/fabbookpeople

They’re all related to writing, but in completely different ways. The Girlfriendology list has blogs in our Friendship Circle, which is a group of bloggers who regularly write about the topic of friendship. I’m with this group because I write for friendship at About.com.

The second list is from another writer in ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers). This isn’t a complete list, but rather an informal listing of writers that @kdawnbyrd/acfw-friends has noticed are on Twitter and are also a part of ACFW. Since I’d like to follow a list like this myself, I followed her already made list (saves you from having to create your own.)

The final list is from Penny Sansevieri, otherwise called @Bookgal. She is a wonderful resource for writers, so anyone she thinks is “fab” is someone I probably want to follow.

To follow someone’s list, you click on their profile name, and then way over to the right you’ll see the word “listed.”

See how mine says 175? That means I’m on 175 (at the time of this writing anyway) lists. If you click on the “listed” link, it will pull up all the people following you (or whoever you are trying to get list info for.) Once you do that, click on the “Lists” link that is directly beneath the profile info:

You’ll see lists by them and lists that they follow. You can follow any of these lists.

Creating a List

Creating a list is easy too. Hit “Home” and then “Lists” and you’ll see an option to “create a list.” You can name it and then search for and add people to it. Or, you can create a list and then just add people here and there as you remember and come across them.

For instance, if I were to add my other Twitter account to a list, I’d click on the profile, and then the little person icon, which brings up the option to “Add to list.”

I then have the option to add the person to an existing list, or create a new one from there.

How I Use Lists

I love Twitter lists for two main reasons. It helps me to be a good Twitter friend, and RT some of the links I really like from people, and it also helps me to find relevant info. I can locate tweets more easily from different groups or people. If I want to focus on tweets from ACFW writers, for example, I can easily do that with a list. This is especially good if you have people who constantly RT you. When you want to return the favor, you can locate them easier (like those in my friendship circle for example) with the help of a list.

In the past, I’ve created different lists relating to books I’ve released or writers I wanted to get to know. Lists are easy to create and also disband. When you’re done with one, simply delete it. Your contacts stay but you don’t have the list anymore if you don’t want it. Lists help you zero in certain topics, which, when you’re trying to promote a book or blog for example, is extremely helpful.

Do you use Twitter lists? What are some of the ways you’ve found them helpful?

Have you used Help a Reporter Out (HARO)? It’s such a great resource. I’ve used it to get interviews for an article I wrote on midlife dating  and I’ve also responded to calls for experts. The service works great, but if you’re just trying to promote your book at any cost or get an interview no matter what, you probably won’t find it as useful. Here are some tips that will help you get the most out of HARO.

Be Specific in What You Ask For

Are you looking for tips you can use instantly? An interview to get more info? Be specific, otherwise you will receive back emails from people pitching things to you. I found that out quick enough the first time I put out a request and received back quite a number of pitches, rather than the info I was looking for. I realized I hadn’t been very clear.

Where Will Your Article Be Placed?

You can post anonymously on the site, or you can share where you’ll be posting the blog or article. In my opinion, it’s better to share where the article will appear. You should also let someone know if you’ll be using their tips anonymously or sharing their name and website. In my midlife dating article, for example, I let everyone know that I was going to make everything anonymous. That way it made people open up more about their past dating mistakes.

Let People Know Once the Article Is Up

I’ve provided quite a few tips for people to use with HARO, but only a few have responded back to me once the article was up. That’s why when I was on the flip side of things, I made sure I held onto all the emails from sources that I had used, and let them know when the article was live. Each one of them thanked me for it, and I think it’s because when you take the time to answer someone’s question, you want to make sure it was time well spent.

Don’t Get Too Sales-y When Responding

If you’re the one answering calls for tips or interviews, be careful about how you respond. If someone asks for the answer to a specific question, feel free to answer it and then provide a short bio and link. It’s up to them to use it, but if you make it easy for them they probably will.

However, if you respond back with sales-y copy meant to sell your book only, you won’t have as much success. When I sent out the call for my midlife dating article, I got back several responses that were nothing more than a pitch for me to buy a book. I hit delete instantly on these, because they weren’t helpful and they were annoying.

The right way to respond is to answer the question or tip fully, and then add if someone would like more information to contact you. Then provide a short (under 100 word) bio for them to understand your level of expertise a little bit better. I had one person do that and then went on to interview them for a different article I was working on.

Now more than ever, freelance writers have greater access to companies looking for their services. A freelance writer interested in expanding his or her client list can log on to a social networking site and chat with members and “fans” of an organization. Facebook and Twitter are especially helpful in this area. Here are a few tips on how to find new clients using these two websites.

Find Freelance Writing Clients Using Twitter
The great part about Twitter is it allows writers instant access to various employees of an organization. Writers can do a Twitter search for the company’s name to see if it is on Twitter, and immediately follow and interact with a member of the organization.

Freelancers should spend some time interacting with the company before approaching them for a job. Find out what types of things they tweet about. Do they write their own promotional articles? Tweet about news events related to their area of business? If writers can discover their “tweet personality” it will help them determine how to pitch a job that will be met with a favorable response.

If a company is not on Twitter, it could be one area writers can pitch their expertise. After all, being a freelancer today is more than just writing articles. Many writers have become experts in promoting their online writing or getting new visitors to their blog. This knowledge could be a potential help with an organization lacking in this area.

Find Freelance Writing Clients Using Facebook
Facebook has a very different feel and purpose. Whereas Twitter is about quick interaction, links, and conversation, Facebook allows for a more casual relationship with an organization. Writers can view photos or videos a company may post, links they share, and fans or employees who write on their walls. All this information can help freelancers get to know a company on a much deeper level than if they had simply visited their website.

The more knowledge a writer has, the better able he or she will be in pitching their services. While on Facebook, determine how the company interacts with its followers. Is there an area that seems to be missing? For example, does the company fail to respond to user comments? Lack photos or videos that could connect them with their ideal customer? Are they up on news events that their customers may be interested in?

Facebook also has the ability for a company to post pages or blog items. If an organization is lacking in this area, it could be one area they might need a freelance writer’s assistance. Determine what types of items are being posted. Are postings done on at regular intervals? If not it could mean that the company is in need of a dedicated freelancer to help them. Read through everything on their Facebook site before making a pitch.

Facebook and Twitter allow for increased interaction with a company long before working with them. Finding out how companies use social networking tools can work to a freelance writer’s advantage. When writers have enough information where they feel comfortable making a pitch, they should always be respectful in their approach and method. Doing so can make them invaluable to a company who might not have even realized it needed their help.

More About Social Media:

• Social Media Marketing For Dummies
• Facebook Marketing: An Hour a Day
• Likeable Social Media: How to Delight Your Customers, Create an Irresistible Brand, and Be Generally Amazing on Facebook (And Other Social Networks)

Image: Morguefile

Most of the complaints I hear from authors about Twitter is that it’s time consuming or difficult to use. Neither is true, but when you’re already pressed for time, adding one more method of promotion can be the straw that broke the camel’s back. But not this time! Here are five quick and easy things to make Twitter an effective marketing tool in 10-20 minutes per day.

1. Automatic Tweeting

Automatic tweeting can help save you time. You should still interact on the site, but in order for your tweets to be seen by the most people possible, you need to send them more than once. There are several great sites that will let you do this. Here are a few:

• Su.pr
• Twuffer
• Networked Blogs

What I do is spend several minutes one or two times a week scheduling various tweets with links that I feel need the most attention. These links could be related to book reviews, guest posts, information on your book, characters, news items… and on and on. Once you set them up, you don’t need to think about them again.

2. Be Present on Twitter

By “being present” what I mean is get active. Again, this doesn’t take much time. But if the only effort you’re putting into Twitter is that you tweet something out once or twice a day and that’s it, step it up. A good rule of thumb? Interact with five people and tweet out five things. Do that to start, and see how you do. How you do find people to interact with? Read on.

3. Use Twitter Search

That search box at the top of Twitter is your friend. Use it to find people:

• who are chatting about your book.
• who are talking about a news item that might relate to our book.
• who are also promoting books similar to yours (promoting others is a good thing and helps you in the process).
• who are chatting about a key phrase that might relate to your book.

Finding people to interact with is a key component of Twitter. You can’t just tweet out links and be done. Not just that, but finding people on Twitter is easy. Enter a search term in the box (such as your name, book name, keywords that relate to your book, news items), and see what people are saying. Get involved in the conversation.

4. Promote Other Writers

I mentioned this briefly above, but promoting others is a great thing to do. Not only is it polite and gives you a “plays nice in the sandbox” kind of vibe, but you’ll also help your readers find new writers. Isn’t it nice when an author you enjoy points out other books you might like? That helps you with your own readers, and it also helps you find new readers. After all, if you promote an author who is similar to you, they might do the same for you. Connecting readers to authors does not send them away from your works. Just the opposite.

5. Inspire People

Who doesn’t love an inspirational quote or saying? You can be the person that gives someone a lift. The great thing is, when you inspire someone else they will probably follow you, so spread out your tweets with promotional items and things that provide inspiration.

Another way to do this is to find other writers and give them an “atta boy.” Writing is such a solitary thing, so it’s nice to be heard when you talk about your WIP. Search for the #amwriting hashtag to find out what writers are working on, and respond to them with a note of encouragement.

These quick five things will keep you in front of the eyes of Twitters everywhere, and get you more attention and success when using Twitter. Use these tips to slowly build a Twitter platform where you naturally talk about your book, as well as other things that might interest in the Twitterverse.

Find Out More!

• 21 Ways to Promote Your Book on Twitter

The virtual tour for 21 Ways to Promote Your Book on Twitter continues! This has been a “mini” tour, meaning that it’s about half a month long. Today’s post comes from a recent review I received of the book.

Here’s a part of the review:

In discussing incorporating Twitter into one’s marketing campaign, she alleviates fear that Twitter will be too time consuming by explaining how Twitter can be useful in only twenty minutes a day. Throughout 21 Ways to Promote Your Book on Twitter, Burbach gives concrete and short examples of authors, includinng herself, using Twitter to promote their books and other work. Burbach’s tips for using Twitter to promote one’s book are easy to understand and easy to follow.

Read the rest of the review!

Any Christian authors out there? I’m a member of ACFW and have met a wonderful bunch of writers that way. As some of you know, I have a couple Christian fiction books in the works and am investigating ways to get published. Which way is correct? To get an agent? To publish and promote on my own? I’m trying to figure it all out.

In the meantime, I’ve written this book on using Twitter to promote your book, and wrote a special guest post over at Rose McCauley‘s blog that talks about how Christian authors especially can use Twitter. There are numerous ways they can connect with other Christian writers, promote their work, and spread their enthusiasm for God. If you’re interested, check it out.

It’s one thing to use Twitter, and another to use it correctly. One of the reasons writers get frustrated with Twitter is that they think it’s too involved, or too much work. They log on once in a while, they only share links, and then they say it doesn’t work. Well, it does work but you do have to use it correctly. It’s a different medium than other types of social networking, and if you can get a handle on them (which I promise you is not difficult or time consuming) you’ll really reap the benefits.

I’m passionate about this, can you tell? LOL! Some tips on using Twitter correctly is what I’m talking about over at Letters Across the Page today. Come join me!

I’m continuing my virtual tour with a stop at the Pentalk community where I’m talking about how Twitter can work for writers. After all, if you’re going to spend your time on Twitter, you want it to “work” for you, meaning that you’ll get:

• Backlinks to your site.
• More hits to your blog.
• More exposure.
• Meet new fans of your writing.
• Sell more books.

One thing I like about Twitter is that no matter your writing goal, you can use Twitter to make it work. It’s one thing that really works in conjunction with all your other efforts. If you’re interested, please visit me over at Pentalk.

http://pentalkcommunity.blogspot.com/2011/09/how-twitter-can-work-for-writers-by.html

I’ve got a new book out specifically targeted to authors who want to market their book and brand on Twitter. Here’s a description of 21 Ways to Promote Your Book on Twitter:

Twitter is a fabulous marketing resource for authors today, but there are some negative perceptions about the medium in regards to how much time it takes and how affective it is. 21 Ways to Promote Your Book on Twitter provides ideas for book promotion, “best practices” that help reduce the time spent online, and resources that will help you create a Twitter approach that supports your brand.

Chapters include:

• Negative Perceptions You Shouldn’t Buy Into
• Twitter Best Practices
• How Much Time Do You Have to Spend on Twitter
• Ideas for Book Promotion
• Twitter Takeaways
• Twitter Resources

Just $2.99!

Click the Buy Now button below to purchase direct from the publisher (Adobe PDF). Also available on Amazon Kindle, or Barnes and Noble Nook.