Tag: paint by numbers

Social Media Paint-by-Numbers: Conclusions

Posted on by Joel D Canfield

Part of a series

In our review of Hubspot’s report on social media platforms we’ve discussed how each is most effectively used:

  • Twitter: seeking what’s new, connecting with you (warm & fuzzy)
  • Facebook: communicating with those they know, blocking those who annoy (warm & fuzzy)
  • Instagram: bonding, seeking increased intimacy (warm & fuzzy)
  • YouTube: seeking what’s new, taking action (NOT the place for warm & fuzzy)
  • LinkedIn: communication, open discussion (businesslike)

Here’s the shortest social media plan in the world: use Twitter and YouTube to let novelty-seekers get to know you, then Instagram and Facebook to increase the connection, and finally, LinkedIn to forge a business relationship.

That’s what Ausoma helps you do: to be social and get noticed.

If you’ve been struggling with your social media presence, or you’d like confirmation that you’re on the right track, our free 15-minute social media consultation is the place to start.

Paint by Numbers: LinkedIn

Posted on by Joel D Canfield

Part of a series

Our final social media paint-by-numbers article is my own. Hubspot’s report does not include LinkedIn, but we encourage all nonfiction authors to have a presence and get involved.

The business slant of LinkedIn means users focus on Communicating and Bridging. There is very little ‘warm and fuzzy’ going on here.

Communicating

Posts and articles not only teach readers, they invite them to connect, and to share what they find valuable with others.

Bridging

The business focus facilitates networking and creates an atmosphere conducive to open discussion, with you, and with other commenters.

What to Do

  • Teach. Write posts and articles that highlight your expertise.
  • Promote others. Share content you find interesting and helpful.
  • Comment. Engage with the community as an active member.

What NOT to Do

  • Don’t pitch. LinkedIn groups frown on hit and run tactics, on a hard sell, on self-promotion. People here are actively looking for good information and connections. Share good information, be a good connection, and they will seek you out.
  • Don’t get silly. Treat LinkedIn like you’d treat a business networking event. Have fun, but no cat videos or pointless jokes.

Next week, the wrap-up.

Paint-by-Numbers: YouTube

Posted on by Joel D Canfield

Part of a series

This week, a social media platform few authors use: YouTube.

The Hubspot report we’ve been discussing in this series found that people use YouTube for what they call Discovering and Taking Action. You’re not using YouTube. I know this because you are an author. If I’m wrong, please please share links to your videos in the comments. Here at Ausoma we love author videos.

Discovering

Video is a perfect format for sharing information and knowledge, whether it’s the latest happening or an instructive how-to. They’re here for fun, but (surprisingly) they’re hoping it’s educational fun.

Taking Action

Viewers want to feel like insiders, part of a tribe. They want to make a personal connection, see a friendly and intelligent face they can call a friend, even if it’s only online.

What to Do

  • Use video. It is the most undervalued and underused platform in the writing and publishing industry.
  • Teach. Share something practical, a single tip or full instructions for something you’re good at.
  • Be yourself. Relax. The camera is your friend. Talk to it the way you would talk to the person across the table at the coffee shop.

What NOT to Do

  • Don’t post cat videos. Honest. Emotional content, silliness or fun simply for the sake of fun, appears to add no value to branding, creates no follower loyalty, leads to no word-of-mouth sharing.
  • Don’t ask users to share your content. The study showed that brand advocacy, word-of-mouth, was virtually nonexistent on YouTube.

Examples

An Ausoma video, and one for one of my mysteries. A video supporting your nonfiction book can be just as informative or creative, if that’s appropriate for your audience.

Next week, the platform Hubspot’s report didn’t include.

Paint-by-Numbers: Instagram

Posted on by Joel D Canfield

Part of a series

Hubspot’s research on social media usage patterns reveals that people generally use Instagram for bonding.

What does that mean in an author’s marketing environment?

Bonding

Instagram users post images and videos that reflect how they see themselves, and who they want to be. It’s emotional content, warm and fuzzy, often humorous, designed to make them closer to their friends, family, and other followers.

They follow others not only to bond but to discover new trends.

What to Do

  • Create visual content that reflects your personality as an author
  • Ensure that your posts are emotion-based
  • Use appropriate humor
  • Respond to your followers’ posts with likes and the occasional comment

What NOT to Do

  • Don’t get deeply informational
  • Don’t be unnecessarily negative; keep it warm and fuzzy
  • Don’t pitch, push, or sell; this is not the place

Paint-by-Numbers: Facebook

Posted on by Joel D Canfield

Part of a series

According to the research on social media usage patterns reported in HubSpot’s article, people generally use Facebook for communicating and blocking. While those actions are both obvious, what may not be obvious is that both have value to you, the entrepreneur author.

Communicating

Good Facebook posts encourage followers to communicate with you as a brand. Just as important, a good post encourages followers to communicate about you with their existing circle.

Blocking

More than those of any other social media platform, Facebook users are more likely to block unwanted content. Reasons for blocking range from the extreme (content the user finds offensive) to benign (content the user has no interest in.)

What to Do

  • Use Facebook for two-way communication. Write posts which clearly indicate your desire to engage, and then, when followers respond, keep up your end of the conversation.
  • Give your followers the words for word-of-mouth. Write posts which are good communication with your followers but which are also shareable—and ask your followers to share them.
  • Be yourself unashamedly. Write posts that will make your followers feel like insiders, part of your tribe, even at the risk of alienating others.

What NOT to Do

Facebook is, surprisingly to me at least, a warm and fuzzy place for most users. They’re chatting with family, catching up with old friends, sharing a laugh.

Do not use this friendly communication channel to hawk your wares. Do not pester, badger, harass, harry, or otherwise sell them to death. The type of selling you’ll do on Facebook is what you’d do at the coffee shop with a friend: you might mention your book or services if it comes up naturally in the conversation, in fact, you should, but otherwise, it’s not a pitch-fest, it’s a conversation.

An adjunct: in that coffee shop conversation, you wouldn’t send your friend somewhere else to, say, get a scone to go with their tea, or suggest that the napkins down the street are softer and more absorbent. It turns out that linking away from Facebook isn’t very effective. Keep people on your channel; they’ll go find you elsewhere if and when they’re in the mood.

Do not water down your personality. If anything, dial it up a little. Your insiders will love you more. The propensity to block unwanted content on Facebook is a plus for you: it means you’re not wasting effort and possibly an advertising budget chasing fence-sitters and the uninterested.

Allowing potential followers to self-select is exactly the right thing to do, whether they get down off the fence on the inside or the outside. After all, you can’t have insiders if there are no outsiders.