What Social Media Is, And What It Is Not
One of the biggest complaints people make about newbie authors on social media is the spam. Many authors start on Twitter or Facebook and think, ‘Wow, cool! Now I can tell everybody about all my stuff!’ like little kids in a candy store. But, if you’ve used any platform for awhile now, you’ll see that is decidedly not the case.
I’ve certainly written about it before but people either don’t think what I write applies to them, they don’t care, or most likely (I would hope), they just haven’t learned how to create a fully interactive, targeted stream. It reminds me a bit of someone eating a steak dinner without a knife and fork. It just isn’t done, is it?
Let’s discuss.
WHAT IS SOCIAL MEDIA?
Social media definition: forms of electronic communication (as Web sites for social networking and microblogging) through which users create online communities to share information, ideas, personal messages, and other content (as videos) (Merriam Webster).
First known use: 2004 (though some say 1994 with the creation of the now-defunct Geo-Cities).
So the technology we use daily didn’t exist ten years ago. That’s a little mind-boggling, isn’t it? It’s no wonder people are confused.
Let’s break it down further.
SHARE INFORMATION
When we define the sharing of information on social media, it can be anything: breaking news, quotes, sayings and quips, blog posts, books, music, etc. What’s wonderful about sharing information — and reading what others provide — is that we are reading more than ever and learning incredible amounts daily.
The downside: as always, there are people who use it strictly as a one-way broadcast model, i.e., authors who do nothing but spam links. Contrary to popular belief, it’s not only indie authors who do this. I’ve worked with and consulted on plenty of traditionally published accounts and my observation is this: it doesn’t matter how you’re published. It matters what you share.
Take a look at your last twenty tweets — how many contain links? You may want to rethink that.
IDEAS
I enjoy Twitter, Facebook, G+, etc because of the plethora of amazing ideas out there. I can pick your brain, you can pick mine. It’s a wonderful equalizer. And you curate your account to be what you want it to be. You choose whom to follow, interact with, whom to retweet. The exchange of ideas is but one of the many benefits of social media. Ask yourself this: how are you contributing to the exchange of ideas? Are you contributing — or are you adding to the constant self-promotional link spam?
PERSONAL MESSAGES
Twitter is no longer what you had for lunch or your teen making plans for the mall with the boy you can’t stand. Many authors are using social media in a positive way, interacting with other authors, forming promotional groups, guest blogging, and most importantly, creating a fan base through relationship building. And that’s great! The best way to grow your following organically is to be your authentic self.
Somehow, spamming duplicate links all day isn’t being your authentic self now, is it? Are your tweets reflecting your personality? Are you sharing information or resources or quotes that reflect your interests and passions? Well, start.
VISUAL CONTENT
It’s a well-known fact that we retain more of what we see visually than what we read. That’s why social sites like Instagram, Pinterest, and YouTube are flourishing. Twitter, Facebook, and Google+ are no different — adding a visual will get you more clicks and retweets.
Just don’t overdo it. Remember, adding a visual is still creating a link. Balance is key.
Bottom line: social media is about relationship building and listening, and the way to do that is to relationship build and listen. It’s not rocket science, eh?
