Social media is an ever-changing beast. We are over the hype of social media and maybe a little burned out. But it’s still important. So how should you  handle social media in 2019? 

I want to put a big caveat into this post. I’m writing it from a place of social media privilege. I have a solid following on several platforms. When I’m not locked out of my account, I have just shy of 10k followers on Twitter. I have something like that also on Pinterest, last I looked. (Note: I haven’t looked in months.)

I don’t remember how many Facebook page likes I have on my two pages. It’s something in the thousands on one and a few hundred on another. My Facebook group is around 2500. Instagram (which I never use) is something over 1000.

To some of you, those numbers will look small. To others, big.

I bring it up because you need to know where I’m coming from. These numbers matter because they could make you discount my attitude about social media, which is: chill out and stop freaking out about your numbers.

Sure, you might think. Easy for you to say with your 10,000 Twitter followers. 

I get it. But to that, I say: Those 10,000 followers do NOTHING for me. Nothing. I sometimes talk to people on there. But it does not sell books. It does not drive traffic. It may make me look more legit and people might find me there. But it does NOT MATTER OVERALL TO ANYTHING WITH MY BUSINESS.

Actually, I’ve been locked out of my account daily on Twitter for much of the last year, due to some glitch on their end that tells them I’m suspicious.

So, as we get into this and I tell you not to worry about social media, I’m not resting on my laurels. I’m telling you this because I’ve got followers and for the most part, it does very little to help my bottom line and overall goals.

Wow. How’s that for a caveat??

Let’s get into how to handle social media in 2019.

LISTEN TO EPISODE 163- HOW TO HANDLE SOCIAL MEDIA IN 2019

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HOW TO HANDLE SOCIAL MEDIA IN 2019

When it comes to handling social media in 2019 (or 2091 if it’s still a thing), first you need to step back and look at your big goals. What is your big goal?

Even beyond your specific goal, take a moment to realize that your overarching, general goal is to grow an audience that will support whatever content you are creating. You want buyers and readers and supporters for your creative work.

The audience will look different based on your specific goals.  If I need someone to buy 99 cent books, it’s different than needing people to buy a $1000 course. You may have some crossover, but generally, those are different audiences. That will impact where you hang out on social and what kind of content you create, but in general, we are all looking for an audience for our bigger work.

That means that social media is NOT the goal. It’s not the finish line. It is a tool. Social media is a conduit. It’s a means to an end. It is not the be-all, end-all, but a way to find your audience, to connect with them, and to allow that audience to support you.

(The exception is if your goal is to be a social media influencer, which means you’ll be getting sponsored posts and money based directly on the number of Instagram or other followers you have. Still, though, you’ll want to have some other way of connecting and reaching your audience. Cough. Email. Cough.) 

HOW TO BUILD A SOCIAL MEDIA FOLLOWING

We get caught up in the numbers, and it CAN be about that–whether it’s Instagram followers or pageviews or podcast downloads. But more than the numbers, it’s about cultivating the right audience to connect with the content you’re creating. Yes, those numbers represent people. But we should think of them as people, not as followers or numbers or likes. That’s where you start.

Here are my recommendations for building your social media profile:

• Pick a platform you enjoy. If you don’t enjoy it, this will all be harder. If you don’t enjoy it at all, try to find one you can learn to enjoy. Or tolerate cheerfully. Don’t be a grinch. It’s not that bad!!
• For tips on how to use the platforms, look for people who are experts in the space. There are a LOT of them in every space. Find a few. Follow them to see whose advice rings true for you. Do what they’re doing.
• Create interesting content related to your overall goals. Be consistent.

Oh, and above all this: Build your email list. When social media has burned and gone away, email will still be there. (You should really listen to the podcast to hear my analogy for this, by the way…) Email is more permanent and can be more powerful. It won’t change the way social platforms do and is a direct line to them, whereas on social platforms, that platform “owns” your followers.

THE FINAL WORD

In 2019 when it comes to social media, I think we’re all over the hype. We’re a little tired of chasing numbers and the hamster wheel of working to do that.

Let’s get back to basics. Find the platform that feels right to you. Find the one that allows you to connect with people. Follow experts on those platforms to see how best to use it and keep up with changes.

Overall: keep your eyes on the prize. And that prize is NOT your Twitter followers.

This is a topic that comes up every week day in Facebook groups: What do you do when you get bad reviews? (Especially on Goodreads…) So, what’s the answer? I’m not going to give you ONE, but a few options when you’re dealing with low reviews on your books. 

LISTEN TO EPISODE 162 – WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU GET BAD REVIEWS?

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FIRST UP: EVERYONE GETS BAD REVIEWS

 

We’ve all been there. And if you haven’t yet, you WILL. Even great classics have one-star reviews. I promise. Just for funsies, here are some screenshots of actual reviews of Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte:

Oookay, then. Feel better? That’s a classic. (If you ever need a boost, just go read the one-star reviews on great classics. It’s therapeutic.) Point made: we all get one-star reviews. The end.

But knowing that doesn’t always take away the sting. You know you’re in good company, but what should you DO about those pesky low reviews?

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WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU GET BAD REVIEWS

 

There are basically two main options when it comes to reviews: Read them or don’t read them. When authors talk about their bad reviews, the advice often comes hard and fast to avoid reviews at all costs. Especially on Goodreads. (The culture there just seems a little more harsh and reviews tend to be lower.) I want to give you some reasons why avoiding your reviews can be healthy, but also why you might want to read your bad reviews.

Why you might want to avoid reading reviews

There may be a time and a place to read bad reviews, but there is also a time and place to avoid all reviews. You might need some emotional space because you’re having a bad day/week/year. You might be easily wounded and find yourself falling too quickly into despair over things like this.

If you feel like your reviews are having too much of a negative impact on your writing or your person, STEP AWAY. Give it a rest. Don’t read the reviews. Pretend they aren’t there.

Even if it’s just for a short period of time, ignore them. Step away. Give yourself permission to have some space.

WHY YOU SHOULD READ YOUR REVIEWS–ESPECIALLY THE BAD ONES

 

I think it can be very helpful to read through your bad reviews. Yes, it can also stink. It can be discouraging. But you might learn something about your writing OR your readers. Maybe both.

Read through your bad reviews with an open mind, doing your best NOT to get emotional about the content. (Yeah, I know that’s not super possible. Just try.) Take a few minutes to let things sink in and then maybe give yourself a day or two (or a few hours or a week–just depends!) and let the critique sink in.

Come back when you’re less emotional about it. Then think about the words and what the reviewer is saying. Ask yourself some questions and try to answer honestly.

• Is there anything constructive in the review?
• Does anything ring true to you?
• Are there any repeated themes/words/critiques in the bad reviews?
• Can you identify an expectation that readers had that you didn’t fulfill?
• Is there any room for you to grow as a writer from the reviews?

You may not find anything helpful in your low reviews. (Just scroll back up to the Jane Eyre ones!) Sometimes people just won’t jive with your style or your characters.

BUT. If all the low reviews say the same thing, you should really take some time to think about the validity of what they’re saying. You might have missed a genre expectation or you might have some editing issues that need attention or you may need to work on giving your characters more depth.

As an example, when I first started writing as Emma St. Clair, I wrote a Christmas short without having read in my genre. (Don’t do that!) I then wrote a second short that was to connect with a full-length novel to release in the spring. I learned from my reviews that I made a few BIG mistakes. I might not have realized as quickly or been able to examine what I could do better if I hadn’t read those reviews.

I’m not saying you should take every review and change your writing or book. But if the reviews have merit, you can change things going forward OR edit your current work to be a better and stronger work.

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WHAT YOU SHOULD NEVER DO WITH YOUR ONE-STAR REVIEWS

 

I rarely say never. I usually say that you should do what works for you. But in this case, there are a few important things that you should never do. I mean it!

Do not engage. I repeat: do not engage. 

As an author, you cannot spend your time going around responding to bad reviews, explaining yourself, or arguing with reviewers. You will not win. You will just look like a jerk and turn off readers. Resist that urge!

Also, do not get your followers to engage with bad reviews. 

We are living in a time where the mob mentality online is strong. Too often I’ve seen authors or influencers online enlist their followers to take an action that quickly gets out of hand. You do not want to ask all your followers to try to get bad reviews taken down or to otherwise attack or engage with people who don’t like your writing.

Again, it makes you look bad. It also is like bullying. I don’t like the mob mentality in general. It’s damaging and can be dangerous. Be careful that you aren’t abusing your influence.

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PARTING THOUGHTS ON BAD REVIEWS

 

I want to circle back and remind you that we will all have bad reviews. You might be able to learn something from them or you might need to ignore them. But you definitely shouldn’t spend time getting emotionally invested in them or getting your readers to join in the ganging-up mob culture that happens sometimes online. If you can learn something, learn it. Then move on and keep writing.

What do YOU do with bad reviews? Read? Ignore? Something else?

When you start creating content, whether that’s writing a book, blog, podcast, or something else, you may not think about your reasons beforehand. But you should. Most importantly, you need to think about whether you are creating content for love or for money. Let’s explore why that matters!

I don’t have one single reason why I do the things I do. My reasons why are many and sometimes my reasons switch in the middle. That’s probably true for you as well.

But it’s hugely important to stop and think about whether you are creating content for love or for money. If not BEFORE you start, definitely DURING the process. It’s also a question that you should return to over time, as your reasons may shift.

Why does this matter so much? Knowing whether you are creating content for love or for money will help you make a ton of decisions along the way and likely keep you from suffering from decision fatigue and overwhelm.

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LISTEN TO EPISODE 161 – CREATING CONTENT FOR LOVE OR FOR MONEY

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CREATING CONTENT FOR LOVE FOR FOR MONEY

Creating Content for Love

When you are creating content for love, that means you have an idea or passion that fuels your creative drive. You want to do something, so you are doing it. Your decisions are based on what you like and don’t like and what you feel like doing.

This is not a bad thing. (Please know that I am placing no judgment on whether it’s best to do something for love or for money!) But, when you are following your dreams and creating your passion, you should realize that you may not find success.

We hear a lot of the stories about people pursuing passions and becoming wealthy doing so or growing a huge Instagram following or email list or blog by accident. I sometimes see people who have done this trying to teach this to people or selling courses on this and I want to tell you to ignore that.

If you find success following your passion, it is likely a happy accident.

You might happen to tap into something that there is a need for and no one filling that need. You might accidentally have started something just as it became trendy. But when your primary reason is creating content for love, you are not TRYING to build a giant audience or make millions. Your passion was your reason. Any success you find is a happy by-product.

Creating Content for Money

Creating content for money gets a bad rap among creatives. It shouldn’t. Being able to pay your bills from book sales or ads on your blog is just as valid as getting a paycheck as a teacher or doctor or mechanic. You work and you get paid. That work just happens to be creative.

Sure, some people do sell out. But only the content creator can know for sure if they have done that. I can FEEL it when considering decisions that I don’t want, but would pay well. We all have to decide where we stand on that and no one can say that for you.

When your primary goal is to make money, passion takes a backseat. You aren’t making decisions any longer based on what you WANT or what you LIKE, but on what your AUDIENCE likes and what other people will PAY for. You will need to do more research and look for trends and what’s working now and find where you can fill a gap in customer need, whether that “customer” is a blog reader or a podcast listener or an avid fiction reader.

Creating content for money means being more intentional. Sometimes it may mean choosing something practical over something you like. It could mean choosing a book cover that might sell better than the book cover you happened to personally LOVE.

If you find success while creating content for money, it is an intentional result of your research and hard work.

You may not find success, which is important to know. I’ve tried a lot of things and not had the success I wanted or needed, even with all my research and intention. Just doing it for the money doesn’t ensure success.

THE SWEET SPOT OF CREATING CONTENT FOR BOTH LOVE AND MONEY

For creatives, the sweet spot is to find something that you can do that you love and also makes money. It won’t happen for all of us and it may not always be sustainable. But if you can identify a passion and a way to monetize that, then you are in a place many would envy.

Even still, there will always need to be one or the other–love or money–driving the boat. When you have to make a decision about something like blog design or a book cover, you may need to pick one or the other. It’s important to think about which of those two things is your driving or primary factor at any given time.

I’ve seen some authors write multiple series at a time–one series for love and one for money. You may not always find both in the same time. If you are creating content just for money, sometimes that can lead to burnout or selling out or just unhappiness. If you are creating content just for love, you may have to get a day job or you may not be able to bring in a sustainable income.

 

While you may find that you’re doing a little of both, it’s incredibly important that you consider which one is the primary–love or money. As you have to make decisions about the various aspects of how you promote and create, your timeline, your marketing, and all of those things, this will be vitally important to know. It can make the difference between finding success or not.

And always be aware of whether advice and teaching you’re listening to comes from someone who accidentally found a profitable niche or someone who researched and intentionally set out to find it. Don’t let someone who stumbled upon success try to teach you how to accidentally make money through your passion. If the goal is to make money and be intentional, then take the time to research and learn from those who have done the same.

Give yourself the freedom to change up what you’re doing. I would create SOMETHING for the love just because. I will always do that in my life. But how much time and money I invest totally depends on whether or not I’m doing it for the money or just for fun.

Consider your big goals as you are making your creative decisions! You’ll find that making decisions comes easier when you know WHY you’re doing what you do.

Want to go deeper?

Join the free Facebook community!

 

The question I get asked most is something along the lines of: How do you write with five kids? Sometimes I ask myself this question too! The specific ways that work for me may not work for you, but I’ll share some tips to help you learn how to find time to write.

Listen to Episode 160- How to Find Time To Write

Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or your favorite podcast app!

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HOW TO FIND TIME TO WRITE

Whether you have small children, a job, or any number of other things going on, finding time to write is HARD. Writing is an art, but it’s also a practice. A skill. It takes brain power, energy, and time. In my experience, it’s also very life-giving.

Evaluate your circumstances

What do you have going on in this particular season of life? Not just in terms of things that take up your time, but emotional things. Maybe you’re caring for a baby and are exhausted or have someone in your family with chronic illness. You might be depressed. Take into account all the things that are present in your life.

Make a plan

Once you’ve considered what’s going on in your life, come up with a plan. Realize that  your first plan may not work, but you have to start with one, try it, and then you can adjust. You’ll probably need to adjust. Don’t feel defeated if the first plan doesn’t work. Ex: my 10pm – midnight office hours. Trying to write with kids.

Learn how you work best

You may not always have a choice in how you work, but try to find out what’s ideal for you. This means everything from the specifics of when to work, where you work, and how. I like working better in the mornings, but I used to only have the option for nighttime. I also really hate having a firm deadline and need to finish way ahead of time if I have something like a preorder or I freak out. This matters a lot, especially when you don’t have a lot of time. If you aren’t working the way you work best, you’ll e slower.

Know your limits, respect them, and test them

It’s very easy to compare yourselves to other people and try to measure yourself against that. It’s not going to help you write more or better or faster. There’s a difference between watching others and learning from them and watching others and trying to shove yourself into their mold. I’m a fast writer. That’s just me. You can’t look at me putting out a book a month and think you can do it because I am. Maybe you can; maybe you can’t. Either way? That’s okay! You can always challenge yourself and work to get better at your craft or increase your speed, but that may not be the best for you. I didn’t know I could write a book a month until I did it. Now it’s easier because I know I can.

Find hacks that work for you

Listening to what has worked for other people might help you find what works for you. In a Facebook group for moms, one mom mentioned joining two gyms. She couldn’t afford a full-time (or part-time) daycare, but was working for home. So she joined two gyms and used one in the morning for two hours and one in the afternoon for two hours. When I heard this, I thought it was genius. Then immediately felt a rush of mom guilt, until I did the math on that and realized that those were just four hours out of the day when I still had like nine others I was with my kids. This was (and is) a huge help to me. I don’t always use both, but I regularly work at the YMCA, which is $75 a month for me and all five kids. Collect tips and then see what ones can work for you.

 

That’s how I work… have any tips or ideas to add?

I’ve shared a lot about my publishing experiences over the last year, and just in case I’ve made it sound like a walk in the park, today I’m sharing book launch disasters. Though I’m sharing things I’ve experienced, I think many of these are common, so hope that they will help you when you face book launch disasters of your own!

This post contains affiliate links! At no extra cost to you, I may make a commission on purchases made after clicking links. 

LISTEN TO EPISODE 159- BOOK LAUNCH DISASTERS

Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or your favorite podcast app!

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Book Launch Disaster: Amazon Glitches

The biggest part of this post deals with Amazon. MOST of these have happened to me. USUALLY the answer is going to be: contact Amazon. And the result of that will be: SOMETIMES they might do something. (But as I say in the podcast episode, “Most of the time, they’re too busy making money to care.”) Here are some things that might go wrong on Amazon–or another publishing channel.

Not publishing the book at the right time –  I did have a delay with one book of over three days when my book got flagged by Amazon (more on that in a sec). A big-time author this week tried to release the sequel to a series and people freaked out when it wasn’t on time. The author was scurrying around Facebook groups sharing that Amazon hadn’t published the book yet, but it should have been out.

• If this happens: contact Amazon. It may or may not help.

Making you prove you wrote the book – I had a delay on my third Emma St. Clair billionaire book, The Billionaire Benefactor. Amazon says it may take up to 72 hours to publish, but usually it’s hours. After a day, I contacted them. After three days, they emailed me asking me to prove that I had the rights to publish the book. I had to send an email from my domain name email address. It took a few days and messed up my launch timeline. I had swaps and ads set up, so had to email people and the companies I’d paid to try and switch dates.

• If this happens: Contact Amazon. Contact any people you have newsletter swaps with, any companies you’ve paid for promos, and let your fans know if you’ve said the book will be out on a certain date.

Publishing the wrong version of your book – Amazon recently switched up preorders and how they are set up. This resulted in a TON of books being published with the draft version, not the final. Typos everywhere! Angry reviews! It was a mess.

• If this happens: Contact amazon. You can ask them to replace the file, but often they’ll want documentation. It’s a really stinky situation for them and for you. Double-check the files before you send because things have changed.

Not changing the price – With my Billionaire Surprise Box Set, Amazon didn’t change the price in the US until three days AFTER I changed it. For whatever reason, it dropped in Canada and outside the US, but my main promos I had scheduled were IN the US. So I lost money on the promos where they cancelled my book since it wasn’t marked down as it was supposed to. One promo site rescheduled (thanks, Book Cave!). The others? I just lost money. Argh.

• If this happens: Contact Amazon. Usually you’ll just have to wait it out. If you need to, contact any people you’re swapping newsletters with or any paid promos.

Disconnecting your series page – Masquerade Ball. When you have a series, Amazon will make a series page for them and show the others in the series at the bottom of the description. I had this set up and when I published the fifth book, they removed it. (Also had trouble getting them to add book #3 to the page when it published.) I don’t know why they did this, but I simply had to call or email and get them to fix it.

• If this happens: Contact Amazon. They gave me a hard time once, but normally, they are fine and restore it quickly.

Taking away your reviews – this is just something that happens. Usually there’s nothing you can do other than get organic reviews from people. Make sure your reviews are legit, but otherwise, email Amazon if they ALL go. If it’s a few, probably nothing you can do.

• If this happens: Unless it’s ALL your reviews, there’s nothing you can do. If ALL your reviews disappear, it’s probably a glitch and will restore itself. Make sure you’re not reviewing your own books, asking family to do this, and that your ARC readers aren’t using phrases like “in exchange for” that make it sound like they got a free book in EXCHANGE for review. Those are no-nos.

Links on reviews-

Removing your book – There was a glitch this weekend where al ton of books were removed from Amazon. It was just a glitch, but that doesn’t help you feel better when you lose ranking because of your book being GONE. A few friends had this happen and it tanked their climb in the ranks.

If this happens: It’s probably a glitch. If Amazon contacts you and it’s related to the content in your book, you can do your best to comply. I’ve seen that, but RARELY.

BOOK LAUNCH DISASTERS: NOT SELLING ENOUGH

Sometimes you launch and it just feels like your book isn’t selling the way it SHOULD. Don’t mistake that for the way you WANT. Chances are, you’ll always WANT it to sell more. But if you check the ranking of your book compared to other similar books in the genre you’re aiming for and things like that, you’ll get a more realistic idea. (I also use the tool KDSPY to check on fun details within categories. You can check that out HERE.)

If your book is not selling like it SHOULD, here are some things that might be going on. (Again, make sure your expectations are realistic. Mine sometimes aren’t.)

Your cover doesn’t fit the genre – With my book, The Billionaire Love Match, I had a handsome, grumpy guy, perfect for billionaires, I thought. I didn’t realize (duh) that EVERY billionaire is in a suit. (Almost.) My cover was okay, but he didn’t look rich and it was dark. I’ve now gone through a few transformations. It mattered! Whether or not you think covers matter, they DO. Make sure yours is genre specific. Don’t get emotionally attached or go with what you love. It matters more if your READERS will love it.

Your blurb doesn’t hook the readers – I have been testing Facebook ads with The Billionaire’s Secret Heir and found that my ads were getting people to the page, but it wasn’t selling like it should. The cover is fine and genre-appropriate and I asked around to get feedback. It all centered around my blurb. I wrote four revisions, bought a book, and wrote another one. I think it’s much better and the ads converted better. You need to hook those readers who get to your page! Study other blurbs in your genre as they vary from genre to genre. Then study copywriting. I did and it helped!

• Related book: Mastering Amazon Descriptions by Brian D. Meeks

Your ads aren’t working – If this is the case, first check your cover and blurb. If that’s not the issue, you may have a targeting issue with your audience or you may not understand how to run ads. This is a BIG reason I recommend email promo sites to start with, not Facebook, Bookbub, or Amazon ads. They have a learning curve.

Sometimes your book just doesn’t sell the way you want OR the way it should. Sometimes it’s because of #1 or #2, but sometimes it’s not something you can pinpoint. Until you grow your own fan base of people hungry for your book, which takes TIME, this can be slow going. Try to identify any problems and then just do your best.

• If this happens: Ask for help in a critique group. Check the other similar books in your genre and authors at your level (as in, don’t compare your first book to an author with fifty). Be ready to respond to that feedback in a non-emotional way. 🙂

 

BOOK LAUNCH DISASTERS: YOUR EXPECTATIONS

I saved this one for last because I think it’s the hardest. It’s not external; it’s your mind. I am HARD on myself. I set big goals and I want to accomplish them.

I shouldn’t be disappointed in what happened this past year. I’ve reached my goals and then some. But I’m never NOT thinking about the next step. I always want to write better, sell better, and make more money. That’s the goal– not to get stagnant, but to get better. that means, though, that I can be super hard on myself.

I also suffer from book envy. I see other authors doing what I’m doing, writing what I’m writing, and it’s SO hard not to think, “Why isn’t that me?” That is so unhelpful. Unless you are studying what they are doing to see how it might benefit you, that comparison is only going to leave you sad.

Sometimes people want to read bland, vanilla, boring books. I’ve seen some selling really well in my genre. Sometimes you don’t know why someone else’s book with a bad cover is outselling yours with a to-genre cover. You can’t compare. It’s not healthy.

 

Any book launch disasters? Share in the comments or in the Facebook community!