Facebook: Turning Friends into Fans

Facebook is all about making friends, interacting with them, sharing everything from recipes to the latest escapade at Walmart. Or as Facebook likes to ask, “What’s on your mind?” It’s a lot of fun, and you can keep up with family and friends, local and not so local.

As authors, we end up with lots of friend requests from people we don't know personally, so we need to step outside the box to separate fans from our real family and friends, but to stay in touch with them as well.

I mentioned a few of my techniques to some of the Seekers, and they wanted to know more about how I turn friends into fans.

Accepting Friend Requests

These Friend Requests are fictional. Do you recognize any of them?

Let's start at the beginning. You have a bunch of friend requests waiting for you to Confirm or Decline. My policy is never to accept friend requests immediately. I wait several days in case someone's account has been hacked. I search for their name in the Facebook search box to try to determine if it looks like the profile has been hacked. If I don't see anything suspicious, I take a quick look at their profile, looking at what they talk about, and look to see if we have mutual friends. If all looks well, I Confirm/Accept the friend request.

As I worked on this post, I accepted a friend request that's been pending for several weeks, simply because I've been busy writing and haven't had time to check them all off. This person--we'll call her Sue--and I have mutual friends. Sue lives in my home state, but over a hundred miles from me. Also, one of our mutual friends is one of my biggest fans, so I can only assume she found me through our mutual friend.

Add to Another List

Now that I know Sue lives in my home state, I'm going to add her to a couple of special lists that I've created. You'll find the "Add to another List" option under the Friends tab. What kind of lists do you want or need? I have several, but if you're an author (or an aspiring author) start with Fans, Local, State (mine is Mississippi), your High School, or College, etc. Other ideas might be Best Friends, Editors/Agents, Media, Bloggers.

Check all that apply. If you don’t know the person at all, assume they are a FAN. Fan is your friend. If you don’t know them, but all their friends are local to you, and you see on their profile that they are within 20-30 miles of you, check Fan & Local.

Now that Sue and I are friends, I Stop. :) Well, not literally. I can be friendly with her, chat it up. Post on her wall, maybe invite her to visit my webpage or like my Facebook page. After all, she did send me a friend request, so I can only assume our connection is books. My books, hopefully.

Second Reminder to Like Facebook Page

Every few months I invite my new friends to like my Facebook page. But not ALL my friends, just the ones I've marked as Fans. If another author sends me a friend request, I don't message them asking them to like my page. Although, I have goofed up and sent those messages out, either not recognizing someone as an author, or by accident, but I try not to bombard my writer friends.

Note: To toggle between your profile and any pages you own, use the inverted triangle in the far right hand corner at the top of your Facebook profile.

We're several steps into our Turning Friends into Fans post, and I doubt I’ve told you anything you didn’t already know, so let’s step it up a little bit. :) 

Remember the new categories under "Add to Another List" you created? Specifically, the "Fans" list where you didn't include other authors, editors, and agents and known industry professionals? While on your author page, not your profile, click on the "Invite your friends to like this Page", then chose "Fans" and send everyone an invitation to like your page. You can review the list and select/deselect manually, or you can just send to all.

Don’t assume all your friends know you're an author. You can include a simple message like, “We're friends on Facebook, but did you know that I'm an author? I'd love it if you'd like my FB page so you can stay informed about my latest books.”

What else can you do with your specialized Lists... Well, you can invite Locals to Book Signings as I did for this event recently. Sebastopolooza Booksigning & Giveaway 2017. I invited about 500 people to the festival because I knew they were local. And I had a LIST and I knew how to use it. Sure, some couldn't attend, but some could. And they knew I'd be there with my books because they got an invitation. 

And, for fun, I created a Seekerville Event last night and invited some of you. Give us a shout out if you got an invitation to join us today via the Facebook: Turning Friends into Fans Event. 

So, there ya go. Two ways you can create lists in Facebook and use them as needed. Maybe there are other great ways you can think of to use these lists. Other than Local, State, Fans, what other categories can you think of that would make turning friends into fans a worthwhile endeavor?

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The Promise of Breeze Hill. Enter now on Goodreads!

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So You’ve Written a Novel . . . How to Build an Authentic Online Community for Self-Promotion

Tyndale House Publishers are Crazy4fiction!

Guest Shaina Turner, Tyndale House Publishers

Writing a novel is hard work. Once you find that gem of an idea, there is the tricky business of actually writing. You spend months and months of your life deep in conversation with your characters, and finally you turn the last page and you’re done . . . except that’s not actually the case.

If you are a novelist in this modern world, you know that the self-promotion and marketing of your book have become nearly as important (and time-intensive) as writing the novel itself. Phew. It is certainly not easy, but I have a few tips to help you think strategically when planning book promotion online.

Whether you are a seasoned pro or a debut novelist, the key to successful self-promotion is strategic moderation.

What does this mean?

Everyone loves good news, right? Even your periphery fans will be pleased to hear about your four-star trade review, BUT what about that other endorsement you received? And the nomination for the industry award? The old adage is true in this case: it’s possible to have too much of a good thing.

I always encourage our authors to create a marketing calendar for themselves. When you think of your launch as a three-month-long adventure (prerelease, release month, and post-release), you’ll feel less inclined to spam your social media audience with all the good news at once.

In addition to setting up a schedule, content is key for continued success. In many ways, we are all consumers. So ask yourself, what content do you like and share online? That adorable puppy video (something that made you smile and connect to the sharer on a personal level)? Those helpful tips for how to get your hero out of a sticky situation (something that added value)? We all, instinctively, share content that . . .

• connects with us on a personal level: This could be something humorous, an inspiring quote, or, as my example demonstrated above, a personal interest that you share with the one who posted. 

• adds value to our lives: If you browse Pinterest, for example, you will find pages and pages of beautiful lifestyle shots, but the most popular pins walk through instructions, unpack a complicated process step-by-step, etc. Think about what you are an “expert” on. This could pertain to writing, but it could also be your grandma’s famous baked beans recipe. Authors build communities—online and in person—by sharing a little bit of themselves in the process of their book launch. 

One of the easiest traps to fall into is what I have labeled “the author overshare.” Your fans are excited for you and will be happy to see your reviews, but never forget that they join you on this journey because they love your stories and want to connect with you. Keep your content varied. If you’d like to think of it systematically, divide your monthly content up into a few categories. A few of my favorites are . . .

• Author-centric content: While not always book/reading/writing related, these posts allow your readers to get a taste of your personality, as they’re all about you, the author. Readers love to feel like they know you as an author and as a person. Since you control the content, only post things you feel comfortable sharing. Example: “Today I was writing, and the funniest thing happened. . . .”  

• Writer-centric content: These posts can appeal to your readers as behind-the-scenes glimpses of how you create your novels. They could include posts about research, your writing process, how you go about crafting ideas, etc. Great reviews, endorsements, and nominations for awards would flow into this category as well. 

• Reader-centric content: For eons, writers have heard that in order to create great literature, one must first read great literature. Readers love engaging with authors on common interests, and the easiest way to start is by talking about something you already know they like: books! Dive in and discuss the one book that changed how you thought about life and shaped you as a writer.

Every author is different, and thus every community that forms around them and their novels will have a unique set of needs, but at the end of the day, we all want to feel a sense of belonging. The most successful self-promoters understand this and work hard to create a true place of community online. This will not only build brand loyalty and lifelong fans of your writing, but it’s personally more fulfilling as an author to engage online when you can have authentic dialogue with readers.

It is not easy work, but take the leap. You may not see results right away—it will be a slow growing process—but the best way to promote your stories will be by putting in that hard work and building an online community that cannot wait to shout your good news from the social media rooftops.

Thanks for having me on today!

SHAINA TURNER enjoys working at Tyndale House Publishers as their social media expert: the Social Media and Acquisitions Editor. She takes pride in helping authors best convey their heart and message across all online platforms in addition to managing Tyndale Fiction’s social media presence, Crazy4Fiction.

Stay up-to-date on the Tyndale House Fiction Team and their authors

by following Crazy4Fiction online:

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Your Seekerville hostess, Pam Hillman, here. I was so excited when Shaina agreed to give Seekerville (and ME!) some tips on sharing all the great exposure on social media that comes our way during a release. Authors, please share your own tips on how you show and tell all without bombarding your fans during a book launch. Readers, I'd love for you to chime in and tell us what works for you. 

Commenters will be eligible to win any Tyndale House Publishers book, winner's choice. Print or digital in the US; Digital outside US. Here's the link to my most recent release, The Promise of Breeze Hill, but winner is free to browse and pick something else from the Tyndale website. You can't go wrong with a Tyndale book. :)

Giving Readers What They Want…Consistently (aka: What I learned from being a cosmetics junkie.)

Missy Tippens

My name is Missy Tippens, and I am a cosmetics and skincare product addict. I love face creams and foundation. Primer and powder. Cleansers and concealer. I’m a sucker for just about anything that declares itself anti-aging. :) (Please bear with me. I WILL tie this in to writing and books.)

My husband has always called me a marketer’s dream. Sales and advertisements draw me in. I love to discover new products, and once I love something, I’m a loyal user. For the last year, I’ve been a big fan of an up-and-coming cosmetics company. I’ve tried many new-to-me products, but have also experienced the release of new items. I have enjoyed the samples that come with every purchase. Very often, I use those samples and then buy the products, discovering new favorites. When I go to their website to shop, I always read the reviews before I buy. They seem to have a crazily loyal customer base, women who heartily share their love of the products with others. I found myself spoiled by the company’s business model and by those new product releases—the samples, the build-up, the special promotions.

But recently, when it had been a while since a new product, I found myself losing interest a bit. I started looking around, clicking on links in newsletters from other companies, checking out products by other brands. Then, BAM! I got an email from my favorite company about a new product release, and I was once again excited about the brand!

In that moment, it hit me… Oh, my goodness, what if books are the same? I suspect voracious readers are the same way I am with my cosmetics. If so, we authors need to stay in contact with our readers. We need to give them new products to sample and buy. We need to keep them excited about our product so they stay loyal. :)

How can we give our readers more books and keep them interested when some of us are slow writers? Or when some of us are at a place in our lives where we have family or other commitments taking us away from our writing? What about those authors facing illness or grief? It got me thinking…wondering…feeling a bit overwhelmed…

And then I got a promotional email from Nick Stephenson of the blog Your First 10,000 Readers. Nick said:

“They key thing to remember is that 'overwhelm' isn't an inherent personality flaw. It's not genetic. It's not communicable. It's not a fault with you. Overwhelm is a by-product of 'not having a plan'.”

That was another BAM! moment to me. I was struck with the feeling that God was trying to tell me something: I need to work on a more structured plan.

No more saying, “When I finish x, I think I’m going to work on y…or maybe z.” No more being anxious or indecisive. I need to fully commit no matter what. I need to make decisions about the order to work on projects and then set deadlines.

I mentioned in the comments section not long back that I have a new Panda Planner. But I haven’t been using it regularly. I’m now reminded of how important it is to have a plan and to stay on track. Organization is key to keep from getting overwhelmed, which is key to producing more books, which keeps our readers faithful and excited about our work!

So, while planners can be fun and even artistic ventures (some use stickers and artwork!), and while I love my planner because it includes space for recording gratitude as well as a place to list successes, the calendar area should be a priority.

Today, I want to share some ideas I’ve had (inspired by my cosmetics addict lightbulb moment) for keeping readers interested and loyal:

--Focus on our newsletter, and try to keep a regular schedule (whatever that frequency is for you).

--Be generous with samples (first chapter or free prequel, etc.) on our website or wherever we connect with readers.

--Don’t let big gaps of time pass without offering a product, even if it’s something short or just a freebie. Work toward being more prolific so readers will remain excited about new releases. I think several of the Seekers have a good handle on this by just sticking to a daily word count goal. Consistently writing 500 or 1000 or 2000 words a day (or whatever number works for you) can make all the difference.

--Get readers involved in our work. I’ve recently read authors who recommend keeping readers engaged on social media. One author asks them questions and lets them give input on his books while writing them. And he always responds to comments. This is something I know I can improve on. I have tended to think I’m boring so haven’t posted much on my Facebook author page. But in the future, I want to reach out more often.

--Don’t overdo the promotion. The last thing we want to do is shout, “Buy my book!!” over and over until our fans get so sick of our pleas they want to run the other direction. We don’t want to shove our books down their throats. We want to keep them excited and looking forward to hearing from us. Finding this ideal frequency may take a little trial and error, but I think we’d be safe looking at how often we like hearing from our favorite authors (or from our favorite products outside of books).

--Finally, I think we should move beyond thinking of ourselves simply as creatives and try thinking of ourselves as a brand. We should be savvy business owners. Consider who our customers are and what they want. Come up with a plan, and schedule those product releases on our calendar. Break down those projects into manageable steps. Plan well ahead, especially for promotion. And always be learning from other authors who are successful.

I hope you found this helpful! I’d love to hear your input, as I’m still in the process of shoring up my plan. Do you consider yourself a brand? How do you schedule your product releases and keep loyal fans reading? And readers, we want your input! What helps keep you loyal to an author? What can we do better?

Today, I’ll be doing a fun giveaway! I’m giving away a hanging travel bag that’ll be great for cosmetics (you knew I had to go there :)) or other toiletries or shaving items. It can even be used for packing electronics (for the many chargers you have to haul everywhere). Please let me know if you’d like to be entered! (Giveaway item will be similar to this photo but may not be exact depending on what’s available when I order it. U.S. entries only this time please.)

Missy Tippens, a pastor’s wife and mom of three from near Atlanta, Georgia, made her first sale to Harlequin Love Inspired in 2007. Her books have since been nominated for the Booksellers Best, Holt Medallion, ACFW Carol Award, Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence, Maggie Award, Beacon Contest and a 2013 RT Reviewer’s Choice Award. A House Full of Hope was a Romance Writers of America 2013 RITA^® Nominee. Visit Missy at www.missytippens.com, https://twitter.com/MissyTippens and http://www.facebook.com/missy.tippens.readers.