Two weeks ago, I attended the 2015 Arkansas Literary Festival in Little Rock. This was my first time to attend and I took a few notes on one of the sessions I attended. What I like most about these conferences and festivals is all the good stuff we learn from our fellow writers.
Some fast notes to think about:
>>> YouTube.com is a search engine. I never really thought of it that way. Never put it in the same category as Google or Yahoo. But indeed, we use it to find information. So that closed captioning? Yeah, that’s what’s providing your SEO. Whoop!
>>>Facebook groups aren’t lame. If you can get someone to connect to your Facebook page, they’ll get a notification every time you post something new/send something out. Engage in other people’s Facebook groups to figure out your audience and grow your cliental. (In our case, these would be followers and readers!)
>>>Update your website annually. Designs, trends, styles, looks… they’re always changing. We all know that. So give your website format a little upgrade every year. You’ve got to keep people interested. It’ll excite you too. 😉 Good images and key words are essential! Get your SEO on, ya’ll.
>>>People want simplicity. When it comes to social media, websites, blogs, etc., people want to be able to find what they type in the search bar. So if you’re writing about how hot air balloons fly, make sure your title represents the topic. I know it’s easy to get abstract and creative, but you can do that in the actual writing. Make your subject searchable and basic.
>>>Publishers do not want to market you. Before anyone is going to work with you, they want you to establish a fan base. If you spend a year or so working on a blog, (I keep using blogs as an example because I’m writing on one), you’ll draw in readers and develop your voice as a writer. When the time comes for you to publish a book, you’ll already have people who’d be willing to read it because they know a bit of who you are already! It’s not a waste of time.
>>>Know your audience on each social media platform. For example, over the last few years, Facebook, (which began as a college-student site), has had a high increase in users over 65 years old. Instagram, Tumblr, and Vine are attracting people ages 18-34 at the moment. Pinterest is geared toward women. You get the idea. Know who you’re talking to.
>>>Don’t use ALL the social mediums. Pick one or two that you can use regularly. If you don’t use one, you can leave a note/link on it, telling people to reach you at another one. Keep in mind that if you have a dormant medium, that may look bad for your reputation if your job title has something to do with excelling at social media. It may be best to just delete that Twitter account you never post on.
>>>You can link your social media to your Amazon account. Okay, so this is for you people who actually have books published and sell them on Amazon.com. This is not me at the moment, so I can only say so much. But hey, check it out!
>>>Rankings on Amazon matter! Again, I don’t have experience in this area yet. But as a consumer and an eCommerce writer, I do know that reviews people write for products make an impact. So if someone tells you they liked your book, ask them to write a review for you! No harm in asking.
Well, that’s all I have for this week. I hope it gives you some new things to think about. Seriously consider starting a blog if you haven’t already. Resumés are becoming outdated. LinkedIn.com actually comes up high in your SEO, so don’t write it off just yet! (No pun intended.)
Happy Thursday, guys!
-Colleen
J. Jobe 