Last week I kicked off the discussion series about Social Media and Blogging with a discussion about g+ and whether it's a useful tool. I'm rather new to it myself and I got a lot of my questions answered. Here's a quick run through of what I discovered.
- Most of the bloggers who commented didn't use it much, if at all. Some use it to link up, but don't interact on it.
- Most don't have the time for all the social networks and therefore don't use g+.
- Many say that facebook and twitter are easier to use.
- Beth says that this is the rank of impact (keep in mind that there are different opinions on this, as I had recently read an article that said g+ is the best)
Pinterest
Facebook
Twitter
everything else
Google+
everything else
Google+
- Villia says she doesn't like it because she has to use her full name.
- Tanya says she used g+ ONLY for the Book Bloggers community. She also says it doesn't matter what you pick, whichever social network you use the most is the one with the most impact.
- Katie says she likes it way better then Facebook. Here's her full comment because I actually found it all very helpful.
Honestly, G+ way better than Facebook. Google has made it a lot easier to use, as well. So when you comment on something, you get an email, and you can reply from the email, so you don't have to go to the website, like FB. And there isn't as many ads hitting you everywhere.
The communities of Google is where I find the power. I've gotten into a lot of writing (and cooking and weight lifting and dog . . ) communities that are SO supportive. The people are G+ have always been kind. It's a bigger platform for me than FB, and my discussion posts always get a lot more attention from total strangers on G+. Also, I've made a lot of G+ friends that are just awesome. One of them is sending me 3-4 books in the mail because she thinks it'll help me with my story, and we've never met or anything.
- Heidi says she's sworn off google because they have proven to be unreliable.
So it comes down to this- is g+ worth it? And I have decided to continue experimenting. Going on for 5 minutes a day and posting what I have posted on my blog and possibly adding a few people to my circles. I'm not ready to dedicate a lot of time to it, but I think it's worth at least looking into more.
I also agree with Heidi that google HAS proven unreliable, shutting things down all willy nilly. For that reason I do agree with her comment and am going in a bit reluctantly.
I still believe commenting on blogs is my strongest networking 'tool'. However I'm not really bringing in new people that way, and I'd like to get some exposure in new areas as well.
Time is still a HUGE issue.
Moving on...
I'd like to talk about Facebook today. It was only a year ago when I started my Facebook 'page' for my blog. I had been very reluctant and didn't really feel it was necessary. Once I got it up I found it really pretty easy to figure out. Of course I had my personal account, so I was familiar with Facebook. Having a page is a bit different though. While I've had it for a year now I still find myself having a lot of mixed feelings.
I definitely think it's good to have. It has proven helpful for promoting posts and I've gotten new readers because of it. It works well for me to push for a few more people on my tours. And I like having a spot to promote reviews and other posts for the tours I organize.
What I have issues with- I feel like a loser that no one likes. Yeah, that's being a little harsh, and honestly it's not something I dwell on. But when I post discussion things I often get no response. I see others talk about the books they are reading, their plans for the weekend, etc. I do that and get nothing. No likes, no comments. Not always, but more often then not. So I tend to just not interact on there and that makes me a little sad. I don't really have the time to 'chat' but I would like some interaction with other readers and it's not really working in that aspect for me. I don't really get many 'likes' on many of my posts at all actually.
So has your Facebook page worked for chatting and interaction? Is there a trick to it?
The next thing is giveaway's. I had done some Facebook exclusive giveaway's but I didn't have many entries. It was just leave a comment and you're entered and people weren't bothering. It's been awhile now, so that could change, but I've been a little shy of posting giveaway's that won't get a response (that is so embarrassing when that happens). I'd like to know if you've had successful giveaway's on Facebook and how you pulled it off.
I know how to work Facebook, and I like that. I like that I can schedule my posts to go up through the day (love that feature actually) and I like that I have gotten some new blog readers because of it. I do find myself worrying that I'm doing something wrong. That I would have bigger impact if I changed something, I just don't know what.
Is there such a thing as posting too much? I'm always worried I'll lose followers because when I have several tours running I can post up to 12 times a day. Does that get annoying for people, seeing all of those?
I'd like to hear all your thoughts! And start thinking about Pinterest, I think we'll discuss that one next week (or the week after since I have The Book Thief book club discussion).
Thanks so much for all the input everyone!
Here's today's posts:
Oct. 31st:
Heidi@Rainy Day Ramblings:Andrea Jones: Other Oceans
Heidi@Rainy Day Ramblings:Andrea Jones: Other Oceans
Ali@My Guilty Obsession:Susannah Sandlin: Penton Legacy Series
Maja@The Nocturnal Library: Matthew Quinn Martin: Nightlife
I don't have a facebook but I think I will one day because a lot of people seem to have it.
ReplyDeleteGreat post, Candace! <33
I use my Facebook page far more than I use Twitter (somehow, Twitter seems pointless and I dislike it). I see a lot of traffic on my blog hat comes from Facebook, and very little from Twitter. I never used to start discussions but I did start one or two lately and got at least some response. What bothers me with Facebook is that I have like, 1300 followers, but my posts are often seen by no more than 50-100 people. They are trying to force me to pay to promote my posts, which I simply refuse to do.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, Google + is something I should finally look into, as I've neglected it completely. But as Heids pointed out, Google IS unreliable, which is a huge minus.
I don't have a FB page. I just had to cut off the social media mania somewhere and that's my line. I don't "like" many Fb pages because then the info clogs up my feed and I like to use it to keep up with friends and that's about it.
ReplyDeleteI interact on my facebook page more then any other social media site, twitter and pinterest make up my other top 3. It is a great way to let peeps know about book sales, release dates, covers and just about anything.
ReplyDeleteI agree that FB seems to be the way to go anymore (twitter can be frustrating at times). I have a FB blog page and I have the same issue sometimes. I post things and it's like nobody cares! And then I see other sites posting a million posts and they have twice as many likes as I do or more. I think the key to it is what you are posting. If you are posting just your blog posts, you won't get much feedback as most people have better things to do (just being real). But, when I scroll through and see books posted that are cheap or free, I click on it cuz I want to check out the book. And if you are the kind of blog that is constantly promoting authors (like myself) I have a tendency to fancy their blog more because it isn't about them so much as the authors. I have had my blog FB page for almost 8 mo and I went from 200 likes to almost 1500 likes simply because I started promoting authors on my page. The more you promote, the better your site will do.
ReplyDeleteI use the Network Blog plugin for Facebook that links up my blog posts directly to my Facebook page. I've had more comments that way. While some don't type comments, people do come up and talk to me about the posts.
ReplyDeleteI'm not on Facebook for the same reason I'm not on Google+ - the though of having to update one more thing after all the other work I do on the blog makes me want to cry a little. I do think I should be on Facebook though, but the whole "friends" thing and the "likes" makes me all nervous - I don't like having those kinds of popularity measurements you know? Even if I'm the only one that really looks at them that way.
ReplyDeleteIf I was on Facebook though, I would totally leave you comments Candace! We could be the only people we end up talking to:)
I started an FB page and...that is about it. Honestly, I just don't use it. I don't love it, I don't like that I can't always post all the pictures on there that I would like to and..I think I may have set my account up wrong to begin with (as a business) so there really isn't a whole lot I can do with it sadly. I think I either need to delete it and start over or keep doing what I am and ignoring it.
ReplyDeleteI still haven't decided it if it worth it to have it. Do publicists and publishers actually look at it? I have no idea.
I do use Facebook and I have no problems with it. It's a good place to share links and tag.
ReplyDeleteI don't have a facebook just for my blog. I have a personal one, but I use that for a mix of things...because I do like other blogs and add bloggers as friends and randomly post some of the things i'm doing on the blog over there. honestly, since I don't use it much, I don't really have a lot of advice. I think facebook for blogs is nice because I do learn about things that way.
ReplyDeleteI just have a personal Facebook page. With reading so many blogs, I don't get on there as much as I should. I am noticing more authors interacting there vs. blogs so I'm trying to get on there more and interact with people. I have the same problem as you sometimes and I think for me the problem is that I'm there enough. But LOL. There's only so much time in the day. Thanks for a great discussion.
ReplyDeleteI have my blog posts automatically posted on facebook whenever I post something new. And they usually get 50 people or less that see them. However, I started doing cover reveals exclusively on my facebook page and those get 200-300 people who see them and they get some comments. Photos and videos do much better on Facebook than links. I love doing cover reveals, but it just didn't feel like they belonged on my blog because I didn't really have that much to say about them. Facebook is the perfect place for me to put them. Having something exclusive to your social media can help get more people interacting with it. Other posts that do well on my facebook page are pictures of me at book signings and new movie trailers or fun movie news like the new Divergent movie posters etc. These are some great discussion posts! I really love that you posted people's replies to your last discussion. I don't understand google plus either! I couldn't even figure out my google plus page URL :/
ReplyDeleteI think a lot of people don't do "likes" because it shows their name as to who liked it. I have resisted having a FB page for the blog but I have wondered if it would be better to do that for promotion. Still resisting... :D
ReplyDeleteI'm on Facebook to automatically post all my new posts, but I pretty much never go to my blog's page. It's enough to keep up with the blog. But I think FB could be a really good medium.
ReplyDeleteIt sees like I go through social media phases, so for a year I was all about Facebook, posting all the time, great engagement, lots of comments, visiting lots of other pages, etc. Then they started the whole pay to promote your post thing, and that meant that a very small % of your followers would even SEE your post (unless you pay of course). That turned me off in a big way. Now I'm pretty much all about Pinterest and tumblr. I'm sure it will change again, but I think the perception of trying to milk page admins for $ has turned me off being as big a Facebook user as i used to be, both in posting and in interacting with others. I'm not totally giving up on it, but it's definitely not as fun as it used to be.
ReplyDeleteI have a Facebook page for my writing stuff, but it gets little to no attention. Even if I'm not posting links. If I post through my regular name, then my loyal friends will, for the most part, respond. Not always. Facebook is very iffy for me. I find that it depends on the time of day, and the relevance of what you post. My links, even if they have nothing to do with me, rarely get any attention as far as comments or likes.
ReplyDeleteI still get some referrals from Facebook. Discussion typically don't go very far. (Like I said, G+ I've gotten 70+ comments in a discussion). But I still use it because I've used it for years. Facebook, I feel, is more unreliable than Google because they are constantly changing. Everything shifts. It seems like I wake up and the whole layout and function of Facebook is totally different, and I have to get re-used to how to use it. So far, in the 6 months I've been on G+, that hasn't happened.
By the way, loved the recap of your discussion. It was nice to see a summary of what everyone thought. I'd love to see that about FB as well!
I have a facebook page and my own facebook too. I link from my wordpress to both, but I socialize more on own facebook with other bloggers and authors too. I am more apt to go on FB than I am twitter. My "lovely" father in law unfriended my because I posted so many things about books and talking back and forth between myself and other bloggers. O'well, I didn't eve notice that he had. lol... I have made some really good friends and I like talking to them about just about everything. :)
ReplyDeleteI have a personal (which I don't use a lot) and Gin's Book Notes FB page (which I use everyday). I am with you on the comments and giveaways. Sometimes I get responses, sometimes I just hear crickets chirping. :) I asked my FB followers how many posts were too much and it was one post that actually received comments. They all said that as long as the content was useful they didn't care. I usually post first thing in the morning and in the afternoon. I would probably get more interaction if I posted at night but that is family time. I need to learn to schedule posts and see how that works. I will never pay for post promotion on FB I just think that is ridiculous. Thanks for another great post Candace. I love hearing everyone's thoughts on the subjects you post.
ReplyDeleteI have a FB page for my blog (Lovely Reads) and I'm pretty much in the same boat. Whatever goes on my Blog goes onto my FB page. Sometimes I'll post other things on there, even tried some giveaways, book ideas, etc. Some days I'll get a couple comments here and there. I'll get the views, but why they don't comment is a mystery. The giveaways on FB will work if you promote and repeat it a few times on the page. Though thats about it.
ReplyDeleteI see other FB pages with tons of likes and comments. Sometimes it's just the blog, or the lack of people going on FB. I do think FB, Twitter, and Pintrest to be more popular with people. Also bloglovin is starting to get popular with people. Plus FB is maybe the only page that will bug you for money to promote your page.
Hi Candace, as an author who blogs, I've begun using G+ a little, but mostly just to post my blog posts. I like that I can automatically post from my blogger site without having to pull up Google+. I've joined quite a few "communities" but honestly don't have the time to become known there. Still, I have connected with some nice folks and people do seem to see my posts.
ReplyDeleteI like Twitter as a promotional platform. It is definitely the best for connecting with like-minded souls and getting the word out about anything. I like Facebook too, but I try to be careful about posting too much. Twitter spam is easily scrolled through. On Facebook you want to engage your followers, not bore or annoy them. I usually only post there once or twice a week; once or twice a day if I have a promotion going. Once or twice a day I think is average if you've got new and interesting content. I wouldn't do Facebook giveaways, but doing a blog giveaway and promoting it on Facebook works pretty well. Hope that helps a little too. :)
I actually have a FB blog page and then one set up like a personal page, which is where I mostly interact with others on. I do a lot more reading than I do talking, but FB has been a really good outlet for me. Twitter would drive me nuts if I didn't have Tweetdeck on my laptop. It allows you to separate things out in columns so it's easier to see. If I had to look at one column all day I think i would have a seizure or look like something off a horror movie with spinning eyeballs :).
ReplyDeleteI basically only use facebook for giveaway entries-I don't do anything with it for my blog. I adore Pinterest so so much but I do not use it for books or blogging. It is solely for fashion, cooking, and pretty pictures for me.
ReplyDelete