TGIF, WG2E-Land!
This past Sunday, when I checked-in with you regarding what kinds of Indie Epublishing topics you need more information on, y’all asked some terrific questions! Thanks bunches for all your over the moon superfab ideas!
Joanne Phillips asked:
I would love to read about tried and tested methods of reaching readers, which are achievable by indie authors with other commitments – i.e. kids, jobs, (lives) etc. How much time should we spend on Twitter, really, and is this the absolute best use of our time? How do we realistically market our books, and ourselves, and still find time to write the next book, and the next, and so on?
First of all, it’s not about marketing your books, it’s about connecting with readers, and you do that by connecting with people.
And they do that these days on Social Media Sites.
I thought it might be helpful if I let you in on a little secret to my success, which happens to answer Joanne’s question.
Are you ready?
How much time do I spend on Social Media (including Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads, Google+, Pinterest, etc.) and Blogging each day?
The Answer:
1 and 1/2 hours Tops
I’m totally not kidding either…that’s it!!! Just one to one and a half hours per day.
So even though, my #1 Goal is to Reach Readers, it takes me only about 90 minutes each day to do that at the levels I feel are necessary to sustain the growth rate I’m after.
The key is that I do this EVERY DAY!!!
Even when I’m on vacay, I still Tweet, do Facebook Updates, Pin on Pinterest and comment on various blogs.
Here’s the breakdown of that one and one half hours:
1. 45 minutes to one hour of writing new blogs (which I use as warm-ups for writing new pages in my current WIPS – works in progress) and commenting on previous blogs
2. 30 to 45 minutes per day on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Google+ and Goodreads combined
That’s it!
I also vary my schedule. For example, many of you know that I’m an up with the roosters and chickens gal but a total waste after sundown. A couple of nights per month, however, I’ll stay up late and chat with the night owls and catch-up with many of my international readers too! 
Not only do I vary my schedule, I also spread out the 30-45 minutes of social media per day into bite-size morsels of fun.
For example, if I’m waiting on the microwave, I Tweet and Facebook. Waiting on my DH at a Dr’s Appointment? I Tweet and Facebook. Waiting on my nieces and nephews in various carpool lines? I Tweet and Facebook. Dinner in the oven and table set? I Tweet and Facebook. Commercials on TV? I Tweet and Facebook. Watching America’s Got Talent (AGT)? I’m Tweeting and Facebooking about AGT, using hashtags to join other peeps who luuuvvv AGT! Take a great photo with my iPhone while out and about? I Tweet and Facebook it. Find a new superfab Bitchy Sign? Repeat after me…Tweet and Facebook it.
Explaining it in morsels makes it much more fun and doable, right?!
And fun is the key to being able to maintain my hour to hour and a half per day. I have a ball connecting with my readers this way! And it does pay off in sales. As my following grows on all kinds of social media sites, so are my sales!
Here are some posts I’ve done here on The WG2E about how I make the most of all these social media sites and continue to build my readership:
http://thewritersguidetoepublishing.com/indie-epublishing-using-signature-events-to-find-readers
In addition, in just a few days, I’ll release my next non-fiction book 10 Years and 24 Hours to Indie Epublishing Success, in which I’ll treat you to all my secrets to Epublishing Success including how I now reach over 10,000 new readers each month!!!
It’s Your Turn, WG2E-Land: How much time do you spend on social media and blogging each day? And which sites do you feel allow you to connect best with your readers?
The Best of Social Media Time Wishes — D. D. Scott
i’m surprised, and pleased, to know you spend “only” that amt of time on the social media, that’s a great example for me, thanks d.d.
U betchya, Adan!
When you break it down into tiny increments of a Tweet here, a Facebook Update there, a couple blog comments between…it makes a huge impact in a short amount of time overall.
A wonderful insight into Social Media time management.
I’m ‘turning over a new leaf’. Thanks for the inspiration.
Paddy.
Sure thing, Paddy! I’m thrilled to help you with your new leaf!!! Happy Tweeting and all that superfab Social Media workin’ it!!!
Thanks DD ~ A great way to break it all down and make it manageable! I’d estimate that I spend the same amount of time – an hour to an hour and a half – and break it into am and pm. Can’t wait to read your new book!! xx, Lauren
It truly is about just making your social media time manageable…and fun!
I’m actually uploading the new book this morning! Yayyy!!!
I can’t wait to hear how you use it in your Indie Epublishing Empire!!!
Thanks for the insight re amount of time spent and the allotment of time on s/media.
Now I can gauge my own time om twitter, fb etc
Teddy C
That’s the way to do it, Teddy…”gauge your own time” on social media, and make sure it works for your goals and is truly connecting you with people/readers!!!
Very useful advice, D.D. I find I’m cutting my social media time these days out of necessity. I’m also breaking it up to morning and night, so I get to interact with a wide cross-section of people across time zones.
Breaking it up between morning and night is brilliant, Kiru! I actually did a study of my sales during periods when I only worked social media at certain times of day.
My results: My sales increased the more I worked the sites each day in morning AND night combos. By hitting all time zones at key times, you get the visibility you need throughout the day and all day long.
For example, I luuuvvv to do a wee bit in the early AM with everyone’s first cup of coffee of the day and at lunch time too as I have a hunch, and my numbers show that a lot of peeps are online during their lunch hours catching up with their fave peeps and looking for new ones. Same thing between about 3PM and 5 PM when the soccer moms are waiting in pick-up lines across the US. Same thing around 9 PM to 11 PM when the kids are in bed and Mom and Dad are online surfing the web before bed.
I do about 10-15 mins a day. A few mins in the morning if I have time, and the rest in the afternoon. And it’s usually after I have done my writing/typing. And before I read my Kindle.
And that’s the beauty of our Indie Epub World, Julie…we each get to do whatever works for us!!! I luuuvvv that!!!
And your way sooo works ’cause I “see” you online everyday!!!
U Go, Girl!!!
I spend way too much time on social media. But I’ve been working on a schedule and am going to try to stick to that. I’m trying to figure out exactly what works for me that allows me the contact with others but leaves enough time for writing and all the rest of the business related activities. I’ve been struggling with it, but I think I’m getting better. The one thing that eats up a good deal of time is reading and commenting on my fellow authors’ blogs. And I want to do this. I enjoy reading what they have to say and I want to support them. But I think I’m going to have to break that into a schedule to visit about 3/day and rotate the ones I read throughout the week. It’s not ideal but I think I’m going to have to give it a try. Thanks for sharing how you do it, D.D.!
I used to shoot for 3 new blogs per day…in that I would find 3 new ones, read ‘em and comment on ‘em! And wow did I build a readership and make connections that way…BUT…I don’t have time for that now. So, I do 3 new blogs PER WEEK, plus comment on all my faves as well as on the ones that give me sweet shout-outs (which I track using Google Alerts). And I do count those Google Alerts as my new ones if they are new to me.
Atta Girl, Rhonda…keep it flexible till you find whatever works best for you at any given time in your career. And mix it up, just like you’re doing, till it feels right.
Thanks D.D., for answering my question
I agree it’s all about reaching – and connecting with – readers, and it is helpful to know how you break up your social media time.
I’d still be interested in reading how other writers – especially those who have full-time jobs outside of being an author, and kids and many other commitments – manage to connect with readers, and whether they consider that even one and a half hours of social media is the most effective way of doing this.
I think ‘only’ one and a half hours of non-writing time is actually quite a lot to sacrifice, especially if, like me, you only get around one to two hours a day tops to devote to your writing career. And the answer isn’t to devote more time to it
For some of us that’s just not feasible right now. So what has to go? What is the absolute best use of time, I wonder?
If I had just two hours per day for my writing career as a whole, like you do, Joanne, I would split the time equally between writing new pages and social media. And, if you have just one hour per day…again, I would split it evenly between writing and working social media.
In fact, up until two years ago, when I quit my full-time job to write full-time (and I was working about 60 hours per week plus going through a nasty divorce and moving all at the same time), I did just that…I’d get up at 3 AM, do one hour of new writing and one hour of social media. When I got home, I was too wiped out to write new pages, but I did hit social media for a couple minutes before bed.
Great advice, D.D. My only issue with Twitter comes with Triberr. It’s been a big help in growing my blog, but it also makes it tough to be organic on Twitter. I’ve noticed fewer and fewer conversations, and often my efforts go ignored. But I try to tweet something funny or useful a few times a day.
Is Triberr like Tweetdeck so you schedule your tweets, Stacy? I have never liked or used the scheduling features and tools, cause just as you stated, I don’t feel they’re organic and you can spot those a mile away and beyond.
Posting something funny, inspirational and motivating or anything having to deal with animals seems to really draw attention.
Hi! I’m amazed that you only spend 45 minutes to an hour writing blog posts. My blog posts usually take 5-6 hours. I write, I re-write, I post, I e-mail, I post to social media, etc. Most of the time goes into thinking and writing (not the social media part).
I used to be where you’re at, Gail, in that my blog posts, each one, would take anywhere from 5-6 hours to write and re-write. But not anymore! I actually compose right in Blogger and WordPress and edit there as well, and wow, the more I blog, the faster I get. It’s as if you’re exercising your own stream of consciousness, and once you let that baby out, it just goes and goes and goes like the Energizer Bunny!
One trick I use too:
I keep a list of topics I want to blog on and just choose one whenever I need it!
Thanks, D.D.
Thanks for this, DD, and all the linkys to the other articles. I’m new to Twitter, so I found your article on Finding Your Target Audience Through Twitter as invaluable. I’ve been making a concerted effort to dive into the social networking scene since I e-pubbed some of my work. I’d been doing it before, but not with concerted *effort* so this is a great boost to me. Gotta say, I like Goodreads the best – not because I can promote my work there, but because I find so many good recommendations and reviews there! Feels like a lot of the money I make on books goes back into other people’s books, and that’s fine with me!
Excellent, Forrest! I’m thrilled my Twitter article helped you!
And I think you’ll find that your approach of paying it forward to fellow authors will come back to you a gazillion-fold. Well done, my friend!!!
Great info today, D.D.! Thanks!
U betchya, Jeanne! Glad you enjoyed it!
As usual, I’m channeling the DD Scott method, which means I can’t wait for your new book! I’m a much slower writer than you are, DD, so I need to really watch my online time. It takes me about 4 hours (or more!) to write a blog post and beyond that, I easily spend another 4 hours commenting on blogs, etc. But I’m cutting back or getting faster so I can manage it all in less time.
Thanks Bunches for the 10 Years and 24 Hours shout-out, Sheila! It’s now available on Nook and Smashwords, just waiting on the live link for Amazon (the page is up there but no buy link activated yet).
I think you’ll find the more you do it, the faster you’ll get, Sheila! I’d luuuvvv to be able to comment on more blogs, but I just can’t right now and maintain my writing goals too. So, I shoot for finding three new blogs per week, plus comment on all my faves as much as possible.
Also, I set aside one afternoon per week to catch-up on all the blogs I luv. That’s it. Otherwise, I’d be reading and commenting all day long every day and getting nothing else done!!!
Wow!
You’re super organised. I’m all or nothing and know that’s not good. I always felt that if I’d nothing out there to sell then I had nothing to give. Which is kind of insane now that I look back. But I think we need to be in the right place to actually absorb information because everything can be too much for a new writer who’s self publishing. In fact, now that I look back upon the journey I seriously wonder if I was crazy, but I wouldn’t have missed it or the mistakes I’ve made. And isn’t it interesting that you cannot comment on more blogs and maintain your writing goals? That’s the key statement and the one I spend most time working on – the story!
Great post, Dee Dee.
No worries, CC! I think we’re all a bit nuts for even being in this biz! LOL!
I do totally agree too that it’s NEVER too early to begin connecting with people/readers! If you build up wonderful online communities, they’ll be there when each of your new releases come out!
Saw your new book on SW earlier, DD. Congrats on the new release!
I’m still working on managing my online presence…some day I’ll get it down. I love all the advice here and will be doing some testing to see what I can get to work for me.
Thanks!
Thanks sooo much, Stacey! I’m over the moon to share 10 Years and 24 Hours to Indie Epublishing Success with all of you!!! And I can’t wait to see how you all take my approaches and make ‘em your own!!!
The key is exactly what you’re doing — “testing.” That’s the most brilliant way to do it, my friend. Take all of the advice you get and “test” it out to see which methods work for you and which do not.