ONLINE MARKETING | Let’s Explore … Social Networking

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Popular platforms: myspace.com, facebook.com, ning.com

Watch this video by The CommonCraft Show. What is Social Networking?
http://www.tywebbin.com/next/2007/06/what-is-social-networking/

There are so many social networks these days. You really have to check them out for yourself to see what you really like and are comfortable joining. The KEY is to find one you enjoy, participate and network. I recommend choosing at least 3 social networks to participate on a regular basis. In this guide we will explore the top two, Facebook and MySpace, and a few other bookworm hubs.

Facebook.com

Facebook is now the largest social network. I can see why? It’s by far the easiest one to set-up a profile and connect. It only takes one person requesting to be your friend and then you are connecting with who they have connected with and vice versa.

This is a basic break-down on how to use Facebook in your marketing plans:

Facebook Profile Page

Most authors I see, use their own individual page as the main spot for fans to see their activity. If you only stick with using your individual profile, you are limited on the number of people you can send a message to. You also have to keep in mind whatever you post on your wall is visible to people who you may not want as much knowledge about your life as you would like.

I am connected to family and friends, but I decided to use my profile page mainly for professional networking and book promotion. Every once in awhile, I will post something outside of that realm, but it’s pretty obvious I’m all about literary projects.

If you are an author who prefers to keep your profile page more for family and friends you actually know, then you definitely want to go the fan or group page route.

Facebook Group Page

Since I started coordinating blog tours or virtual book tours for authors this year, I have tried all types of social media campaigns. I chose the Facebook Group route for most of them, mainly because as a bookworm and a writer, I felt authors would want a sense of community with a reader’s group. I do like the inclusion of traditional type forums on the group pages for discussion. If the author doesn’t manage their group, you will want to think about including a moderator or virtual assistant to help keep the group active.

I found out there is a limitation to the number of messages (limited to 5000) you can send to a group. This may not be a problem for authors unless you are really big-time already.

I would like to see if Facebook will redesign the group pages in the future. There is a lack of intimacy you expect for a group, but the functionality is there.

Facebook Fan Page

As a business I set-up a Facebook Fan page for the blog tours. With the recent redesign, I really love how the interface for the fan page resembles the individual profile page. With each blog tour, I switch out the graphics to bring focus to the author being promoted that particular week. By importing the blog tour rss feed, all the day to day activity for the blog tours are included on the fan page wall. In a lot of ways, the fan page can be set-up to run with relative ease without a lot of manual interaction.

NOTE: I’ve recently noticed there is a limit on the number of friends you can have connected to your Facebook Profile page. If you are an author, you definitely want to consider creating a separate fan page.

MySpace.com

I think authors should definitely consider having a MySpace page. One big asset to being on MySpace, there are a lot of readers, especially book clubs.

If you are going to start a MySpace page, you don’t have to stay on there all the time, because some of that stuff isn’t healthy for you – but spend some time updating your page or ask for assistance. Request friendships from time to time, send bulletins or add a blog post.

Social Networks for Book Lovers

Social networks authors would benefit from joining are:

These sites are great for meeting bookworms and other authors. You can find a great support system willing to help you promote your book – using that word of mouth art form that has been around for years and years.