tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9023937099212820339.post8486813551735057004..comments2024-03-27T01:07:03.944-04:00Comments on The Roses of Prose: Facebook Author Page - Yes or No? by Alison HendersonAlison Hendersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12725250883303287946noreply@blogger.comBlogger36125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9023937099212820339.post-60221432871928078092016-07-11T18:20:13.073-04:002016-07-11T18:20:13.073-04:00I have an author page and a personal page. As Ruby...I have an author page and a personal page. As Ruby said, I schedule posts ahead of time, often items of historical interest or other tidbits I find. I try to post at least every other day on my author page. <br /><br />I've been trying different paid ads at different sites throughout the year. So far I haven't seen much change in my royalties, but my author page likes on FB have soared. <br /><br />I confess I'm very laid back about promo and selling, etc. I decided long ago to do whatever makes me comfortable, so I blog here and there, post on Facebook, keep my web site updated, and promo here and there as needed. I'm not too worried about my sales numbers, etc. So much of that truly is out of our hands.J Lhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04016624838926050085noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9023937099212820339.post-10039589793083364232016-07-07T17:11:59.644-04:002016-07-07T17:11:59.644-04:00I have both. I like connecting with writer friends...I have both. I like connecting with writer friends and (maybe) some readers on my profile page. The author page doesn't do much. I feel like I'm talking to the wall. Alison, I appreciate your sharing the info on social media. Keep it up.Diane Burtonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03754105332297068271noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9023937099212820339.post-17343615161428579782016-07-07T09:48:25.529-04:002016-07-07T09:48:25.529-04:00I have both Alison, but my friends page is actuall...I have both Alison, but my friends page is actually public as well--I don't put anything up there that I wouldn't want anyone to know (I think!) so it's quite a mix. My author page is mostly authory things, promotions, awards, forthcoming events and so on. I did notice when I did my 7 week road trip last summer and posted every day there that the visitors increased markedly--I should have kept that going but it is a lot of work. Andrea Downinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11553961600937196102noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9023937099212820339.post-24126831882029539422016-07-06T18:01:21.400-04:002016-07-06T18:01:21.400-04:00I have a personal and author page. What I like abo...I have a personal and author page. What I like about the author page is I can see what kind of posts get the most reach and do more of those. I've boosted posts here and there, but don't see that being worth the money. What IS worth the money is Book Bub. It's costly, but I've made that money back and then some along with picking up more fans that have liked my author page and interact there. I also schedule posts ahead of time so they run on auto pilot and I don't have to think about posting on the author page every day. I also have a 3-person street team--I wanted to test it out and start small--and they have actually made a big difference for me as well. Just getting someone else to mention me and my work is a huge help. I just "pay" them in Amazon gift cards once a month. It's working out nicely and I'm might expand if the upward trend continues. <br /><br />Great post!Christine DePetrillohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00527942532875216883noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9023937099212820339.post-11080552301911114952016-07-06T12:30:37.747-04:002016-07-06T12:30:37.747-04:00Ruby, you are clearly a social media queen! Thanks...Ruby, you are clearly a social media queen! Thanks so much for the advice.Alison Hendersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12725250883303287946noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9023937099212820339.post-23908907436697127642016-07-05T22:09:49.733-04:002016-07-05T22:09:49.733-04:00I absolutely agree with all those saying it's ...I absolutely agree with all those saying it's tough to do it alone. I didn't realize quite how tough in the beginning, and made what I now realize is the rookie mistake of writing under two different names. The writing is the easiest part - supporting four social media accounts per name is the straining part of it! <br /><br />That being said, I have about six years of experience in social media, so I've learned a few tricks. One of them is to schedule posts as often as possible. I set aside a time once a week for scheduling (I also work with a start up company and run their social) and I make outlines of Facebook and Twitter posts. Facebook is easy to schedule on the direct site, and Twitter has many third party sites - TweetDeck is my favorite, which hook right up to your accounts for free. <br /><br />My two other platforms are Pinterest and Instagram, and neither of them can be planned in advance. In the case of those accounts, I keep an album on my phone for Instagram, and upload new pictures in the morning first thing, then I go on Pinterest for a few minutes, and then I check Twitter - so as not to seem like a bot who only schedules. Given that I'm doing this for two, and in some cases, three or four, accounts, I can easily appreciate the hesitation for getting involved in social. <br /><br />I'd say pace yourself, but I just got a nice little combo of mono and anxiety induced chest pains, so perhaps I should take my own advice in the week preceding RWA16. Social media is a great tool - especially for indy authors, but it's important to remember that we are supposed to be writing and that promo only comes after books are on done. Unfortunately, or fortunately, depending on your perspective, we live in a very instant world, and if the content doesn't change regularly, I'm not coming back. <br /><br />I'd love to talk social more! Always looking for tips and tricks!<br /><br />RubyHollandhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03780168193520512910noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9023937099212820339.post-60328749522707621272016-07-05T20:10:35.782-04:002016-07-05T20:10:35.782-04:00I couldn't agree more, Brenda. I love to know ...I couldn't agree more, Brenda. I love to know I've entertained someone else. (I know I can entertain myself. LOL)Alison Hendersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12725250883303287946noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9023937099212820339.post-59623291286030920722016-07-05T19:29:25.093-04:002016-07-05T19:29:25.093-04:00Good idea for the retreat. I would love to sit dow...Good idea for the retreat. I would love to sit down at a computer and see what others can show me. It would be fun to have a conversation and bounce ideas off each other too. Internet visibility = sales. Yes, we write because we love it but I want others to read my books. I write to entertain people, not myself.Brenda Whitesidehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04162555468154752820noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9023937099212820339.post-5044552393473197022016-07-05T18:52:31.353-04:002016-07-05T18:52:31.353-04:00Hi, Kimberly. Those are the kind of fun things I s...Hi, Kimberly. Those are the kind of fun things I share on my personal page now. If I decide to start an author page, maybe I should split my posts between the two.Alison Hendersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12725250883303287946noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9023937099212820339.post-89410133845569718592016-07-05T18:34:02.078-04:002016-07-05T18:34:02.078-04:00Hi Alison!
I have an author page. I started with a...Hi Alison!<br />I have an author page. I started with a new personal page with my author name and realized the page would not be a place to go, i.e., my posts would just pop up on my friends news feeds. So I went with Author page. Now my posts show up on feeds of people who've liked me,a nd my likes are growing which is a little thrill. <br />Besides that, I like sharing little kid bits about what's happening in my author life and a lot of times the post will be short. Maybe an announcement, maybe a share, maybe eye candy or music that inspires me, in other words, not necessarily blog-worthy, but post worthy. <br />I'd say go for it and post what strikes you. It'll be a lot easier to get going than you think.<br />Kimberly Keyes<br />https://facebook.com/kimberly.keyes.romanceKimberly Keyes Romancehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01366817771524483844noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9023937099212820339.post-68009609051109173832016-07-05T18:10:54.231-04:002016-07-05T18:10:54.231-04:00Judy, 1261 likes on your author page sounds like a...Judy, 1261 likes on your author page sounds like a lot to me. I'm surprised and more than a little discouraged to hear it isn't making more of a difference in your sales.Alison Hendersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12725250883303287946noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9023937099212820339.post-58417721843498143892016-07-05T18:09:31.112-04:002016-07-05T18:09:31.112-04:00Marie, the ability to get statistics and run ads i...Marie, the ability to get statistics and run ads is the only reason I'm considering a business page. I'm glad to hear the ads work for you. Thanks for your input.Alison Hendersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12725250883303287946noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9023937099212820339.post-59035142444628656852016-07-05T17:55:12.033-04:002016-07-05T17:55:12.033-04:00Great post about Facebook. It was interesting to r...Great post about Facebook. It was interesting to read everyone's comments. I have a FB personal page of 365, and an author page of 1261. Last time I boosted a post for the author page about one of my books, FB broke the link--and unaware--I paid for $8.00 worth of a $10 ad for nothing. <br /><br />I'm planning to cull my personal page a bit because I'm getting information from people I don't know, and who I don't think are interested in anything but getting more FB followers. Also, in my news feed I seem to be getting the same people over and over again. <br /><br />I don't understand the algorithm, but I do know on both pages I'm hardly reaching anyone. I see no uptick in sales. Judy Ann Davishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11933875283816712058noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9023937099212820339.post-49364175435412561442016-07-05T16:37:33.246-04:002016-07-05T16:37:33.246-04:00I have an author page, mainly because I was told t...I have an author page, mainly because I was told to have one. It is hard to maintain two pages, but I'm finding on my author page, if I share things on a regular basis (about once a week), more people see my stuff. Plus I get weekly emails from Facebook telling me how my posts are doing. I also use my page when doing contests, like my page for an entry. It's easy enough, and while people my just like my page to get in on the contest, they probably don't unlike and who knows I might gain a reader or two.<br /><br />Plus I like to be careful who I friend on my personal page, I do have family there and tend to be more careful what I post there vs. what I might post on my business page due to what I write (erotic romance.)<br /><br />I've also been doing some ads through FB - I've been getting some good responses from it and I can only do that from a business page.<br /><br />It is a hard decision, for a long time I ignored my business page, now I'm learning what to do and trying to get more engagement.Marie Tuharthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08140971635915166589noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9023937099212820339.post-26299684158633705632016-07-05T16:07:08.544-04:002016-07-05T16:07:08.544-04:00Hi, Joanne! It sounds like your experience mirrors...Hi, Joanne! It sounds like your experience mirrors many other authors I know. I should probably create an author page for the reasons you mention, but getting them to work for us seems to be a mystery. And thanks for the input on boosted posts. That seems to be a mystery, too. LOLAlison Hendersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12725250883303287946noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9023937099212820339.post-73060241316423355142016-07-05T15:22:07.970-04:002016-07-05T15:22:07.970-04:00BTW...I haven't found boosted posts to be wort...BTW...I haven't found boosted posts to be worth it, money-wise. I've done it a couple of times, and while Facebook tells me that more people are seeing it, I never get much more interaction from it than I do regularly. Maybe I'm just doing it wrong or maybe I'm boring. Who knows. lol But for me, it wasn't worth the money. Joanne Stewarthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17708364499624604625noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9023937099212820339.post-51110729236324113122016-07-05T15:09:47.514-04:002016-07-05T15:09:47.514-04:00Hi Alison!
Fantastic topic. I too created a page...Hi Alison! <br /><br />Fantastic topic. I too created a page years ago (because I was told that what was you did...so I did it. lol) and I am really frustrated with it's reach. I have 2000 likes, but even when I'm authentic, I'm lucky if Facebook shows it to 50 people. Now, I've also shared some things there that, for reasons I can't figure out, got me several hundred "views." Which is the frustrating part. Facebook's constant changing of the rules. <br /><br />That being said...I do tend to keep mine to mostly my author stuff. Mostly because I've noticed that those are the posts that get the most interaction (likes, etc).<br /><br />I do get some likes here and there (random likes not connected to promo, I mean). Just recently Facebook has begun to tell me when someone visits my page. It's not many, mind. lol But it is some. So for me at least, I do think it's worth it. It's also worth it for me, because I noticed when I want to look up an author, I go to one of two places: their website and/or their Facebook page. <br /><br />Oh, as for the time it takes...it did take time to set it up, but as a whole it's not anymore trouble or time than posts to my profile. Joanne Stewarthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17708364499624604625noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9023937099212820339.post-67923455011289226912016-07-05T14:47:28.552-04:002016-07-05T14:47:28.552-04:00Hi, Amanda! Thanks so much for stopping by. It sou...Hi, Amanda! Thanks so much for stopping by. It sounds like your author page is a resounding success, judging by the engagement and blog post shares. I'm sure you'll see major growth after your book releases. I'm not sure I could match that, but I'll never know if I don't try.Alison Hendersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12725250883303287946noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9023937099212820339.post-24574001973153466282016-07-05T14:44:07.437-04:002016-07-05T14:44:07.437-04:00That's a lot of Likes, Beth! From what everyon...That's a lot of Likes, Beth! From what everyone is saying, it does sound like boosting posts is necessary from time to time.Alison Hendersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12725250883303287946noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9023937099212820339.post-85701057675915981192016-07-05T13:48:04.569-04:002016-07-05T13:48:04.569-04:00Allison this is a great post as this is a debated ...Allison this is a great post as this is a debated topic among writers. I am a new author with my first book due out this fall. I already had a well-established personal FB page under my real name and did not want to bombard my family and friends with book stuff. So I created my pen name and business Facebook page a year ago. I am up to 269 likes on my FB page...it grows slowly over time. My posts are well hit --not all but most. I'm ignorant of the algorithm FB uses, but it will alert me if a post is engaging. More often and not that happens. Any post where I provide real news-- my progress getting a book published, a query of friends on whether they like something or not, a blog posts--tend to be engaging and are shared well beyond my fan base. For instance, my most recent blog was shared with 346 people, well beyond my actual fan base. I have paid to boost blog posts but don't do that often right now since I don't have a book for purchase yet. But I will do this for important news -- cover reveal and pre-order link, for instance. I think it is well worth the expenditure to have people checking out the book. The only down size to having a business page is you can't like individual users as your business page. You can only follow other pages. Good luck with your decision but I would suggest you think big and go with the business page:)Amanda Uhlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10616582323589752489noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9023937099212820339.post-80747146487441116032016-07-05T13:31:08.655-04:002016-07-05T13:31:08.655-04:00Yep, it's a conundrum. I have both pages. A lo...Yep, it's a conundrum. I have both pages. A lot of friends, plus no idea who a lot of these people are, on my personal page and 2,250 likes/fans on my author page. I do a heap more with my personal page and have to remember the other. I do boost posts sometime. I have to or FB keeps a lot of people from seeing much of anything over there.Beth Trisselhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13742049964476824594noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9023937099212820339.post-12734645748850115292016-07-05T13:19:45.499-04:002016-07-05T13:19:45.499-04:00Liz, that's kind of what I expect will happen ...Liz, that's kind of what I expect will happen if create an author page. I have no expectation of becoming a bestselling author, and at this stage of life, I'm not too interested in knocking myself out trying. I would, however, be happy if more people read my books. It's a conundrum. Alison Hendersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12725250883303287946noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9023937099212820339.post-46755298216365762172016-07-05T13:06:41.587-04:002016-07-05T13:06:41.587-04:00I have both, but I don't have big numbers on e...I have both, but I don't have big numbers on either. I tend to forget about my author page (hanging head here) and I don't have a street team at all. I might be more successful if I'd learn and do more, but I'm kind of past the point of worrying overmuch about it. I'm going to write if I'm a bestselling author and I'm going to write if I'm not.<br /><br />Great post, Alison, and a wonderful topic of discussion.Liz Flahertyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06794565644883272260noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9023937099212820339.post-66720769018249388002016-07-05T12:49:01.114-04:002016-07-05T12:49:01.114-04:00Rolynn, I've reached the same point. I'm g...Rolynn, I've reached the same point. I'm getting more willing to spend a little money to see if it will make any difference. For the past 5 years since I've been published, I've pretty much avoided spending any money, because I wanted my writing to at least break even. That's kept the whole enterprise VERY small, fiscally speaking. What I'm pondering now is how much I want that to change and what I'm willing to do about it.Alison Hendersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12725250883303287946noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9023937099212820339.post-82842830311781892142016-07-05T12:44:56.130-04:002016-07-05T12:44:56.130-04:00Jannine, the access to data is one of the main app...Jannine, the access to data is one of the main appeals for me. I have no idea how to get likes for an author page, although lots of FB paid ads seem to have that as the "call to action" (don't I sound marketing savy? LOL). But your experience is about what I would anticipate, so I'm struggling to decide if it's worth it for me.Alison Hendersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12725250883303287946noreply@blogger.com