Friday, October 25

Posted by Laurel Garver on Friday, October 25, 2013 11 comments
Last week I gave an informal presentation on using Goodreads and Twitter to a handful of my critique group members--all Gen X and Baby Boomers. Most of them tend to think of book marketing in purely brick and mortar paradigms, so book signings and school visits are where they believe all the action is.

Convincing them that social media is anything more than a time-suck hasn't been the easiest. Especially since making the most of some channels requires laying groundwork long before you have a book to sell.

Here are a few key benefits I pointed out for each of the two sites.

Goodreads (as a reader, pre-publication)
~A book-centric community
~Everyone on the site is naturally looking for reading material
~Learn what readers of your genre like and dislike
~Build relationships with those who like books similar to yours
~Win free books through the First Reads program
~Support other writers by posting reviews
~Build a network of support among readers and reviewers
~Develop goodwill in the publishing community

Twitter

~Easily access key influencers (best sellers, agents, editors)
~Find "your tribe" internationally
(tribe=group with natural affinities and interests)
~Easily connect to "your tribe"
~Share knowledge and encouragement (build goodwill)
~Generate traffic for a blog site
~Develop relationships with other writers
~Develop relationships with those interested in your topics and themes
~Listen in on important conversations
~Get great tips on writing, publishing, marketing
~Build effective presence in short bursts of time
~Utilize pithy writing rather than long pieces
~Support other writers easily through retweets

What other points would you add? 
Has using these sites opened special opportunities? I'd love to hear your stories!


11 comments:

  1. I like both of these sites! I engage more with other people, mostly writers and readers, on Twitter than on Goodreads, though. Goodreads is great for discovering new books and authors, and Twitter is great for conversation (and also discovering new books and authors!).

    Happy reading and writing! from Laura Marcella @ Wavy Lines

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    1. Have you tried any of the groups or book clubs on Goodreads? I haven't taken advantage of those much yet. I suspect they could also be great for relationship-building.

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  2. I don't use Goodreads beyond rating books I read. Love Twitter for establishing new friendships in my genre.

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    1. Your genre has designated chat sessions, correct? I should mention that as I type up my notes for the non-attenders. That is a great perk of Twitter.

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  3. I love Goodreads especially but i have a lot of respect (and awe) for Twitter. I can't seem to get my groove with Twitter, but I see it's importance, so I keep trying sporadically.

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    1. I'm with you there on both counts. I've met some really cool folks on goodreads--often by going to my favorite books and finding those who also loved it for the reasons I did--or had insights I hadn't considered. Twitter is tricky for me too and I'm still pretty sporadic using it. But it does have advantages other sites don't offer--like the ability to follow just about anyone (as long as you're polite and don't prompt being blocked).

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  4. I've been loving Goodreads for a while, and I just joined up with Twitter. I held off on Twitter for awhile because of all the stereotypes (teenage drama, dumb, time waster etc.), but since I've started using it, I'm seeing results! It's great:)

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    1. Interesting, your reasons for reticence with Twitter. For me it was the way the feed operates as a perpetual flow. That's intimidating to a slow thinker. I've somewhat gotten past that and like it as a place to find and share great information.

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  5. I haven't used Good Reads much at all so I could certainly use a tutorial. I like twitter because I love the community I've built there. Also wanted to let you know, I tagged you in a blog tour (no pressure) : )

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    1. Goodreads is a great place to meet book lovers of every stripe. I enjoy the fact that there are plenty of nonauthors to meet and hear from. I honestly learn a lot about writing--especially what drives readers batty--from reading reviews. There's so much more to get out of the site--I keep tripping across new things all the time there. Like, when you finish a book you enjoyed, you can recommend it to all friends or a select few. That's powerful!

      Popped over to see what I've been tagged for. Looks like fun. I'm in!

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