Twitter is an often missing, or at least under-valued, weapon in the author’s marketing arsenal.
Some folks sneer that they’re “not interested in reading about what other people had for breakfast.”
(This is, btw, one of the five worst excuses for not using Twitter)
If you don’t really have any other reason to use Twitter, this attitude is okay.
If, however, you have books to sell, you shouldn’t sneer at anything that can build your readership! In fact, social networking guru Robert Scoble, says that "Twitter is way under-hyped and is worth more in the marketplace than anyone has estimated yet."First, however, there are a couple of things to keep in mind:
If you plan to use twitter solely to sell a book, don’t bother signing up. If you’re not willing to post valuable content, both on Twitter and on a supporting site (website, blog, etc), don’t bother signing up. If you want to build a massive readership overnight, with very little effort…don’t bother signing up.
Here’s the reason…you’re not going to mention your book on Twitter. That’s not what Twitter is about.
Unless you want to commit social-networking suicide, you don’t stumble into a site like Twitter wearing a sign that shouts, “HI! CAN I SELL YOU SOMETHING?”
If you’re willing to invest some time to build a targeted readership, a following of people who are interested specifically in what you have to say, and passively sell to folks who go looking for your books (instead of having them waved in their faces) then, by all means, keep reading.
You see, what you’re going to “sell” on Twitter, is not your books. It’s your expertise, your relationship, and your personality. You can’t make people buy anything, but you can make them want to know more about you, and a big part of you is your books.
If you’re interested in leveraging Twitter to help build a readership and a passive income stream, make sure to come back and read Using Twitter to build a readership - Part Two.
Thanks,
Here’s the whole series: Using Twitter to build a readership – Part One, Part Two, Part Three, and Part Four. (Thanks @LynetteBenton)
If you’re ready to jump in, or are interested in learning more about how to set up your own Twitter account, check out this great eHow article.
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