June 02, 2013

Marketing with Facebook – Not All Business - M. Laycock


I signed up on Facebook when my daughter stopped answering her regular emails. Now I use it more than she does and I confess I have become quite addicted.

When I discovered many authors were using FB as a marketing platform I checked out a number of author pages to see how they were doing it. I decided to do the same and found it was quite easy to set it up.

First, I chose a header banner – I picked a photo I’d taken that I really liked, then selected a photo of myself to insert in the small icon that appears in the lower left corner. I posted a couple of interesting articles I’d read on writing and I was away to the races. The next step was to invite my ‘friends’ to like my author page. This was a little tricky until FB invited me to create a url for the page that linked directly to it. Now it’s easy to put that link into messages and every time a Christian writer asks to be my friend I ask them to like that page.

I began to pick up on some tips from others about what and how to post on the page. Three things seemed to become a refrain:

1. Don’t just make it all about your books – post articles, quotes, tips, funny and inspirational items that you think would be of interest to your fans and other writers.

2. Post links and articles related to the content of you book(s).

3. Let your fans know when exciting things happen in your writing life but share the struggles too.

I love facebook. I love connecting with readers and writers through my page and have found it can be not only fun but inspiring and fulfilling. Sometimes it can lead to unexpected friendships. When I was about to attend Write!Canada last year I wanted to boost my numbers on my author page, knowing the editors and publishers I spoke with would ask about them. So I ran a contest, putting out a notice as the numbers climbed, offering a free book for the 300th person to like the page. I forgot that FB is an international forum so when the winner sent me her snail mail address I was a little shocked. She lives in Tasmania!

I knew it would cost me more to mail the book than the book itself costs, but it was kind of thrilling to know my work would be enjoyed way Downunder. So I sent the book and began following that woman’s status posts. I was delighted to find a funny young mom who often writes about her two delightful kids and we began to correspond. Then one day she posted a question on her page – “anyone ever been to Head-smashed-in-buffalo-jump?” She was coming to Canada and wanted to know about some of the places she’d been reading about. When I discovered she was coming to Alberta I offered a B&B experience in our home and she was thrilled. I can’t wait to meet her and her family.

My decision to use FB as a marketing tool was all about business but it has become much more - it has become a lot of fun.

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Marcia Lee Laycock writes from central Alberta where she is a pastor's wife and mother of three adult daughters. She was the winner of The Best New Canadian Christian Author Award for her novel, One Smooth Stone and also has two devotional books in print. Her work has been endorsed by Sigmund Brouwer, Janette Oke, Phil Callaway and Mark Buchanan. Marcia's second novel, A Tumbled Stone has just been short listed in the contemporary fiction category of The Word Awards. Abundant Rain, an ebook devotional for writers can be downloaded here. Visit Marcia's website

6 comments:

  1. Thanks for sharing the practical tips, Marcia. I also enjoyed the story of your new friend from Tasmania. Facebook and other Social Media sites enable us to develop relationships with people we'd never interact with otherwise. Through Twitter I've met some wonderful new friends and have also been invited as a speaker to events I may not have been otherwise.

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  2. Marcia, I appreciated the 'how-to' tips for setting up an author facebook page and so enjoyed the story of your new friendship with the lady from Tasmania. I love how social media connects us to people we would never meet otherwise.

    Thanks for a great posting!

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  3. This is really interesting - thanks, Marcia. I'm a Facebook fan too and, as soon as I finish a book someday, will start of an author page. Great tips!

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  4. You left us with some great tips (practical ones too) and I also enjoyed the personal anecdotes!

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  5. This is a great Facebook-connection story, Marcia! I'm glad you give tips about a "writer" Facebook page--thanks!

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  6. Very interesting post. Thanks for sharing your thought. I also use Facebook marketing for my business but some time just for fun also.
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