As we enter a new technological age, many authors are now using social media tools to promote their works and engage their readers around the world. While most wordsmiths find these tools effective in making their work become viral online, others have difficulties.

A problem that most writers face is the lack of knowledge of the websites that they are using. Some of them think that posting a picture of their book is enough to excite readers or having more followers on Twitter means that you will earn more. In this post, you will learn about social media myths and the truth behind them.

Myth 1: Flooding a follower’s news feed is an effective marketing strategy. Apparently, it’s not. Although it is important that you post numerous tweets or share information on Facebook, too much of something is still bad. Your readers might reject your profile if you flood them with too much information.

The best way to prevent this is by scheduling your posts. An ideal schedule would be updating your status every 3 to 4 hours. If you really want a lot of people to see the things you share, you can repost some of them every 8 to 10 hours.

Myth 2: Marketing is too time-consuming. It will be, IF you waste hours chasing every trendy website and social media fad. Avoid practicing the “shotgun method” – you might definitely hit something with this technique, but you will surely miss more.

You only need a small amount of time daily to effectively market your works. The secret to success is defining your niche, locating your target market, and sharing relevant information that you and your readers will find interesting.

Myth 3: Every kind of social media website is the same. Although every social media website is effective for connecting with readers and marketing your works, each has different functions and advantages.

Twitter is about perspective and sharing information on current events. Pinterest is for pinning interesting visuals to your networks, and Google+ is for spreading your passions and finding good relations using common interests. Knowing their differences will help you utilize these tools to their full potential.

Myth 4: You can pay someone else to do it for you. A good thing about social media is that it lets you interact directly with your readers. Why would you hire a middle man to do it for you? It might make things a little bit easier for you. However, your fans will not appreciate it if you do that. If you cannot handle multiple social media accounts at the same time, don’t strain yourself. You can just start with one or two accounts first. As long as you can connect with your readers, that is just fine.

To wrap things up

Social media networks can be very effective tools to promote your works and connect with your readers. However, one needs to be smart about using it. In order to maximize their full potential, authors need to find creative and resourceful methods of using them. Keep yourself updated with social media trends so that you know how to use them properly.