Self-Serve Marketing 101.5

I remember my first publisher telling me to get a website. I grasped the phone with both hands and said, "Yes, of course I can do that. No problem. Blogs too? Oh, yeah, sure."

My stomach twisted into a mass of conflicting emotions with scared like a frightened rabbit winning out. I didn't know how to build a website and I sure as heck couldn't do a blog.  After the panic attack died down I set to work. I did a little research and found Weebly. Excited, I realized I could make a website AND a blog all at the same location. I could even add an RSS feed so others could follow my blog.  Then I set up a twitter account (if you want to follow me I'm at @LounnCarroll.) I set up a Facebook page for my first Sci-fi book then promptly forgot I had it. I rediscovered it just a few weeks ago.  Then came the FB author page. Everyone keeps telling me that Facebook is a thing of the past, but I don't think so. People gravitate to what is easy. Facebook is about as uncomplicated as you can get. After all that was done, I connected everything together so if I posted just one thing, it would go to each site. The connecting program is Hootsuite.

I thought I was set: Website, Blog, Twitter account. Done. Finished. Kaput.  Now I could sit back and rest on my laurels somewhat like Julius Caesar before he was executed. Every day I'd head over to my beautiful  website and hang out. I'd change the colors, the decor, the feeling of the website. I even sent a few tweets but because I had no followers no one read me so really, I was just tweeting myself. For awhile, that was OK.

Over the years that has changed. At some point,  I had to market along with my publisher.  I had to get serious. So, I started reading on social media marketing. I followed other Twitter followers and they followed me. I set up a Facebook page for me personally and one for me as an author. I use both frequently. I found canva.com which allows me to make my own graphics. I'm still learning, but there is some really cool stuff out there. I figured out how to made Facebook graphics for marketing and post those to my personal site and to my author site.

Then I was asked to join groups like Triberr. There, bloggers get together and retweet each other's blogs. I just cleaned house on Twitter and I am almost at 2,000 followers. I'm not sure how many FB followers I have. I set up a Street Team that turned into www.threeheartsbearinggifts.weebly.com. Scarlett, Bettysue, and myself give things away. Why? Just because we want to. It's fun to see people smile. Is it marketing? Probably not, and it costs me money because I give away books, but hey, at my age, I can do whatever I want. :()

As far as marketing goes, it's a lot like my writing. I just sit at the computer and see where it goes. I have no plan, it just morphs into whatever it wants to be. I figure I am just the guide and I let the marketing and most times the authoring go wherever it intends to go.

I am just along for the ride.