Happy Writer's Hump Day Wednesday! It's been some time since I've sat down to write a blog post. If you're accustomed to reading my blog, often times I share my #MotivationMonday blog post on a weekly basis. However, I recently have been on maternity leave, and as you can imagine writing my blog post has taken a backseat. With that said, I wanted to start back writing a weekly post by sharing tips, words of wisdom, and more. One thing that will change is that the post will come on any day of the week. It seems sometimes we all may need a little encouragement, motivation, inspiration, advice, and I want to be able to share that with you and connect on any day of the week. So, just know that my Monday blog post, is now evolving into a publication that is much more fluid and flexible. Now, with that out of the way, today, I want share three ways I've grown my following on social media organically. If you've been trying to figure out how to do it, you're not alone, and although my methods are not failure proof or will cause your list of followers to skyrocket. I have found that following these tips have helped me grow my page consistently. With that said, I would rather grow my following with eager and engaged followers that are genuinely interested in my content and work than the alternative. If you'd like the same for your page, keep reading!
Tip #1: Never Pay For Followers
I realize there are many people that may think that I'm crazy, and that paying a fee to increase your following is ok. That may be true for some people, just not me. I pride myself on growing my following organically because, I have done it organically. I also get a lot of followers that "follow / unfollow", and that's super annoying, and I've also participated in a number of writer's "follow-loops," as well to grow my following. In terms of the writer's loops, I like them, but I always find it fascinating when the post usually instructs you to not "follow / unfollow." Only to find, many of the authors I've followed, follow long enough to get you to follow them, and maybe a month or two later they unfollow. It's laughable because, if you follow me, I will follow you, and engage with you too, but please understand, if you unfollow, I will know, and I will unfollow you immediately. Also, I always block and delete the Instagram "bot" profiles that say, "promote it on..." such and such page. It is annoying the rate of which these profiles are created, but it is necessary to keep them from showing up on your page. So, moral of the story is never pay for followers, stay on top of who follows you genuinely, and block the bots.
Tip #2: Maintain Original and Authentic Content
As writers, authors, we are also content creators and we are constantly fighting for the eyes of our target audience. I will be honest, it is difficult having to generate daily content, but the lack of doing so will affect your relevance. Also, it will cause you to lose followers. It amazes me how fickle and "elastic" (economic term, LOL) this KPI (key performance indicator) can be to my impact and reach as an author and content creator. There's tons of free information out there to help guide you learn what to create, when to create based on your audience's preferences, and how to go about it too! But, when you're just getting started, it's difficult to know where to start, and honestly, you will likely read everything (at least I did and still do, LOL!), and it will become daunting and overwhelming. So, here's a few suggestions that I've learned along the way, and I've believe these suggestions can be transferrable because, I've used them for clients that are in completely different industries than my own. Firstly, share original information about your industry and/or journey. Secondly, follow up with facts and statistics about the industry, a motivational quote, or share something humorous. You should also, alternate the day of when you share this type of content. Finally, be consistent. Your followers will begin to become accustomed to your content, and they will expect it and respect it. Never share random content that does not align with your brand. It will confuse your followers, and as a result, you will lose them. For instance, my followers, expect a motivational quote and some type of affirmation on my page everyday, and every so often I share a blog post like this or information about my books. On my social media pages, I'm very intentional about what I share and it's always generally the same type of content. I also share my content in creative ways, and I don't deviate into sharing content that is inconsistent with my brand or what they are used to. This has helped me to retain followers, and gain new ones, as well.
Tip #3: Engage with Your Followers
Finally, it is imperative to engage with your followers. They want to communicate with you, and they will if you put forth a call to action to obtain their perspective. I love when "M.A.I. Tribe" (as I affectionately like to call them) shares their thoughts, comments, and experiences with me. It makes for a more meaningful relationship. Remember, if your followers comment on your post, respond right away because, if they took the time to comment on your post be courteous enought to follow up. It mean the difference between retaining or losing a follower...seriously.
In conclusion, I believe when you bring these three elements together, you'll create a dynamic environment that is difficult to deny of it's value. Also, you will find that your following will grow rapid rate. Following each of these steps in some capacity, has helped me to grow my social media following organically and steadily over the last 4 years, since starting my writing journey.
If you didn't know, I recently released the third book in The Purple Charm Series called, Perfect Chemistry. Want to read it? Click the button to get your copy now!