Ready for a Social Media Clean-Up? Here’s How To Go About It

Ready for a Social Media Clean-Up? Here's How To Go About It by @BadRedheadMedia

It’s the end of the year, so why not take a little downtime (haha, what’s that) and clean up your author bios and social media accounts? Is it worth the time? Well, let me put it this way: don’t you want to connect with readers, aka people who will buy your book? Additionally, clean up time is a great way to update old links, outdated graphics, and any other information you need to be on top of for ultimate SEO and exposure.

As we’ve discussed in the past, many writers follow only other writers and then complain at the amount of “Buy my book!” spam they receive. To stop that from happening, unfollow all but the writers you interact with regularly.

What about Facebook, Pinterest, and Instagram and LinkedIn? Your Amazon Author Central Page and Website About Page? We’ll cover those, too. Let’s get started.

*Note: This is a quick and dirty list. By all means, do much more if you want. 

Social Media: Twitter 

  • Is your bio complete? Is it updated? You have 160 characters to use in your bio, so make the most of it. You can add an additional link (that will hyperlink and show up in Search) so add your book link or Facebook or whatever you want here. Add a few pertinent hashtags, but don’t make it unreadable.
  • Have you created an interesting display name yet? You now have up to 50 characters.
  • How long as it been since you updated your pinned tweet? Unless it’s really popular (as mine is on @RachelintheOC, with over 3K retweets, so I leave it there), change it up to ensure the info is still relevant.
  • Is your header graphic updated? Is it hi-res? Do the colors pop? You can hire someone on Fiverr to do a decent header for $5 or create one on Canva. Do you have a good avatar pic? Show your face. People connect with faces.
  • How is your follower ratio? When was the last time you cleaned up inactives, no-faces (used to be called ‘eggs’), and fakes? I recommend using ManageFlitter (they have a limited free option, though it’s worth it for the cheap Pro version). The best way to grow on Twitter is to follow others with similar interests. Build relationships, don’t hard sell. 
  • Audit your last twenty tweets: how many contained links? If you have a link in every tweet, you’re violating Twitter’s Terms of Service, aka the Twitter Rules. Figure out how to share different types of content. Links are not the only thing you can share: tweet quotes (yours and others), retweet others, interact with people, comment on trending topics, create Moments from interesting tweets on a particular topic…the only limit is your own imagination.
  • Want a verified account? Sorry, that’s on hold. Stay tuned for updates (Go to the Help Section anytime or read their blog).

Social Media: Facebook Page

  • When was the last time you updated your Author Page header? Clicked on your header and added all your links? (I didn’t even know I could do this until someone told me). Not sure the size? Here’s a handy infographic to use for all your social media headers.

See below:

How to Edit Your Facebook Page Header, @BadRedheadMedia, Rachel Thompson

How to edit your Facebook Author Page, @BadRedheadMedia, Rachel Thompson, Author

  • Just as above: how complete is your bio? How about your About page? Avatar photo? Have you added/connected Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, and YouTube? Have you activated Notes? *If you’re not sure how to do all this, go into the About Section of your page and you’ll see Notes. To connect your other social media, I recommend the free version of WooBox.
  • TIP: Want to make a little money every time someone purchases your book? If you haven’t already (and why haven’t you?), create an Amazon Affiliate account. Every time you share your link (here, for example), use your affiliate (aka, Associates) link. If someone makes a purchase, you’ll make a few pennies.
  • Do you have a CTA (Call to Action) button (e.g., Shop Now) in your header? Again, use that affiliate link!
  • Did you create an Author Page (not a Business Page or something else)? A personalized username? I don’t recommend creating Pages every time you release a book. Why? That’s a lot for you (and your readers) to keep track of. One author, one page. Promote whichever book is newest or on sale at that time.
  • Do you feel you deserve a verified account? Fill out the forms. You can only get a GRAY verification button for Pages, BLUE for Personal Accounts. You cannot do both. They want your first-born and a million dollars (kidding). Just proof of birth (seriously) and a few other things.
  • Not sure what to post? Facebook’s Help Section is basic but informative. Take a look.
  • Have ‘Friends’ left Facebook? The only way to find out is to scroll through your ‘Friends’ and if there’s a blank photo for their avatar, the account is deactivated (caution here: they may simply be taking a break). You are limited to a total of 5,000 friends on your Personal Account, so make sure you are regularly interacting with your ‘Friends.’

Social Media: Pinterest 

  • Does your demographic consist of women, men, or teens? You need to be on Pinterest. Women and teens are the largest demographic, but the male demo is growing over there. If you’re not there, start an account. It’s super easy. I recommend starting with a business account, which allows you to run ads (at some point) and get analytics.
  • If you have an account, when was the last time you went through your boards? I know some of my pins are old and outdated — so this is definitely on my clean-up list.
  • Are your boards all about you? Are they limited in range? Tastes change. Something I enjoyed three years ago, I may not be into now. It’s okay to delete boards, start new ones, etc. Pinterest is all about what you find interesting and want to share, but not all about you.
  • Confused how to start at all? Here’s a great post from Buffer. You can read more here on my blog also.

Next week I’ll cover updating Instagram and LinkedIn, and your author bio pages. If you have more tips, please leave them below!

For a more detailed plan on developing your book marketing, purchase Rachel’s newly updated
The BadRedhead Media 30-Day Book Marketing Challenge now on Amazon (and everywhere else online)! 
Readers’ Favorite Silver Award Winner! 

30Day-BadRedheadMedia-Book-Marketing-Challenge-2018-WEB

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3 Comments

  1. […] days, social media is a useful marketing tool for all authors. Rachel Thompson sets out how to go about a social media clean-up, while Frances Caballo advises writers to increase engagement in your marketing with visuals and […]

  2. Karen on January 8, 2018 at 7:38 am

    Hi Rachel. Love this. Could you just clarify the bit about too many Tweets with links violating the Twitter rules? Most of mine do (contain links) so I headed over to the rules and found the statement: “if your Tweets or Direct Messages consist mainly of links shared without commentary…” Surely this means just naked links, all on their lonesome. Not the type of links most of us share, with the title of the post (at least) and (usually) a description or comment?

    • Rachel Thompson on January 8, 2018 at 10:24 am

      Hi Karen — I don’t have that answer because nobody really knows. I personally err on the side of caution and mix in replies, visual quotes (with no links), and other non-linked tweets so it’s a good mix of linked and non-linked tweets. With regard to DMs, they are definitely looking to see if you are sending out an AutoDM (e.g., welcome, please buy my book, link). Don’t do that. Those accounts are being suspended.

      If you make it a good mix, you don’t need to worry.

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