In this social media era and indie author world, it is hard for writers to make their brand stay and it’s even harder to get noticed. However, there’s a place on Facebook where one can!

Likes, Join & Follows

Have you noticed how hard it is nowadays to get a “Like” on Facebook or get someone to “Join” your FB group or even “Follow” your page? It is quite hard as an indie author, artist, musician and any independent profession.

That’s because of the algorithm factor. Facebook has now paid advertisement, and that is hurting many of us independent and freelance people. Not only does Facebook hide promotional posts from “Professional Pages” they also hide the indie community when they pay for advertisement favorizing those who pay more.

The average affordable paid advertisement on Facebook gets the indie professional’s ad to be seen by about 30% of the people who already follow the page and has little to no impact on the remaining 70% that doesn’t know about him or her.

Sad isn’t it?

Facebook isn’t the best place to have your next breakthrough unless you join groups of the same interest and engage with others. Best thing to do is to use Facebook as a tool to build your network, not your audience.

The Others

Pinterest has great potential for many indie professionals and is also a remarkable place to pay for an ad. It has excellent reviews from people. Pinterest is direct to the point, and when readers are looking for books, they mostly don’t care about who wrote it, but the look of the ad. Pinterest is all about the “look.” Chances are, indie professionals can get way more “Pins” from people in one day than with Facebook in a month.

Mix is quite similar to Pinterest but not as profitable and popular despite following its same type of sharing. I mean, is it hard to get people to notice you on Mix? Yes, and the reason is that there are fewer people and the chances to share the same interest can vary.

Twitter according to some indie authors I know, are quite active and gets a lot out of the author community, and some pay to have their advertisement on Twitter. It is very personal as to know if you like it or not due to it being a microblog and the restraint of words. Also, in its genre, Twitter doesn’t have competition.

Instagram, oh Instagram. Well, it belongs to Facebook for one thing. It is inconvenient to re-share post, and it is a mobile app restrained by its mobile obligations, i.e. Instagram can’t be on iPads or Tablets. It is quite stuck in one place. However, it has been quite good for authors and indie artists. It’s all about the visual, a little like Pinterest. Many pay to have advertisement because of Instagram’s simplicity to use for the masses.

As for Tumblr it is “dying” for many subjects due to drastic changes that occurred. The algorithms are hurting quite a large number of indie authors who prefer to leave the platform instead of working around it as it isn’t worth the effort for many people.

Tumblr is now known for its RPG and Fan Fiction as well as Poetry and mostly teen and young adults’ audience.

Google+ is now in the past when it faced reality that Facebook would still be #1 and let’s face it, despite MeWe trying to make its entrance, unless the interface changes to be more friendly and accessible for sharing and exchanging with other people, it’ll stay far behind the others with a limitation of its participants.

What About WordPress?

Blogs are the way of the future for the indie community. However, with so many out there provided by WordPress and Wix, it is hard to make your place without proper knowledge of SEO and Marketing Tools. There are websites like ours Gothic Bite Magazine that share the work of other indie artists, authors, and editors but again, it’s all about being viewed.

Well, here it is WordPress Bloggers Promotions for Writers and Authors.

This place is a group on Facebook founded by Gemma Dupont. She created this sanctuary for all authors and bloggers to gather and support one another by sharing, liking, following and spreading the word. It is essential in the indie community to show support.

With the #1 social media turning against its indie professionals, it is more important than ever to prove that word to mouth and support are the #1 advertisement.

My blog has reached more viewers, readers, and followers since I joined this group and it also helps to create a network. An author might find a book blogger, just like a Trekker might find a good sci-fi magazine. It’s simple as that.

WordPress Bloggers is welcoming, and there are no shenanigans. People do follow and like your articles. The system can work as long as the people joining the group are genuine in their intentions and ready to support others.

You’re not “Madonna,” so if you join us you must be ready to share your posts and take the time to share others’ posts and like those. Reciprocating is the key here. This little gem of a Facebook group is one of the reasons I still have some hope for its soul.

So, if you need a right place to help your blog get some popularity, this one is the best I’ve seen so far. A great idea and filled with good people.

The OCD Vampire,
Arielle Lyon