I’m a children’s author, ghostwriter, rewriter, and coach, and a former online author platform instructor with WOW! Women on Writing.
Because of this, I pay attention to marketing.
Not too long ago, I listened to a webinar presented by Ilise Benun, a self-marketing expert on the AWAI website.
The topic, while a couple of years old, was on using LinkedIn as part of your marketing strategy. After listening to it, I believe the information is still relevant today.
I like LinkedIn. Did you know it’s also a search engine for professionals?
In fact, it’s the only social media network where I’ve gotten work.
Benun started her talk with ‘word of mouth’.
For years, one of the most consistently mention marketing tools was word of mouth.
Well, according to Benun, word of mouth is considered a passive form of marketing. “A euphemism for whatever comes along.”
You need to be proactive in your marketing, and a key element of that strategy is to use social media. And, this is important whether you’re selling books, services, or products.
How do you use social media effectively?
While the webinar focused on LinkedIn, these tips can be applied to any platform you’re marketing yourself and your books, services, or products.
Keep in mind that the primary purpose of marketing on social media is to find prospects and position yourself to attract them as clients or customers.
Before I go on, I’d like to clarify the distinction between a client and a customer.
According to Small Business Chron, “Customers buy on price and value. Clients buy on experience and trust.”
I love this explanation because it’s so easy to understand.
Someone buying my book “How to Write a Children’s Fiction Book” is a customer.
Someone paying for my children’s ghostwriting services is a client.
Simple. Right? And, see how I worked in some promotion. 😊
Okay, back to LinkedIn social media marketing.
- Your Profile.
As mentioned, you want to find prospects, whether clients or customers, and get them to buy from you or use your services.
To do that, you need to position yourself.
You need to set yourself apart from other businesses or services that offer the same thing. You do this using your LinkedIn profile (and all your other social media profiles).
A. The title
According to Benun, this is prime real estate. It should convey exactly what you want a prospect to see.
This information will usually be your name unless your business is more identifiable to the public.
I’ll stray from this webinar to what Neil Patel has to say about your social media profile.
According to Patel:
B. Your username and URL.
Keep in mind that you’re creating a brand that needs to be consistent.
I admit I didn’t take care when creating my social media usernames.
On LinkedIn, it’s Karen Cioffi-Ventrice
On Twitter, it’s KarenCV.
On Facebook, it’s Karen Cioffi writing for children
On Pinterest, it’s Karen Cioffi
Unfortunately, once you create your username, you’re stuck with it. At least that’s usually the case.
If I had to do it over, I’d be Karen Cioffi, Children’s Ghostwriter on everything.
Think it through before creating a username and be consistent throughout your branding. On mine, the only thing consistent is my first name.
My URL is the same for all networks.
C. Your profile picture.
You can choose between your headshot and your logo.
I did a combination. I had a caricature done at a wedding and decided to use it as part of my children’s writing branding. The problem, though, it’s not professional.
It looks pretty good, but he must have hiccupped when he came to my chin. So, I touched it up myself, and it looks better. One day, though, I need to get it professionally done.
Additionally, when using your logo, there may be instances where you need to use an actual headshot for interviews or joint ventures, so be prepared with a professional one. That’s something else I have to take care of.
Use whatever you’re most identifiable with or what you want to be identifiable with.
D. Your link.
Your link needs to be considered carefully. Where do you want to direct prospects?
You can send people to your landing page, sales page, opt-in page, or any other page. Whichever it is, it should be a page that will motivate the visitor to take action.
I use my landing page, which is also kind of a sales page; I direct people to that page on all my social networks.
Back to the webinar.
- The summary or about information.
The ‘about information’ section is where you can go into detail, depending on how many words or characters you’re allotted.
LinkedIn provides you with enough space to get into it, so take advantage of it.
Many copywriters write their summaries in first-person, and some make them more personal and creative than others.
This section is where you include keywords and address what the prospect needs to convince them you’re the right fit for the job.
Benun also advises including the term ‘expert’ if you believe you are an expert in your field. She said it makes a difference.
I recently revised my LinkedIn profile, but I don’t remember if I used the word ‘expert.’ I’ll have to check it.
Also, use call-to-actions. Let the prospects know what action you want them to take. And speak directly to your best prospect, using the word ‘you’ a lot.
And, be sure to include your contact information in the summary, even if it’s not clickable.
- Your background or cover image.
Your background and cover image are also essential branding elements, and they must be consistent across your platform.
Below is my social media banner for all my networks. It’s an older version, but the colors and basics are all the same:
I chose the colors specifically and created the design with Laughingbird software.
Your header, background image, and banner will tell a lot about your business. As of the writing of this article, the dimensions of a LinkedIn banner are 1400 x 425 pixels.
Don’t leave the social network’s default image.
- Be active and post on LinkedIn.
I post every day to LinkedIn. I use Buffer.com for automated posting. I do the same for Twitter and Facebook.
I also post updates to LinkedIn and my other networks through social media buttons on my site. It’s also beneficial to post long-form articles to LinkedIn.
Again, LinkedIn is a search engine.
Other places I post articles are Google and AuthorsDen. I only do this once in a while, but it keeps me visible and makes me appear active.
- Share and Recommend.
Share the content of others on LinkedIn.
I do this almost every day, whether on LinkedIn itself or if I’m reading an article on a website. If it’s valuable, I always share.
You should also recommend others if you know their work is high-quality. If you do, the person will most likely be willing to recommend you.
Why not go over all your social network profiles and make sure they’re up to date and working for you.
I’m a working children’s ghostwriter, rewriter, and coach. I can help turn your story into a book you’ll be proud to be the author of, one that’s publishable and marketable.
OTHER HELP I OFFER:
HOW TO WRITE A CHILDREN'S FICTION BOOK
A 200+ book that will help you write your own children’s book.
FICTION WRITING FOR CHILDREN eCOURSE
4, 8, or 12 Weeks / 8 Sections Guided Self-Study Program
WRITERS ON THE MOVE SELF-PUBLISHING SERVICE
Self-publishing help for children’s authors
(Picture books and chapter books)
You can contact me at kcioffiventrice@gmail.com.
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