Thursdays with Amanda: Social Media Critiques, Part 13
Amanda Luedeke is a literary agent with MacGregor Literary. Every Thursday, she posts about growing your author platform. You can follow her on Twitter @amandaluedeke or join her Facebook group to stay current with her wheelings and dealings as an agent. Her author marketing book, The Extroverted Writer, is available from Amazon andBarnes & Noble.
I’ve got a special thing going on over at my Facebook page…Submit your novel’s opening line TODAY and I’ll give free feedback! Check it out, and I hope to see you all participate.
Okay, diving into some more social media critiques:
1. Ardis Nelson provided her website and Facebook page
- I feel there are too many options on your site’s navigation. Music, Current Projects, and Resources could probably be done without. They just don’t provide much to the reader, while they clutter the site and distract us from the book!
- What incentive does the reader have for visiting this site? It’s very much focused on you, but readers are selfish! They want to know what’s in it for THEM. What will they get out of reading your blog. What will they learn?
- Again, I’m not quite sure what readers get out of frequenting your Facebook page. Think about rewarding them for their time with tips, advice, interactive questions, giveaways, and more.
RECOMMENDATIONS: I’d try focusing less on yourself and more on your readers. By including them in the conversation, I think you’ll find your online experience will be much more lively.
2. Jo Huddleston provided her website and Facebook page
- This is a funny comment, but the image at the top of your site is realllllly big 🙂
- Think about eliminating some of your pages and tabs. For example “Mail” can be made part of the “Contact” page and “My Thoughts” seems to fit more naturally into your “Blog”
- Until I get to your “Books” page, it’s not very clear what you write
- For Facebook, you shouldn’t be using your personal profile. I encourage you to create a professional page where you can best interact with fans.
RECOMMENDATIONS: Your site could use a redesign, and it could be cleaned up. For maximum impact on Facebook, try starting a professional page. It’s a great way to interact with fans.
3. Well Rounded Home provided their Blog
- I really like how this blog is organized! I never felt lost. Everything was clear to me.
- I take it you don’t have a book you’re promoting? That’s fine! Just wanted to make sure.
- I think you could post more pics of your home and family to your blog! I think readers want to see more of you.
- Content on our blog NEEDS to focus on your goal of providing insights and help on parenting, homemaking, etc. Anything that doesn’t fall into these main categories (like a Kenny Chesney music Monday) should be left out. 🙂
RECOMMENDATIONS: You have the framework! Now fill this awesome space with content that hits home on reader expectations. And then promote the heck outta it.
What thoughts do YOU have on these sites? And how do you find content that fits your readership?
5 Comments
Thanks so much for the advice and review of my blog. I’ve been thinking about cutting the Music Monday series. I enjoy doing it but was starting to feel it was out of place. Your review confirms what I was thinking. Staying focused and on on topic is something I often struggle with. I don’t currently have a book, but am writing one now and trying to build up my social media presence in the interim.
This is very helpful. I’ve been blogging for a few months, and I’m still figuring out my site. Understanding what’s valuable to readers and what agents/editors look for is helpful. Thanks for sharing this!
Hey, if you provide value to readers, then the editors and agents will be on board for sure!
I’m about to redesign my webpage/blog and have just created a professional page so your comments on the different websites will really help. Thanks.
Great!