Seeking A Twitter Breakthrough

I’ve been waiting for a Twitter breakthrough when suddenly it all becomes crystal clear this Tweeting phenomenon. I opened a Twitter account three years ago. It lay fallow for the first two years. I would occasionally log in watch the Tweets and wonder why? The endless mundane comments surrounding the minutia of people’s ordinary uninteresting everyday lives all seemed like a waste of my time.

Obviously a generational thing as a Boomer the Millennial fad amounted to nothing more than nonsense. I had the same sentiments toward Facebook but that proved me wrong so I was willing to give it a chance. Facebook’s value revealed it power and purpose when I began to reconnect while my college pals and enjoyed the ability to correspond on a daily basis. Social Media had not impressed me until I attended a writer’s conference three years and heard the buzz about Social Media. It could help build your writer’s platform and your brand.

The Facebook breakthrough came early on. I soon launched a Kickstarter project to cover printing cost of my first novel. Facebook proved to be an incredible tool in attracting donors. Now the challenge becomes is to use Twitter to help develop a readership. Facebook offers greater advantages interacting with friends who have profiles and pictures aiding relationship building without the 140 character limitation. Twitter profiles are often vague, blank, or indistinct. You know very little about your followers.

I was befuddled as to how to build relationships and how Twitter would enhance my writer’s platform. Then about a year ago things began to change as I started to recognize relationships. I began to make a conscious effort and discovered the more time I was logged in, the more I observed and participated the more followers I attracted. The problem is finding your niche interest and followers with whom I had common interest. With a mere 200 followers I’m not there yet. I think its like swimming you just have to wade in and practice until you learn how to stay afloat.

I came to recognize the value of Twitter when it brought me face to face with a celebrity actor author whom I had admired and followed. Recently he tweeted he was doing a book signing at the Convention Center downtown. This was an opportunity I acted on immediately and came away thinking, wow, if only I could get people to come to my book signings on a moments notice that would be a breakthrough.

I have a twofold Twitter goal for the next year, (1) to build relationships with followers that will help promote my books, and (2) implement business and marketing strategies to get results. I will monitor my progress in terms of following and followers pursuing that breakthrough. Currently with 196 followers and 489 in a years time I hope to report the milestone and progress in pursuit of that breakthrough. Not only will I be staying afloat but doing laps.