Hi Goddesses
Firstly - oops! Has it been a whole month already? Shocking, sorry. These are quite wordy posts, and I've had a few weekends where I just wasn't feeling wordy.
Today's post is really the first in a 3 part arc, if you will, all pitched at how you increase your audience. Today we're going to look at social media. The other parts of the puzzle, which we'll look at in the next 2 episodes are Networking, and PiggyBacking.
So, let's look at the Social Media - Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, pinterest, Instagram, and Google+.
Facebook is an excellent blogging resource. I would always advocate having a page just for your blog, and there are several reasons for this.
Firstly, it helps you keep your nail obsession separate from the rest of your life - this way, you're not clogging up your personal newsfeed with a million mani shots. Also, it consolidates your identity. Suddenly, your blog gets a voice, and talks in soundbites.
Facebook makes it easy to share, and thus spread the word. How many times a day do you see people sharing other people's manis ? Answer, LOADS. Also, it's much easier to LIKE a photo than it is to comment on a blog, so often, it gives you a better representation of what your readers are thinking.
For me, Facebook really gives you the opportunity to give your blog a personality. FB is a chatty medium, and I love the way you can interact with your followers. I personally think that the blogs that are strong on Facebook are the ones I feel most loyal to - for some reason, I feel they are making more of an effort to connect with me, and build a relationship.
I'm going to be honest, I still don't "get" Twitter. Lol, it baffles me. I feel *bombarded* by it all. Lol, how old do I sound!!
However, loads of people love Twitter, and again, it's easy to share, or retweet. Better still, you can link Facebook to Twitter so that it uploads every post or status automatically, giving you 2 audiences for the price of one.
If I'm honest, I don't get much Twittering, but I think that's because I'm not super active myself.
Oh, Instagram! I have only discovered Instagram recently, but wow I am in love. Super easy, super chatty, this is an AWESOME way to connect with people, AND you can get it to feed directly to your Facebook page AND Twitter, so this time you get a triple audience whammy.
Frankly, I was shocked by what I found on Instagram. On Blogger, I think the biggest blogs I'm aware of have 10k followers. On IG, several have 30k+, 50k+, I've even seen 70k+. That's a phenomenal audience. In this instant gratification generation, IG is definitely a requirement, and I'd also recommend you get Statigr.am, so that you can track your stats.
Personally, they are the 3 I would choose / recommend, but wait, there's more ......
Tumblr - hmmmm. I'm not bought in, but I'm old fashioned, I like words. Mine used to be linked to my Facebook, which was great, but I've not been near it since the link broke! Seems old school compared to Instagram.
Pinterest - I do a LOT of pinning. If I'm honest, it doesn't buy me a lot of traffic, but I know a lot of other people who do get a lot of hits from it.
What I love most about pinterest is that not only can I store all my manis I'd like to try or reinterpret in a cool place, but also, that it's the best way I've ever found of storing my wishlist. It's a great way to realise you want 5 of exactly the same shade lol.
Google+ - the jury's still out on this one for me. Because I use Blogger, I'm automatically connected, so again, I don't actually have to consciously do anything to Google+ my post. I really don't see many people using this medium though, and I think Google need to work out what sort of a platform it is.
I guess I should also mention YouTube - for those who do it, this can be an outstanding platform - 0.5million plus. Me, I have too many chins for TV lol, so I'll stick to the blog, or find a way to YT without getting my face in the shot :)
Now, this is probably the most important thing of all - if you do use any of these social media you *must* keep your name consistent. If you have different usernames in different places, all you will do is confuse your readers. If you have to add a 1 or a - or _ somewhere along the line, that's mostly ok, but don't call yourself Blue Nails in one place, and Bluish Nails somewhere else.
And finally, here are all my deets in case you want to follow me in any other ways! Enjoy xx :)
Instagram - thecrumpet1
