Don't Give Readers a Reason to Use Their Social Media Megaphones

A few months ago I had some jewelry stolen out of my hotel room.  I'm a big believer in that old saying "you can catch more flies with honey than vinegar," so despite being upset I did my best to act calmly and rationally. I spoke politely to the general manager, who apologized and led me to believe I would be compensated for my losses via their insurance company.  I walked away feeling that the situation had been handled justly, and awaited the reimbursement check I'd been promised so I could replace my missing items.

Imagine my surprise when I received an impersonal letter in the mail telling me that my claim was denied and there would be no reimbursement.

I was livid.  I work in marketing, so when faced with a situation where I'm treated poorly as a consumer, it really chaps my hide.  Customer service matters, and in this situation I felt that a brand I trusted behaved badly, so I crafted a letter to the GM outlining my plans to post my experience to Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and my undergrad and graduate university alumni networks.

Yes, I thought it was important that my colleagues and friends here about my experience. But I was also pissed. Not just because of the missing jewelry, but because of the way I'd been treated.  This hotel chain had essentially poked a bear and prompted me to lash out by using my pretty sizable social media megaphone.

Do not give your readers a reason to use their social media megaphones about you in a negative way.

Many of you likely saw this article making it's way around the blogosphere in October, in which an author tracks down a woman who negatively reviewed her novel.

There's been a lot of debate about whether people agree with this author's actions or not. I'm not here to debate that, though my views on the matter will become apparent very quickly.  I want to share my thoughts on 1) why commenting on a negative review can do more harm than good and 2) why negative reviews can be good for business.

Don't poke the bear

Simply put, when you comment on negative reviews you risk poking the bear.  You are essentially telling that reviewer that they are wrong, and that their opinion is not valid and/or does not matter. If that person happens to be an avid reader and reviewer, that may be pretty upsetting. So upsetting that they lash out and do more than just write a negative review.

Take my jewelry story as an example.  If they had handled the situation like they'd initially promised, I wouldn't have done anything negative.  In fact, I might have felt more positive about the hotel chain because they handled the situation fairly and professionally. It wasn't until I felt like I had been unfairly treated that I wanted to retaliate.

Your negative reviewers are the same way. Leave them alone, and they will just be one negative review in a sea of other reviews.  Make them feel like they are being unjustly treated, and they will use their social media megaphones to make sure people hear about it.  You'll get added to Goodreads lists like "Writers Who Respond to Negative Reviews" that put not just your book in a negative light, but also your brand.

Don't do this.  Don't give them a megaphone that shines a negative light on you.  Especially if you plan to write other books in the future. That negative light has implications beyond the sales for the one book they reviewed.

Did you know that negative reviews can actually help sales?

Yes, you read that right. In the world of product marketing, negative reviews can actually help sales.  And I would argue the same is true for books.

First, people who leverage reviews to make purchase decisions read multiple reviews at various star levels. Which means that while potential readers might stumble upon that one-star soul-crushing rant about your baby, it's not the only review they'll read. And all those positive reviews you received become counter points in the potential buyer's decision making process.

Second, the why behind the negative review is more important than the star rating, and can actually lead to more sales.  Let's say Suzie Q hated that your book had a love triangle in it.  Maybe Jennie J LOVES love triangles, and when she reads Suzie's negative review, it triggers her to  buy your book even though Suzie only gave it one star.

I can personally tell you that I have purchased books based on negative reviews multiple times, because the exact thing the reviewer hated is what I love to read.

And here's another fun fact for you: there is data suggesting that negative reviews can actually make the glowing reviews more believable.  That's because consumers sometimes question a "perfect" score, because it's suspicious. What if the book was only reviewed by the writer's friends and that's why they're all so positive?  What if this is just the publishing house posting reviews for the author, or they're paying people to review?  While most reviews aren't fabricated, there is something suspicious about a perfect five star score.  Which means that the one star review you received may prompt someone to buy your book because it makes the good reviews more believable.

Nobody, not even the J.K. Rowlings of the world, is beloved by all.

So why don't you tell us the name of that hotel chain, Stacy?

Because they ultimately handled the situation properly, with a profuse apology for the way I'd been treated, proper compensation for my missing items, and a promise that they will be more vigilant with future customers to ensure they have a way to safeguard against theft in the future.

And in the end, that's all I really wanted. Even if it took the threat of negative PR to get there.

Writers Resource: Word of Mouth Marketing Via Networking

I've worked in marketing for the last 10 years, and while I'm only in the agent querying stage of my writing journey, I can't help but imagine the magical day when I may have to put my day job skills to work to help sell my book.  *crosses fingers, toes, arms and legs* 

My day job has taught me that consumers love to share their opinions, and thanks to social media they have a way to share their opinions with the masses, for better or worse.  Companies want consumers to spread the word about their brands and products, and so many brands spend significant resources developing platforms that encourage and enable sharing.  

Think about the brands you purchased on your most recent trek to Target - every single one has a webpage, and most likely that webpage has some kind of rating/review tool to encourage visitors to review and comment about their products.  They probably have a Facebook page, and may even have a hashtag or Pintrest page. (Yes, brands use Pintrest too!)  Most likely they sponsor and/or contribute to a blog about topics related to their product category. When a new product launches, the marketers behind the scenes may send free samples to well known bloggers in the hopes that they will blog about it and you will read about it.  They may host a contest, encouraging you to like them on Facebook so your friends will learn about the new product.

Do any of these things sound familiar?  Yeah, turns out that brands with multi-million dollar budgets use some of the exact same tactics that authors use when trying to sell their books.

Of course the big difference is that brands have millions of dollars to help build awareness for their products, and awareness is how people know to go to their website, Facebook page or enter their contest in the first place. As a debut author, you're going to have to rely on the most valuable (and free) resource you have available to build awareness - your network.  

You will need people to read your story and go onto Goodreads, Amazon and Barnes and Nobles to rate and review your book.  Goodreads in particular requires several hundred reviews in order for a book to leverage its recommendation tool (here is a great article that explains how books are discovered on Goodreads.)  

That means you are going to need to rely on more than family and close friends - you're going to have to seek out people who will not only read your book, but engage in activities that will help to spread the word.

Here are a few things you can do today to help build a network of people that will spread the word about your book when your magical publishing day comes.

1.  Don't be a lurker

People want to support the people who support them, and one of the easiest ways to build a network is to actively network and engage with like-minded writers via social media.  You're probably already doing this to some degree, but how engaged are you?  Are you lurking around sites, forums and blogs, reading but never commenting?  If so, it's time to stop lurking and get to know the writing community.   

• Don't just follow blogs - leave comments. Let people know that you're there. Tell them when they've written something that resonates with you. Tweet about the posts you've enjoyed or found interesting.

•  Get involved in blog contests beyond simply entering. Leave encouraging posts for your fellow writers, even if you didn't make it into the final round.  If you see an entry that sounds fantastic, tell that person. Seek them out on twitter and share your encouraging words. If you see an entry you think needs some work, find a way to offer constructive and helpful criticism. Become a resource to your fellow writers.

• Become actively involved on writing forums like AgentQuery Connect.  Get to know the others writers on there by engaging with them and supporting their efforts.  Don't just use the resources, be a resource for others by commenting on queries and offering help and feedback.

• Don't just swap business cards at writing conferences - follow up. Send your new writer friend a note telling them it was nice to meet them.  Follow their blog and find them on twitter. Engage with them long after the conference is over.

2.  Use the 5:3:2 rule for social media networking

Nobody wants to be friends with the person who only talks shop, but nobody wants to network with someone who doesn't bring anything to the table. The key is balance.  For every 10 tweets/blogposts/etc:

• 5 should be sharing content from others that is relevant to the writing community.
• 3 should be sharing content from you that is relevant to the writing community, but not trying to sell something (i.e. progress made on your new WIP, a book you just read and loved.)
• 2 should be something personal and non-writing related, so that people can get to know the non-writer you.

3.  Pay it forward

Become a reviewer.  Rate and review books on Goodreads, Amazon and B&N. If you hear that someone in your network is releasing a book, show your support for that person by buying their book and reviewing it.  Then spread the word.

Invite up and coming writers to guest blog.  Let them benefit from your network. Give other writers the awareness building platform that you one day hope to have.  

4.  Be genuine

Ever become friends with someone on Facebook only to have their person agenda constantly thrown at you?  Or maybe you started following a new author on twitter, and all they ever do is talk about their book.

Don't be that person.  Yes, you are building a network that you may one day need to lean on, but you're also opening yourself up to a new community of friends.  Treat them the way you want to be treated.  

What are some other tactics you've used to build your a network?