You should be writing.
And let’s face it, social media is a double-edged sword that on one hand can be fun and allow you to connect with readers and your peers–and then on the other, it sucks your time like a vampire.
I’ve got a Twitter account, Facebook, this blog, LinkedIn, and maybe a few others that I can’t even remember, all in the name of social media and gettin’ with the times.
But once my timeline is updated, my tweets are sent out, and I peruse those of others, I realize that a couple of hours have gone by and my work-in-progress ain’t going to write itself.
If you’re busy–which I know you most likely are–perhaps Triberr is just what you need for a little social media management.
You can log in to Triberr using your email and a password, or via your Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn account. I usually log in with Twitter.
I wanted my Triberr stuff going through Twitter, since some of the highest traffic to my blog comes from Twitter. As you can see, my Twitter account, @The_GrayTower, is set as the preferred account, and my “reach” is (at the time of this posting) 1,802–the amount of Twitter followers I have.
Notice to the left a little info on “How to Join the Tribe.” What’s a Tribe? It’s basically a group you either follow or join, usually people who have blogs or interests similar to yours. I blog and write fantasy, so I joined author-oriented Tribes and Fantasy genre Tribes.
So I’ve joined/followed about five or six Tribes. Don’t be afraid, the Tribe peeps are cool, and the only time you can’t join is if the Tribe is full and they can’t add anyone else. Other than that, you can “follow” them or be a full-fledged member. Take your pick 🙂
Oh, and the “updates” you see in gray will take you to your Tribe’s stream page where any Tribe members’ conversation posted can be seen. Usually it’s someone posting an announcement, asking a question, or kicking around an idea. I confess I don’t visit this area often because I’m busy! I’d advise to at least check in once a week because you may not want to miss if a Tribe mate addresses a comment or question to you.
Now what’s the point of joining a Tribe? You saw my humble reach of 1,802–well with the power of my Tribe mates sharing and retweeting my blog posts, I can reach tens of thousands via social media. Check out the pic above once more–one of my Tribes has a reach of 145K+ and another over 200K.
Let me show you the “sharing” part:
As seen in the pic above, your Triberr stream will be populated with recent blog posts from your Tribe mates (including your own if you link Triberr to your blog when you set up your account). You see the green and white “Share” button to the right? Depending on the settings you choose, you can either click or simply hover over that button and Triberr will tweet that post out through your Twitter account (it can also send via Facebook and LinkedIn if you link them to your Triberr account).
This is what it will look like when you click or hover-to-share:
In your settings, you can determine if you want these to go out every few minutes or every hour (I’ve set mine up so that the posts I want to share go out via Twitter every hour and a half). Your posts will appear like that in your Tribe mates’ streams, and they will do the same for you.
As seen above, “New Posts” are posts that are yet to be shared by you, “Approved Posts” are the ones you clicked or hovered over to share, and “Sent Posts” are those that have gone out. Let’s see what happens when I make a few blog posts and my Tribe mates share my posts. A few of my recent blog posts were “Feature Friday: New Myths Anthology + A Special Thank You,” an author interview with Mike Reeves-McMillan, and a book trailer for Stuart Land’s Epiphany:
In the snapshot above, a few Tribe mates have shared these (including many other Tribe mates), and by mentioning my Twitter handle “via @The_GrayTower” it helps me to keep track on Twitter which Tribe mates and how often they’ve shared particular posts. Also notice that one of my Tribe mates has thanked me for sharing as well.
My latest blog post (before this one) was the Feature Friday one about the New Myths anthology. Here’s the share count at my actual blog (as of this post):
If I didn’t have my Tribe mates sharing, these numbers would be less and my reach would be less. Just think, if you’re in a Tribe with members who have two, four, or ten times the amount of social media followers than you, then you have the potential to expand and reach wider audiences.
Remember, we’re busy, right? So I make it a point to spend two or three times a week “paying my dues” to my fellow Tribe mates. I log in to Triberr, go to my stream, and hover on down the line to share my Tribe mates’ posts.
If you can’t visit or chat that often in your Tribe’s updates, at least pay your dues. Nobody likes to give and get nothing in return when it should be reciprocal. It takes me less than ten minutes to share my Tribe mates’ posts. I just go down the line hovering 🙂 For a few with whom I’ve had the pleasure of chatting on Twitter, I’ll actually go out of my way to RT (retweet) extra posts of theirs from Twitter.
So, with all that said, what are the benefits of Triberr?
- Extends your reach, your audience
- Boosts the visibility and number of shares of your blog/blog post
- More “automatic” sharing means less time shouting from the mountain tops “Hey, read my new blog post!”
- When YOU share your Tribe mates’ posts, it gives you interesting things to share and RT on Twitter (or Facebook, or LinkedIn) without having to read, search, or plan what to share.
- It’s an excellent tool for when you have a Cover Reveal, new book release, giveaway, or special event planned. It’s so smooth, it feels like an automatic promo boost
I hope this quick intro is helpful for those of you already wading through a sea of social media innovation. This by no means covers the entirety of the Triberr experience, and there are features that I have yet to explore, but if you’re looking to jump in and not be overwhelmed, you could make use of “click or hover” and “pay your dues.”
Please feel free to ask any questions or leave feedback–oh, and happy writing!