This week, Fiddleheads & Floss Writing Services is hosting a #GrowMyFollowing campaign. Are you interested in growing your online following across multiple media platforms? Join us on this 7-day campaign to grow your online reach. Yes, it is totally free! No gimmicks at the end. No course you need to buy. No peddling. Just simple, actionable tips for growing both your audience and your engagement.
I learned a long time ago that I am not a sales person. I have other gifts like building community, supporting others, reaching a hand behind me to pull along those who are less far along in their writing and poetic careers. I seem to be better at helping others sometimes than helping myself—so I am doing this program with you! I, too, want to grow my following, encourage authentic engagement between myself and my readers, and find new ways to grow as a writing professional. I feel, when we all grow together, we all succeed together. For me, it is not a matter of who is and is not “deserving” of success, but who is willing to chase it, work for it, dream big, and hitch their wagons to hope.
Who is this program for?
Anyone with a personal business who wants to grow their online presence.
Writers, artists, entrepreneurs.
Social media influencers.
People who are running ad campaigns for charitable organizations.
Anyone who wants to expand their online reach by increasing followership, readership, and engagement.
Get ready; it’s time for a #GrowMyFollowing PUSH to greater success. 7 Days. Free.
Actionable, proven tips & strategies.
Usable resources.
Encouragement and support.
Directional tips applicable to any level of growth.
Measurable results.
Totally free.
DAY ONE
Let’s take inventory.
Chances are you have multiple “irons in the fire.” Writers and entrepreneurs often make their money this way; chasing multiple revenue streams and methods of communication. Today, we are going to break it down into simple umbrella categories, take inventory, and identify areas that need growth. Ready? Let’s take the next few minutes to set you up for a successful week of growing your followership across multiple platforms, newsletters, or even just one main website. But first, we must know where we stand.
Open the following link which will take you to a Google Form. You can use this form to take a personal inventory of your current online followership. IMPORTANT: The link should prompt you to make a COPY of this form before you begin using it. (Please let me know if this does not work for you.) ***Everyone who uses the link has access to the form. If you make a COPY to use, it is YOUR copy and ONLY YOU will have access to the information.***
Taking inventory—step one:
To know where you want to go and monitor your growth, you must know where you are right now. It helps with goal setting, which we will also be doing this week.
List all of your accounts for which you are growing a following and put them on the form. Social media accounts, personal blogs, paid content sites (like your Patreon, Medium, or News Break accounts), and finally, your newsletters and email lists (such as Substack or Mailchimp). You can hyperlink them, if you wish.
The next column over to the right (for each section) is for “current.” Enter the number of current followers or subscribers you have for each of these platforms.
You may prioritize your list of platforms however you choose.
In order of most need of growth.
In order of your favorite platforms to use.
Focus on growing the ones that are the most promising.
Prioritize by potential earnings.
Don’t forget these platforms (or ones you use less frequently):
Your author page on Amazon.
Your Goodreads page.
Your Kofi or other “donation” and “update” kind of pages.
Medium publications you own. (And the newsletters for these.)
Taking inventory—step two:
Set a goal for each platform which you intend to work through this program. You may choose only one, one from each category, or shoot for the stars and set goals for them all! Research shows that setting goals not only keeps your mind focused on an end result, but also motivates smaller decisions along the way and helps you attain success. It changes the way your mind chooses to look ahead and puts a framework in place for successful growth to occur.
Enter your goal in the column to the right of your current follower totals.
Here is an example with a few made up numbers:
At the end of this 7-day free course, I encourage you to revisit this form, enter your end totals and then calculate the percentage of increase for each one, overall, or both. (You can do this for your overall growth using the bottom of the sheet:)
So, let’s get started. By measure our current status, we’ll know exactly what areas are in the most need of improvement.
Thanks for reading and look for the Mailchimp newsletter tomorrow with details on DAY TWO of #GrowMyFollowing, where we will focus on updating your CTA’s and how to make your CTA’s work for you. I’ll define Circular Marketing Strategy and show you how you can use it to boost your following and your readership!
~Christina M. Ward
Blogger, poet, writer, author of organic, Fiddleheads & Floss vol. 1
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