The Introverted Author's Toolkit: Triberr

Triberr is called a "blog amplification service," and essentially, what that means is your blog posts will be shared over multiple social media networks by numerous sources.

Your blog's RSS feed sends it to Triberr and then your tribe mates share it on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, StumbleUpon, and Google+.

It looks confusing at first, but it's actually very easy to use once you get it set up. This page gives you step-by-step instructions on how to get set up.

Every day, I check my "Tribal stream" page once or twice. It looks and works much like your Facebook page. (Well, without the cat pictures and TMI.)

This is my Triberr homepage, the "Tribal Feed." In the center, you see posts from my tribemates. I scroll through those and select the ones I want to share on my social networks. Generally, I select posts about indie authors, writing, new romance novels, etc. Things I think my Twitter and Facebook followers may enjoy.

I want you to notice something up in the corner:

That is the total number of people who are following the members of my tribe. That means, if every member of all of my tribes shared my post, it has the potential to be seen by over a million and a half people. Now, in reality, that doesn't happen, but I do get a decent number of shares.

The top post has been shared eighty-four times and the post below it has been shared sixty-eight times so far, and those numbers will increase a bit more over time as the stragglers catch up. Those posts are reaching people who wouldn't normally have seen my blog.

On this site, reciprocity counts.  You'll notice that people will be more willing to share your posts if you share theirs. Hovering over their icon will tell you how many times you've shared their posts.

Finding tribes can be done in two ways.

On the left side of your Tribal Stream screen, you'll see a search box below your stats. This is an example of a search for writing tribes.

Click on "Tribes" after you punch in your keyword. Browse though them to find one that looks promising. Make sure to check that they're still active.

Click on the orange "Follow" button on the right. This does not make you a member of the tribe. If you only "Follow" you will get their posts in your stream, but they will not get yours. You have to ask to join a tribe.

After you click "Follow," it will take you to a comment screen. Leave a comment there, asking to join the tribe.

Once you're already in some tribes, you have another way to search for them by using the "Discover" button on your menu bar.

You will be taken to a page where you can browse through tribes similar to the ones you're already in.

Use the blue arrows on the right to tab through the available tribes, and the orange "Follow" button to start the joining process.

When an invitation has been sent to you, it will appear as a blue dot beside your "Invites" button on the menu bar at the left. Accept the invitation, and you're in!

I strongly recommend this site for all of my introverted author friends. It's a great tool for spreading your blog posts, and getting new followers, without having to spam your social networks about your blog.

The Introverted Author's Challenge: Marketing

One Way Stock

It's difficult to sell a book today. The ebook and self-publishing revolution have flooded the market with thousands of new books, new authors, and even new genres. It's a great time to be a reader, because it means more choices than ever before, but for the author, it's akin to standing in a huge, crowded room full of people shouting to get the attention of a reader in the doorway. If you look hard, you'll find the introverted authors at the back of the room, huddled against the walls, and ducking behind the potted plants, trying not to make eye contact.

More and more, even the big publishers are relying on their authors to market their books. Fortunately, the bulk of it is online these days, but even that safe distance sometimes presents challenges to the introverted and/or socially inept.

You still have to put yourself forward, ask people to review your books, announce sales, and try to build a following. The latter requires active engagement on social media platforms.

I'll be honest, I don't like marketing, and I don't think I'm very good at it, but I'm learning things along the way that can help my fellow introverts get the most out of it.