Four ways to write a great tweet that sells books

One of the best social media outlets for promoting your book is Twitter. That’s because you can target a specific audience of readers who would be interested in your book, and many of those who are interested likely will retweet it to others who you haven’t yet reached. Ironically, though, a lot of writers pen poor tweets and miss out on this promotional opportunity.

By following a few simple guidelines, though, authors can write great Tweets that attract attention to your book and grow your list your followers (Note: The following advise presumes you include a link in your tweet to a blog post you wrote or to a web page that sells your book):
• Focus on what’s in it for the reader – Saying that you have a new book out is ho-hum (Read my new book about plumbers!). Lots of people have new books out. What the reader wants to know is why your new book is entertaining to read (What if your plumber were a serial killer?) or that there’s an obvious benefit to them (Five ways to stop a plumber from ripping you off).
• Be specific – If you’re too vague (The surprising truth about plumbers), you won’t grab the reader’s attention. Instead, tell exactly what the link in your tweet is about (Plumbers are poisoning your tap water!).
• Dump the smoke and mirrors – Some writers make over-the-top promises (The secret to selling a million ebooks in 24 hours!). No one trusts these tweets. Honesty (How to boost your ebook sales via Twitter) works much better.
• Ask a question – Especially with fiction, posing a question that briefly states what the story is about works well for arousing a reader’s curiosity (What if a widower met the spitting image of his deceased spouse?).

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