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hashire · 4 years ago

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In October of 2010, I was trying to come up with an idea. I really, really wanted to do NaNoWriMo. When I first learned about NaNo, I wanted to do it. Problem was, I couldn’t ever do it. I tried the by the seat of your pants thing more than once. I tried planning earlier in the year. I’d get impatient and start working on the thing or just ditch it altogether by the time November rolled around.

Then - and I still remember this moment so clearly - I was driving home from grocery shopping and thinking. I thought about DGM, which was being published monthly at that point. I thought about my medieval romance class and how much I adored the material. The idea hit me hard. Medieval romance DGM. Of course!

Since it was about a week before NaNo started, it gave me enough time to put some ideas down and still be interested in the idea in time for the first of November. I did a writing exercise to figure out some parts of the story that I didn’t actually put in the story (it was allowed!). I don’t think I have it anymore. I looked. Kinda sad about it. Anyway. I waited until midnight, November 1, 2010. And off I went.

I spent the first half of the month writing and writing and writing. I neglected my schoolwork as much as I was able to get away with. I wrote on the bus to and from class. If I didn’t feel comfortable getting my laptop out (didn’t want people looking over my shoulder), I wrote in a notebook and typed it up when I got home. I ended up having to deal with a non-life-threatening medical issue, potentially caused by my intense focus on this story.

I hit 50k on the 12th and finished the story on the 14th. (The reason why I didn’t get much done on the 2nd was because I had been working at the polls, had to go to class, and was watching election results and despairing because Scott Walker won. This both is and isn’t important to know.) I told myself that I’d take a step away from it before I edited it. Catch up on my neglected schoolwork. You know, just give it some time.

I didn’t.

The first final count was 61662 words, notes I wrote included. The second recorded one (the one I submitted to NaNo for verification) was 70304, notes most likely included.

After this, I did another edit to each chapter before I posted them. Was all of this necessary? Maybe. Maybe not. It’s what happened. This is the final word count without notes.

I ended up posting only 5 of 10 chapters. There are things about me that haven’t changed since 2010. The desire to be noticed is one of them. I mean, it’s not that I want to be the center of attention or anything. I envy the large number of comments the bigger names get and have always always always wanted something similar. This was true back in 2010.

The feedback was up and down. For one chapter, I’d get 4 or 5 reviews. Another chapter, I’d get 1 review. I think there was a chapter that didn’t get any.

In late 2010/early 2011, I was still trying to figure out what I wanted to do with my life. I was one semester away from graduating. I guess I was a little scared of what would happen. I wanted to be an editor. I thought it would be something I’d enjoy. I didn’t know how to go about doing any of that. No internships. No meeting people (I almost did once, but I couldn’t find his office and I didn’t have a phone then; it was 2010, yes, but I couldn’t afford it and didn’t have enough friends to warrant having a phone when I had a facebook).

I suppose what happened was that I took my frustration out on the story. I started to hate it and couldn’t stand the thought of having it up anymore. I deleted it in early 2011. I got yelled at for doing it by someone I had been messaging who was in the middle of reading it. I think the yelling had more to do with something I said about deleting it, but the conversation is long gone. FF deletes stuff like that. I didn’t get any other messages about it and took it to mean that people didn’t really care it was there, which may not have been true. I’ll never really know if anyone else was sad to see my silly little story go.

Honestly, when I thought back to this story recently, I only remembered the comment where someone said a part of one of the chapters was boring (while saying they liked the story, but who remembers that when someone calls your work boring?), and this one:

I know I always focus on the negative. I know that people enjoy reading my fics. I know that I have gotten amazing comments over the years. I know that I don’t write just to get those comments (if I was doing that, believe me, I would have pumped out so much mediocre content just for the serotonin I could get from one comment). I know that this is long and has zero overall point and people will unfollow me for the things I say it in (I’ve lost a few over the past few days or so, which is fine; it’s just a consequence of me doing this, which is being honest about how I feel. I’m not alone in feeling this way. I know I’m not).

I guess I just wanted to talk about a great writing experience I had that was soured (which happened because of how I think and feel and react and didn’t need to happen at all) by me posting the story. I thought maybe it could be a breakout thing because fandom loves long chaptered fics. That’s not why I wrote it, but it would have been a great perk.

Looking back, do I regret deleting it without posting all of it? I don’t know. Not long after this, Walker dropped the bomb and my attention shifted from writing to politics while I was still trying to get through my last semester of college. I did write a little, here and there, but not as much as I had been in 2010. I may not have finished posting it anyway.

#long post #writing about life

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yukipri · 7 years ago

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Full list of Tier adjustments + other general content changes for October on my Patreon

Posted on my Patreon as well!

So I know I've been talking about some changes I'll be making to the Tiers all month, but here's a final big comprehensive post about the final changes, and the exact wording of the new Tiers starting tomorrow. There are a few big changes, and a few minor ones. Many of the changes are made around my concern that I've been burning myself out with $1 content without providing enough to higher Tiers, along with the realization that as important as they are and how necessary the $1 Tier of pledges is, I unfortunately cannot sustain myself on them alone.

I hope all of the following changes sound fair. Quick list of big changes:

- NSFW Comics will be moved from $1 -> $5 Tier. NSFW illustrations will remain on the $1 Tier. I still plan to maintain my goal of one NSFW post every week, and comics and illustrations will likely switch off every other week. On weeks that have consecutive comics, I'll take one of the NSFW frames from the comic and put it on the $1 Tier without context, so $1 Tier folks WILL get at least one NSFW illustration every other week.

- Weekly Inferno pages for the $20 Tier. This is to hopefully push myself to work more actively on Inferno, even if it's bit by bit. The goal is at least one page a week, though once I get rolling it'll likely come more frequently. The images will be low resolution and watermarked like public posts, and will be available to all Tiers and publicly once the full chapters are done. High-Res versions will eventually be available for download to the $20 Tier.

- Story spoiler Headcanon posts for the $20 Tier. These will be only text form, but rambling headcanons about story elements in my AUs that I likely won't be able to get to in comic form for a while. My immediate plans are to dump some Future!Verse stuff in the Rewind Future era (post canon timeline, pre-getting together), so like the rest of the Yurio Presenting arc (since i dunno when I can finish that), Yuuri and Phichit's past in Detroit, etc. all the way to how they got to deciding they'll have a poly relationship, and possibly going into HCs about their various engagements/weddings. All of this stuff has been long planned out since before I started posting about this AU publicly and I had been hoping to draw it out in comic form, but until then...Here. NOTE: that these will not be concrete ideas, and I may still change them considerably before cementing them in AU canon through comics.

The rest beneath cut!

- Hypothetical store access. So I'm still kinda eh about adding this in the Tiers because I have yet to actually open a store, but the itch to create merch has been getting stronger. As a new merch seller though, I at first need to ensure the quality and production process of any merch I make, so any first rounds of merch will be extremely limited quantity (I'm talking single digits). If I deem the merch to be sellable professional quality, I'm offering it to you guys first. I'll make it available to $20 patrons first, and if it doesn't sell out within a few days (I'll set a time limit) I'll open to $5 patrons, then $1 patrons. Any larger pre-orders I do thereafter will likely also have a set limit because I doubt my ability to manage large orders, and patrons will always have access to those before the public as well.

- Tutorials/concept art - Were originally big things in the $5/$20 Tiers, but I've found that I haven't been able to produce much in these categories. If and when I do produce them, they'll likely be available in the $5 Tier, UNLESS they have major long term story spoilers, in which case $20.

- Advance access to major comics for $20 deleted - I just don't have enough of these to really feel it's relevant as a Tier reward, and with Inferno pages going up as I draw them, it seemed redundant so I took it out ^ ^;

AGAIN, if you would like to downgrade/delete your pledge due to these changes or for any other reason, please wait until your current pledge has been processed on October 1st.

Formal Tiers Starting October 1st

Formatted New Tier

Old Tier for comparison

Bronze medal Tier

$1 or more per month

View WIPs, abandoned work, sketches, and unposted content not currently publicly available but may be at a later date.

View higher resolution less watermarked versions of some content, including Patron requests.

There will be 2-3 posts of the above types of content weekly.

NSFW illustrations, at least once every other week on Friday. These will be explicit NSFW and will never be available to the public.

Have access to my private patreon community.

Be able to view some of my publicly available art on a better platform. Because let's admit it, Tumblr is oftentimes NOT the best image viewing platform...

All art will be low-resolution + with my url.

OLD TIER DESCRIPTION:

View some (but not all) of my rough sketches, WIPs, never-to-be-completed works, and misc art not currently publicly available but may be at a later date.

SOME OF THE ABOVE ART WILL BE NSFW, mostly nudity/heavily suggestive, many of which will never be available to the public.

Have access to my private patreon community.

Be able to view some of my publicly available art on a better platform. Because let's admit it, Tumblr is oftentimes NOT the best image viewing platform...

All art will be low-resolution + with my url.

Silver medal Tier

$5 or more per month

ALL PREVIOUS AWARDS PLUS

NSFW Comics - Some explicit NSFW, but with some short story for context! Almost all of these will be set in my Future!Verse ABO AU, though many will be vague enough to imagine out of context. Will be posted at least once every other week on Friday.

Be able to vote on polls, limited only to patrons this tier and above. Types of polls may include choosing what I draw, or general opinion polls that will influence upcoming content!

Be able to submit one request per month. I will choose one of the submitted requests from the pool to draw!

Art process/tutorials! This includes being able to see my sketches, lineart, and flats prior to their completed versions, and possible step by steps and explanations of specific techniques I use. I'll explain my art process to you in depth! ^ ^

OLD TIER DESCRIPTION:

ALL PREVIOUS AWARDS PLUS

Art process + possibly tutorials! This includes being able to see my sketches, lineart, and flats prior to their completed versions. I'll explain my art process to you in depth as you follow the steps ^ ^

Be able to vote on polls, limited only to patrons this tier and above. I will draw the winning options!

Be able to submit one request per month. I will choose one of the submitted requests from the pool to draw!

Gold medal Tier

$20 or more per month

ALL PREVIOUS AWARDS PLUS

Advance pages of my Inferno Yuri No Ice AU comic. I will be posting these to this Tier as I finish drawing them. While they'll be low resolution and watermarked, these pages will not be available to the public until I'm done with the entire chapter. The goal is at least one page per week!

Story spoilers! Lengthy text headcanons of untold story for my AUs which will only be available to the public and lower tiers when I make them into comics, which may not be for a very long time!

Access to my much higher resolution, unwatermarked versions of my comics. They will still have my url on the side, but it will no longer obscure the images. As you may or may not know, I've had a LOT of problems with art theft and am especially protective of my comics I hope to one day sell hard copies of. I trust you to protect my work, and grant you advance access to these HQ images. They'll be sent to you in a link at the beginning of the following month.

Early access to unreleased concept art of my AUs such as costume designs and world building for the Inferno AU and Future!Verse ABO AU. These may or may not ever be available to the public, but either way you'll be able to view them way in advance!

Submit as many requests as you want to the monthly request pool to up your chances of yours being chosen!

Get first notification when new merchandise is available in my store. Many of these items will be available in EXTREMELY limited quantities (single digits) and will likely take a long time to restock if they ever do at all. Get your hands on them before they're available to the public! They'll be available to lower Tiers in order after this Tier.

OLD TIER DESCRIPTION:

ALL PREVIOUS AWARDS PLUS

Early access to unreleased concept art and stories of my AUs such as costume designs and world building for the Inferno AU and Future!Verse ABO AU. These may or may not ever be available to the public, but either way you'll be able to view them way in advance!

Advance access to major comics posts. You'll be able to view my more serious comics posts at least a week prior to me posting them to the public!

Submit as many requests as you want to the monthly request pool to up your chances of yours being chosen!

Legend Tier

$50 or more per month

This tier is primarily just for people with excess $$ who want to support me and my art, and I can't think of much else to offer but my sincerest thanks ;A;

ALL PREVIOUS AWARDS PLUS

A monthly physical postcard of my art sent to your address with a personal hand written thank you note from me....

May include some surprise freebies! ;D

OLD TIER DESCRIPTION:

This tier is primarily just for people with excess $$ who want to support me and my art, and I can't think of much else to offer but my sincerest thanks ;A;

ALL PREVIOUS AWARDS PLUS

A monthly physical postcard of my artsent to your address with a personal hand written thank you note from me.

What is wrong with you Tier

$100 or more per month

This tier is primarily just for people with excess $$ who want to support me and my art, and I can't think of much else to offer but my sincerest thanks ;A;

ALL PREVIOUS AWARDS

The monthly postcard will be sent in an envelope!

I will also send a hand-drawn sketch of a character of your choice.

May include some surprise freebies! ;D

OLD TIER DESCRIPTION:

This tier is primarily just for people with excess $$ who want to support me and my art, and I can't think of much else to offer but my sincerest thanks ;A;

ALL PREVIOUS AWARDS

The monthly postcard will be sent in an envelope with a hand-drawn sketch of a character of your choice.

Interested in becoming a Patron? Check out my Patreon HERE!

#YukiPri rambles #Patreon #long post #longpost

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glopratchet · 4 years ago

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cldstrm000

You can't see anything on it, but you guess that it's probably a little more advanced than what your computer was capable of back in grade school What we have is a screen of buttons and a list of plot lines and a bunch or characters who are either important to the story or just there for you to kill You're not really sure how much you want to play with this thing though since all of these games seem pretty cut and dry, like they're going to be exactly the same no matter which one you choose Throw it up there let us see it Plot -Bunny's right, it's better if you choose since A: You're the mastermind behind all this and B: You'll enjoy it more that way Press the button with a flourish, we have work to do Plot-Bunny's right, Unseen story Try to incorpate in to mechanics but descriptions are nice too You can pay others to use their creations, or even make your own a separate items with a single coin ; (much smaller than the gold coins) A "Creations for Coin" topic will be started, but it is not necessary to use it First impression of character -creation What can you character do with what abilities they have? How does the begining of the story effect the outcome of it all? So many factors come into play, that this is going to be unbelievable hard Very few people can say they got an A in Writing Class ; (Or any other Subject), but you're going to TRY for one of those few Who are the characters you'll be controlling in this giant game of marbles? What kind of relationships will you make with them? That's all down to choice my friend, choice Your grade for This is going to be decided by a poll on "What was your favorite questline? " along with other things, ex: "What was your Favorite Line? or "Did the ending meet expectations? " so make it count! Delivering lore is about consistent details Collecting 5 of the same rune creates a stack of that rune that some may argue that you don't need in a game, but you'll need them to understand your bios - From backstory to in-game details Everyone starts with 3 Inventory Slots, each lasting 3 Posts ; (Coins are included in this), get more by investing in "Backpack Creation" Head cannon ideas can range from silly to creative Bad ones get deleted, good ones' get used (Starting Gold: Briar ; (Thyme? A dash of herbs and a sprig of flowers Power: Healing Touch ; (3 Use) - Sacrifice Thyme's herbs and flowers for Health Packs Ability1: Harmful Smell ; (1 Use) - Release a scentless gas that knock's enemies back and confuses them momentarily So do you control a character or do you watch a character Tell me about it: Why are you resigned to telling a story instead of playing one? Why would someone willingly do this to themselves? You could watch the character manage the story or manage it for them, makes no difference to me Rejoice! To become a Narration Pixie! For that is what you are now (Also who reads this stuff? ) Your Friends, your Classmates, your Family ; (Surly they're reading this) nobody will ever look at you the same way again ; (Except for Sophie who just asks "What now? Don't believe me? Move from hex to hex and let the story unfold from there, don't just watch some scrub do it for you Also there isn't just survival on the line ; (Although there is that), but your grade in my class, of course Then the ui is like dashboard for witnessing plots / ui plot select Select a plot to start the game To skip the prologue and go to credits, choose 1 To jump into the action, choose 2 For more info about each section and the credits, choose 3 There's not much but A, and C so that narrows it down at least How do you interact with the plot By lightly to heavily imagining what the plot is and actually feeling the emotions, this plays out like a choose your own adventure This gives you shares in game, but losses shares for your choosing Make all the choices and you have nothing to represent the fact that you ever existed The 1% of people who finish get 1% shared in being a winner Are you roman During the market stampede? By creating alligator snapping turltes and dropping them down into the world they slowly grow over time, eventually turning into a deadly underwaterbeast that can crush and burn anything your grade in my class, The events tab would write out stories In the past you thumbed through them like a college radio enthusiast, but with this set of incomprehensible inputs you decide that it might be better if you personally arranged them about the nonplayer characters and their life events--what they felt, saw, thought, and how they were died You didn't read too much into it then, but maybe somebody was trying to tell you something Rant: Ultimately written with NaNoRe write your user story So what you are creating is one giant story that quite frankly nobody will ever read mainly because they aren't instructed too Also many sections are so long that nobody, even you have the persistence to read it all through But that doesn't matter, in fact you probably don't even care if anybody reads it But how is interactive when you enter text it plays out in real time based on how you set up the characters and events Your main character is a veteran that served 20 years? Have him reminiscence about the past, but don't go overboard Got a bully? change what they say based on your input Have mother nature herself be a female Goddess of destruction? Have mechanics come up that support the theory after you get passed the religious fanaticism of it all I mean little bubbles could pop up that tell you that the plot as been advanced to a new page It needs tweaking so that's going to take time So what do you do until then? Bold: The unending sun accosts your skin with only the mercy of lukewarm breezes to cool you down "Not bad, not bad, A full head of gray hair onto your Violet scalp thanks to your orc heritage, dark circles surround your eyes and a white beard reflects how many worries have plagued you in the past few days Perhaps even re watch the drama unfold on the hex map You killed forty of the young men in the ensuing battle and now have them at your beck and call to take out to the battlegrounds as you decide on what to do with your Nation, So your resourceful half-dragon master makes first contact with a nearby orc village--it went better than anyone could have anticipated That would fade into video during certain segments that really need a high definiton render His elaborate map shows what could only be the western front of an on going war It's quite frankly more high tech than anything he's shown you before You peer closer at the twenty foot hexagonal tiled ground and watch as the war drones fly overhead and bombard a nearby rocky outcrop They cut through it like butter, then continue on The why from his perfect memory and ingenious implementation You fondle your many options You see a screen of all the characters names and on the row exists options that can be choosen for them to say or do when 'active Something about alligator snapping turtles dropping from the sky (he said dropping not falling Well that's interesting) Must be an event He had many connections to companies out side of the village so that might be lucrative Someone is spying on the village, via a drone maybe? You can try and track it down and disable it Or leave it alone thinking nobody noticed Nah He had only four re-inforcements waiting to aid him in his journey as commander of the war-band Or are you the turtle roaming about The screen pulls back and now you are shown to have your pointer finger on a yellow giant star at the center Also other planets exist out side of your vision Maybe the moon of this planet contains resources You can only control events that YOU personally have been a part of If someone else where to take command no doubt you would be demoted Where did he come from? Why is he here? Could he have destroyed the village in the first place? But if it lands in certain places it opens up new characters for you to play The universal storyteller could have ideas for you for a price presumably The thing is all of this story is really happening in the background or to make your own Hitting select pulls up a prompt to continue the story Turning the three terminal into one large hexagon would allow you to use it as a visual mapping tech for re-creations of battles or wildlife etc Combining functions eh? Removing enemies from the story could increase the rate of survival for people such as your character There is a fourth column that exists with the why, how and what columns In the simulation this displayed 'life' and was at 100% Pressing it changes the column heading to a screen ending of continue or create The hallway now exists with walls on each side displaying blue swirly patterns that seem to form words, sentences thoughts Everything feels very Matrix like right now Now you start to panic, wonder if you had something to drink before heading into the lab best get out of here quick And i need to program it out so others cant use this stupid machine! Now you try to exit, but the terminal wont let you Only one option remains no no that won't work! horrors This ending is nonsensical under most circumstances! The question is how do you program out the simulation It was designed to be a visual storyteller Your sacrifices or their sacrifices were used in the formulas to allow my abilities to program and design video games! Even a light switch is knowledge of electrons and protons in our Universe! o I hear opening music usually reserved for grand space battles the sensations of flying through space are filling your mind I wonder if something I ate disagreed with me You need to create the alligator turtle drop for others to use without them being participators in my whole scheme argh music is mathematical structure but what will I choose as the columns? To have your music relived via hologram at your funeral or not This seems almost backwards i was about to try something out and now I am on a decision screen! The story was about someone dying from snakebite now music? This doesn't seem right The idea of a single page decision does not sound like a good one I have been having trouble of late and cant be sure that there are not things broken in the narrative The world is a loop that resets itself over and over We can only hope to change the tiniest portion of it But what choice do we have but to try? NOTE: This story was previously titled "The Storyteller: A Music Tale" Think more about the company that creates this experience in movies and games Wish I could list all my sources and influences or this note would be far too long Thank you for your time, patience and support How does the alligator turtle drop game work It is the closing drop of a magic act A bowl is place on a table and a ball is placed on the floor beneath it The magician slowly puts each finger into the bowl one at a time and then makes a horrifying discovery a small alligator turtle has been secretly placed underneath the bowl! You must play through the choices in chronological order Each choice represents one of the fingers But yes dropping more and more turtle reviels more and more of the game If you get desperate one can use the other website link ; (or copy and paste) to try and figure out the elaborate set of circumstances needed to create this tale Please do not post these answers online anywhere as it is likely to ruin the fun for others in the future Let the adventure and discovery begin! The protector robot has safeguards to prevent itself from being hacked and summarily destroyed by evil types It can tell when these types are trying to gain access to the place It would be very rare for someone to be of this unusually interested in this tale It is easy enough to get a hold of me through the contact information at the front of this website The idea to creat a simlation was developed through talking to a number of high school and college students who were heading into these fields It really stemmed from my desire ot get the programming language Python ; (used in the creation of this tale) into classroom CS101 curriculum's After I retired it seamed natural to revisit the idea of switching my focus to online teaching This venture was much longer and more successful than my 74seconds org venture because it seemed to tap into an underserved market! Remember the idea is to create a simulation of a physical space so that you the reader can learn logic gates So keep interaction in mind when you are moving through each page! Maybe the reader does not focus on the details difference with each new reading but the programmer watching you will see if there is any pattern or repeatable strategy There needs to be a bit of adventure for flavor but mechanically the entire story is built with interaction in mind Finally the idea is to create a computer simulation of a physical space so that you the reader can learn logic gates without all the tedious work I believe this idea could be applied to other in-demand career fields as well; from medical technicians to kindergarten teaching Where a robot design to protect a snapping turtle baby malfunctions and does not disappear when dead and effects the swamp opera around them The snapping turtle baby also metamorphisizes as it grows up The interaction between the swamp creatures and the robot as well as their mannerisms are used to represent bits and bytes of information That second paragraph was for you programmers trying to solve out the sim Just think binary if it helps! One day I would love to try this as an app or some other kind of video game form but sadly I do not have the knowledge to accomplish this But you still have not figured out how the players of the game can add something unpredictable to the mix so that each play through is different Feel free to email me your ; (sensible) solution! I would also like comment on the image of R2-D2 above the robot design I am a big time star wars nerd and carrying that over into the design was a no-brainer for me But what you may not know is that this robot design was made by one C-3PO! The players make the game unpredictable by selecting which wires to cut If the wrong wire is cut then the robot may misread a command and turn hostile! Thanks again for visiting my site and good luck with the puzzles! - modified on Tuesday, October 3, 2013 9: 26: 04 PM Labels: All , Software Break those chains - for freedom! I think that this is brilliant because it really ties into my theory of only education certain types of schooling can really prepare you The most unpredictable method of changing the game by the players is Something even more unpredictable than the roll of a dice and that's the chaos in human behavior which these gladiators will find out today Some lessons in life can only be taught through pain and loss and maybe even death Something even more unpredictable than the roll of a dice and that's the chaos in human behavior The most unpredictable method of changing the game by the players is actually very simple It is the one thing every 'person' has that separates us from other creatures: Choice My challenge to you, readers, is to find a way to introduce choice-based actions for the gladiators to do within the narratives I lay out Specifics on how this will happen will be in each post Doesn't have to be complex and it doesn't have rewrite the entire post

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amrutservices · 6 years ago

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Why No One Clicks on Your Social Media Content—6 Tips for Improving Engagement

For a small business, gaining steam on social media is undeniably an uphill battle. You have to contend with algorithms that make it nearly impossible to get discovered until you achieve a certain level of visibility. This situation puts you in a catch-22: you can’t get anyone to view your content until you get engagement, which requires views! Nevermind the fact that social media overwhelmingly prefers silly or opinionated content—two things that really don’t gel with the average business’s branding. Sure, you can gain thousands of shares by posting ridiculous cat videos, but there’s a slim chance all that attention will aid your business goals.

Despite all these challenges, putting your business out there on social media isn’t just worth it; it’s necessary. According to research from Stone Temple, 63 percent of all web traffic in 2017 came from mobile devices. In the U.S., 87 percent of mobile internet time is spent in apps. What are the most common apps? Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and Snapchat, to name a few.

Following this logic, people on the internet spend the majority of their time looking at social media apps on their phone. While Google Search is another top app—meaning SEO is also critical for businesses—social media is by far the most common way people discover content. Consider that two thirds of U.S. adults say they get their news from social media.

Put simply: if you aren’t on social media, you will have an incredibly hard time gaining brand recognition for your business. You will also have a tough time getting attention for your laboriously crafted content.

So how can you climb uphill to earn engagement and, eventually, legions of fans? Start by following these six tips below.

Talk About Your Audience, Not Your Business

No one logs into social media to talk about you! Okay, that may be an unfair exaggeration, but our point is that most people enjoy social media because it’s all about me, me, me.

You should use that tendency. Instead of talking about your business, talk about your industry in a way that people can relate to. Suddenly, you’re not just promoting. You’re conversing. Or, you’re informing. Sometimes, you might even be commiserating.

Here’s an example: consider a post written by a local dry cleaner that says, “Our new powercleaning process can bust the deepest stains! Come in today and mention this post for $5 off.”

While the offer may be tempting and the service may be useful, people may tune them out. Instead, the business can say, “Got a piece of clothing hiding in your closet because you can’t remove a stubborn stain? Bring it to us! With our new powercleaning process, your favorite outfits can find new life. Get $5 off your service when you mention this post!”

The difference is all about perspective. When you write content, don’t just subtly hint at relevance to your audiences. Instead, write things for them that subtly steer them towards your business services. Flipping your thinking around can be a quick path to more consistent conversions.

Cover Interesting Industry Topics Rather Than Just Your Brand Alone

Another way to branch away from overpromotion is to be a font of news and information for your industry. A restaurant can discuss exciting new culinary movements. A healthcare provider can offer self-care tips and the latest studies on which health practices are most effective. A local gym can share stretches and exercises people can do at home to start feeling better.

When done right, this content earns your audience’s interest without your business appearing like it wants something in return. You also round out your subject matter pool to include topics that are universally interesting and helpful to people in your target market.

Participate in Discussions in Groups and Trending Hashtags

What if your brand were a really helpful person? That’s the approach many of the most successful social media marketers take when they’re trying to build an audience. They get proactive, reaching out to target audiences in the social niches they occupy.

For example, the same hypothetical dry cleaner mentioned above could join laundry and housecleaning groups. As long as they are not overtly promoting or stealing focus from other discussions, the business can become a valuable contributor to the group. After all, who better to offer expertise than the experts?

When building your initial audience pool, try to be very active in Facebook groups and public discussions. Avoid coming across too opinionated, but don’t be shy about setting facts straight. With enough effort, you can gain some initial followers—and maybe even customers!

Aim for Emotional Content That Tells a Story About Your Customers

Going back to one of the main drawbacks of social media marketing for small businesses: only certain types of content seem to excel on platforms like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. These popular content categories include humorous content, content that impresses/amazes, content that sums up people’s feelings succinctly, content that isn’t afraid to state a strong opinion and content that stirs emotions.

Of all these options, emotional content can be the easiest for a small business to pin down. While getting an emotion out of your audience may seem like a tall order, it’s actually fairly hard to fail completely at it. An attempt to make a joke or be “cool” might go over like a lead balloon. Being controversial is never a good idea since it, well, stirs controversy. But no one can 100 percent fail at communicating emotion as long as they’re sincere.

Think from your heart, and start by telling stories either about your customers or related to their lives. Get to the emotional core of what your product or service offers. If you’re an event caterer, you’re offering strong memories and good times. If you’re an IT and cybersecurity services provider, you’re providing reliability and peace of mind. If you’re a dry cleaner, even you offer customers an emotion: a feeling of control over their lives and the ability for them to wear what they need when they need it.

When using a storytelling approach, start small. Highlight a customer whose day you made. Or, mention the emotional benefits of whatever information your content offers, such as information to help make people’s day less stressful.

From there, you can learn more about how to combine images and text in a way that stirs people’s souls.

Consider Gatorade’s mini film “The Boy Who Learned to Fly,” which earned the sports beverage company 15.3 million views and over 68,000 “likes” on YouTube. It told a powerful story that ranged from exciting to tragic to joyous in just seven minutes.

You may not have the budget for something that ambitious, but at the very least you can be inspired by businesses able to tell a story where they’re just a supporting character or an outside observer.

Engage Your Social Media Marketing Audience Directly by Asking Them Questions

There is probably no more powerful social media marketing phrase than “What do you think?”

Arguably, all of social media is just one big pile of people telling others what they think. When they share art or humorous content, they’re really saying, “This is the type of thing I like!”

“People like to think things through,” explains Barry Feldman on Hubspot. “They like to hear from other thinkers. Certainly, they want other people to know what they think.”

Soliciting opinions is a surefire way to get your audience talking. Try to avoid controversial topics, and moderate comments that include vulgar, hostile, harassing or otherwise off-brand statements. Having someone mad at your business for deleting your comment is a whole lot better than being the business that let someone attack others in their comment section.

The beauty of asking others for their opinion is that it can be done with just about every post. If you’re a cybersecurity company talking about the dangers of weak passwords, you can ask people for some of the worst passwords they’ve ever seen. Or, if you’re a restaurant writing about the best foods from around the world, throw in a question on your post asking your audience about the best meal they’ve eaten abroad.

Soliciting opinions is easy, and it can reliably earn engagement. Just be wary of doing it too often, especially if no one’s taking the bait. You don’t want to be the brand that gets mocked for throwing a poll that absolutely no one clicks on.

Research Your Audience’s Interests and Influencers

All of the above tactics work well on their own, but you turbocharge their effectiveness by doing a little digging and documentation on your audiences. Try to identify the types of content topics they seem to be most interested in. Look at influencers they frequently interact with, and try to write content you think that influencer would share.

Above all else, write down your strategy, measure your results, and experiment to find better performance over time. The nice thing about social media marketing is that your engagement numbers are easy to track! Keep an eye on your graphs, and let your “likes” point the way to a bigger, more interactive audience.

from Amrut Services https://amrutservices.com/why-no-one-clicks-on-your-social-media-content-6-tips-for-improving-engagement/

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contractor-media · 6 years ago

Text

Why No One Clicks on Your Social Media Content – 6 Tips for Improving Engagement

For a small contractor business, gaining steam on social media is undeniably an uphill battle. You have to contend with algorithms that make it nearly impossible to get discovered until you achieve a certain level of visibility. This situation puts you in a catch-22: you can’t get anyone to view your content until you get engagement, which requires views!

Never mind the fact that social media overwhelmingly prefers silly or opinionated content—two things that really don’t gel with the average business’s branding. Sure, you can gain thousands of shares by posting ridiculous cat videos, but there’s a slim chance all that attention will aid your contractor business goals.

Put simply: if you aren’t on social media, you will have an incredibly hard time gaining brand recognition for your contractor business. You will also have a tough time getting attention for your laboriously crafted content.

So how can you climb uphill to earn engagement and, eventually, legions of fans? Start by following these six tips below.

Talk About Your Audience, Not Your Business

No one logs into social media to talk about you! Okay, that may be an unfair exaggeration, but our point is that most people enjoy social media because it’s all about me, me, me.

Here’s an example: consider a post written by a local dry cleaner that says, “Our new powercleaning process can bust the deepest stains! Come in today and mention this post for $5 off.”

The difference is all about perspective. When you write content, don’t just subtly hint at relevance to your audiences. Instead, write things for them that subtly steer them towards your contractor business services. Flipping your thinking around can be a quick path to more consistent conversions.

Cover Interesting Industry Topics Rather Than Just Your Brand Alone

Participate in Discussions in Groups and Trending Hashtags

Aim for Emotional Content That Tells a Story About Your Customers

Of all these options, emotional content can be the easiest for a small contractor business to pin down. While getting an emotion out of your audience may seem like a tall order, it’s actually fairly hard to fail completely at it. An attempt to make a joke or be “cool” might go over like a lead balloon. Being controversial is never a good idea since it, well, stirs controversy. But no one can 100 percent fail at communicating emotion as long as they’re sincere.

From there, you can learn more about how to combine images and text in a way that stirs people’s souls.

Engage Your Social Media Marketing Audience Directly by Asking Them Questions

There is probably no more powerful social media marketing phrase than “What do you think?”

Arguably, all of social media is just one big pile of people telling others what they think. When they share art or humorous content, they’re really saying, “This is the type of thing I like!”

“People like to think things through,” explains Barry Feldman on Hubspot. “They like to hear from other thinkers. Certainly, they want other people to know what they think.”

Soliciting opinions is a surefire way to get your audience talking. Try to avoid controversial topics, and moderate comments that include vulgar, hostile, harassing or otherwise off-brand statements. Having someone mad at your business for deleting their comment is a whole lot better than being the business that let someone attack others in their comment section.

Research Your Audience’s Interests and Influencers

Why No One Clicks on Your Social Media Content – 6 Tips for Improving Engagement republished from the Contractor Marketing blog by Contractor Media

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