Smart writers invest in workshops, courses, and conferences. Smart and savvy writers will also invest time in building their platforms. These three steps repeated weekly, monthly or quarterly will ensure your platform grows at a steady rate.
Review Your Strategies
Look back over your blog and social media analytics. What content performed best for you? What networks gave your best results? Build on those strengths while taking a critical look at what didn’t perform as well. Should you make tweaks and try to improve, or abandon a failing strategy?
Numbers don’t lie, especially analytics, and so you’ll discover which social media networks fit best in your platform. Where are your readers? Where and how are you getting the best engagement? If a network isn’t getting the engagement you expected, what tweaks do you need to make?
Set SMART goals
Peter Drucker’s SMART management tool works well when setting platform goals:
- Specific – Determine how much and what you will write, how you will network, what skills you need to learn, etc.
- Measurable – Set goals for word count, number of articles to submit, posts to publish, manuscript progress, etc.
- Attainable – Decide what works for you and your schedule, being careful to strike a balance that’s ambitious but also realistic.
- Relevant – Goals must be timely and meaningful, moving you toward an identified objective.
- Time-bound – Give yourself deadlines: daily (if appropriate), weekly, monthly, quarterly.
Don’t Neglect Relationships
Writing requires a good bit of solitary confinement, and it can be easy to retreat into your writing shell and neglect relationships. I need a good balance of non-writing friends who I can relax with, but I also deliberately cultivate friendships with other writers who understand the struggles and challenges of writing.
Consider joining a writing group or getting a critique partner. Find writer friends who will understand your goals and hold you accountable. Connect regularly to check progress and encourage each other.
Steady platform growth
Building your platform requires an investment of time and energy, along with regular evaluations. Set goals, connect with others, and know where you want to go with your writing. If you aim at nothing, you’ll hit it every time.
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