Secrets to Planning a Rockin' Twitter Party

I know consider myself a Twitter Party Addict. I have managed three of my own and hopped on the bandwagon of over twenty of them.

It's a great way to spread the word about your book and to play as an 'appetizer' to a larger launch party.
 
THE LAUNCH

Who says you can only have one book launch party? Well I say, have many. This is the main event for your book. You've been building up to this for months. Doing it on multiple platforms will afford your book a lot of visibility. But even though Twitter is always hopping, you need to promo it a bit.

THE BUILDUP

I usually start my book launches that include a Twitter Party, Blog Party and Facebook Party with a mini-blog tour which includes all the authors who will be part of my Facebook Virtual Launch Party. We do this to build up the buzz.

About 6 weeks before the party all of the authors involved in the big Facebook Party event tweet about the Twitter Party coming (using a hashtag for the book title & a link to our Party Map Page).

The mini blog party kicks off 1 week before the Twitter Party. It's used to build awareness of all of the book release events coming. The Twitter Appetizer Party (which runs the Friday before the Facebook Party) is used to drive even more traffic to the book sales pages for participating authors.

The Giveaway announcement. We run a giveaway announcement on twitter (a daily tweet from each participating author) with link to Party Map Page which has the schedule of the mini-blog tour, the Twitter Party, Facebook Party, links to all books, and rafflecopter.


THE TWITTER APPETIZER PARTY

We call it an appetizer because it's the night before the big Facebook Party event (which usually last for 8 hours on a Saturday and is run by a number of authors not limited to the launch guest of honor).

These usually last 3 hours. Three hours is enough time to run 3 trivia games, intro the book, shout out for prize winners and share links to big party coming the following day on Facebook.


The trick though is to have about 3 other people who you KNOW will be there to help you keep the party going, promo the party, and invite others.

A neat way to make sure you know who's coming is to use the mini-blog tour to build an invite list and later tweet a reminder to participants.

PARTY MUST DO LIST

For a twitter party to work, you need to have the Trivia Questions, links, etc preset (you can use hootsuite or socialoomph to do this in advance). This makes things much easier and allows facilitator to just do promo, invite tweets, and personal interaction with crowd.

Announcing the party should be done 60 to 30 minutes before by the 3 party facilitators. Invites to fans who are on twitter at the time & share a party favor if they show up is a great kickoff. Have a main prize of about $25 gift card that you will give out at end of night.
 
Kick off party with party jargon, a swag giveaway like bookmarks, introduction of participating authors, book, book trailer. Then start the games. Try to stick with games that are themes of the book. In between shout out a reminder about follow-on Facebook party, shout out winners and 'thank you' to participants before running next game. Sticking to 10 questions for each trivia works.
 

Trivia ideas. Movie lines, guess that tune, caption picture contest and many more depending how creative you are.

WOULD YOU GO TO A TWITTER RELEASE PARTY?


by LM Preston, YA & MG Author, http://www.lmpreston.com/

Social Media for Fashion Brands Event Summary

Last week’s Social Media for Fashion Brands networking talk was one of the busiest yet and we were lucky  to have two guests on our panel this time.  This is a longer post than usual as so much was discussed.

Fashion blogger, Lois Waller, has built a huge following since she started her Bunni Punch blog in 2009, as well as over 5,000 twitter followers. She also runs her own PR agency Carrot Top PR, so has a unique perspective from both a PR and blogger's point of view.

Our second guest was designer Harriet Posner who has extensive experience advising labels on their branding and marketing strategy and has publishing a  book Marketing Fashion as a practical guide to the principles of marketing and branding. She also lectures on Fashion Business and Marketing at the LCF and Insitute Margioni and is about to launch her own label, Brompton Finch, which produces customised interior furnishings and fashion accessories inspired by flowers.

Harriet Posner, Alison Lewy and Lois Waller

The talk was kindly hosted by the American Intercontinental University and it was lovely to see their students mix and network with our business club members and fashion entrepreneurs that attended the event.

Most of us are aware of how important blogs and social media platforms are in helping promote a fashion brand, but don’t necessarily know how to utilise these platforms to the best advantage.

Fashion Angel networking talk audience

Below is a summary of the questions posed by the chair Alison Lewy, and some tips from the panel:-

Why does a brand need a blog, and to engage with bloggers?
• Fashion bloggers are good for outfit posts to promote your product. The aim is to get several influential  bloggers to feature your designs to have a wide reach.
• A label’s own blog is a brand building tool to create an emotional connection with your target audience.
• It is important to be clear about who you are trying to reach depending on what your product and target market is.

What makes a good blog?
• A blog should portray your brand in the best light and it should reflects your brands ethos - you shouldn't use it as a platform to moan about things
• Build a conversation and a relationship with the audience by talking about your business journey, what inspires you, sharing behind the scenes footage at your studio or before a catwalk show all  can help.
• Lois’s sees Bunni Punch as an informative tool that mixes up new and old brands, luxury and low end product outfit posts  - happy to include Primark if they produce something she thinks is cool.
• It should be linked to your twitter and Facebook account so they are updated when you post.

How does it help a label reach trade buyers?
• Buyers are now using blogs to research and find new brands – it’s much easier than trawling through websites. They have to be aware of the trends and so they look to the popular bloggers to feed them with up to date information which helps them filter through the brands that approach them.
• If you show at London Fashion Week, make the most out of the opportunity and invite bloggers to attend and wear your products so hopefully they will write about your brand in their show coverage.
• If your brand has built a big following on social media sites eg twitter & Facebook, the buyers will be more inclined to look at it, as it indicates there is a demand for your product.

How does a brand attract the attention of  bloggers?
• Use twitter or email to approach them.  Not all will respond but some will.
• Be aware that now many bloggers attend the shows and contact brands just to get free products, but don’t give anything back.
• Try to build an on-going relationship with a blogger who’s going to feature you on a regular basis.

Do you have to pay  bloggers to feature products?
• The fashion blogging world has changed and some of the influential bloggers do get paid for nearly all their posts. They are offered so much money  that it is no doubt hard to refuse, but it does change the nature of the relationship.
• Lois’s focus is on creativity and showcasing new brands that interest her, in some cases she may earn some money out of it , but it doesn't influence her choices.
• Hilary felt that it’s best to take a pragmatic approach – if a customer clicks on a blog link and then goes on to purchase that product she didn't feel there was anything wrong for the blogger to earn money from it providing the relationship is transparent.
• Consumers follow blogs to see a curated selection of products from a blogger that they feel has a style aesthetic they like, so it can be look on as a service to some extent.

Harriet Posner, Alison Lewy and Lois Waller

What are the important platforms to be on?
This depends on your business model  and your segmentation targeting and positioning – you need to understand and have a presence on the platforms used by your target audience.

Twitter
• Lois told us over 80% of her new clients are through twitter. It’s a powerful research tool for businesses as can be used it to search what relevant  people are blogging about.
You can investigate who the key bloggers are in your field of interest and then  follow them – hopefully they'll follow you back, thus helping to build your community.
• Hashtags can be used to help you find other interesting twitter feeds.

Facebook
• Facebook is particularly useful for customer communication, brand exposure and to drive traffic to a website.
• It is outstanding in terms of engaging people who like a brand, want to share their opinions and participate in giveaways and contests.
• A Facebook page should be kept updated to always look relevant.

Instagram 
• Useful picture sharing application .
• You can take a picture and instantly post it to twitter and Facebook  saving time.
• It lets users follow and like brands, therefore building your community.

Pinterest 
• This virtual scrapbook site is very relevant for fashion brands.
• Many brands are finding posting products on to boards translates in to sales
• It’s useful  for designers to create their own moodboards.
• It’s super quick to set up and update, so very user friendly.

Google+ 
• Google+ may not be very exciting and not much seems to be going on, however it is an important technical tool, as will be soon be the  only way to move up Google search rankings.

Lois Waller’s tips:-

1. Get on twitter - if you’re not on it set up an account immediately!
2. Harass friends/family to like your page – this helps spread the word and move you up the search rankings.
3. When you start you have to be proactive and approach magazine press, bloggers, stylist and PR’s to promote your brand and  build your community of followers 
4. Use scheduling tools to allow you to write bogs in advance when you have the time, and then post them at a later date.
5. If you want to promote your product, try linking it to something that’s on trend using the relevant hashtag.
6. Network – it’s a small industry so face to face networking is the best way to get known . It’s also a great way of sharing expertise and forging collaborations. Even if you don’t have tickets,  go to London Fashion Week and trade shows to get to know the stylists and bloggers.
7. If you want to approach a lot of bloggers – try following them and asking them to follow back, so you can direct message them.

Harriet Posner’s tips:-

1. Content is key - think about your tone of voice - communicate with and project the values of your brand
2. Remember the 4 Cs of Content
   Create  - create engaging content ( See point 1)
   Context - what is the aim and purpose of the content you are creating?
   Conversation - how will your content support two way communication between you and your audience?  Use social media to listen to the conversation as well as generate content.
   Conversion - What does conversion mean to you for each platform?   Think about meaningful conversion points of different platforms.  Are you trying to get someone to sign up for a newsletter?  Do you want them to enter a competition? Are you wanting them to purchase? Is the aim to get them to like or reTweet?  Is the purpose to get a key influence or blogger to contribute or feature your work?
3. SEO - Make sure you use KEY WORDS wisely.  Think about the page title - put what you do before the brand name.  Don't forget to write Alt Tags on images using key words It helps with SEO and bloggers find your images.
4. Website links should be on key word anchor text, not generic words like ‘more’ or ‘click here’ – eg link black leather jackets to link and not ‘here’
5. People search Google by short phrases or 2 - 3 words.  Check the Google Key words tool - for example more people search for Milliner than Millinery. 
6. Use Lists – if you want to keep an eye on a competitor without the public knowing who you are following you can use secret list.

Social media gives you access to data and a way to reach your target customers and can play an integral  part of your overall marketing/communications strategy but basic marketing principles still apply.

Don't forget, it is a support of and not a substitute, for getting out there and meeting people face to face!

Let us know what works best for you?
By Alison Lewy

Marketing on Facebook?

By Mike Jerome

Getting Your Face Known on Facebook

Facebook has turned into a complete world of its own on the internet and promoting on Facebook is the order of the day. The destination where you could find missing loved ones and connect very fast with you favourite humans, and see photos of out favourite stars has changed a lot since it started. Facebook has progressed into a giant shopping center, adore it or hate it there are huge business opportunities for any network marketing firm on Facebook with seven-hundred million future clients and growing.

Development and promoting on Facebook is intense business and there are a number of tips and tricks for attaining traffic and directing it to your website to earn income. You can do this by being concerned in Facebook Groups and making a page for your business, and you can also invest to advertise to very well focused market groups. Do not accept the only people on Facebook are lazy teens. That isn't the case. Growing amounts of older women and men are making use of Facebook for nearly any number of motivations. Though purchasing something may not be their first idea, but several folk who use Facebook are beginning to use it just as they'd the web in general - for help and knowledge. Do not forget to create a PAGE for your Facebook company character as opposed to a profile. If you select a profile you're going to be violating Facebook's Provisions of Service.

Selling to Three-quarters of a Bln Folk

Promoting your small company through a social networking platform such as Facebook demands a significant article than I'm in a position to provide you with here and Facebook is continually adding inventions and changing its rules. The basis of any social media is being friendly, so you are probably going to become consistently engaged with your fans, giving answers to questions and leaving interesting and favorable posts. Use your small enterprise brand if you have one therefore that your product is quickly recognisable. If you're an affiliate or niche marketing pro, feature a large photo of you looking acceptable to your small business. If you sell swimming costumes you do not want to wear a suit ( maybe a swimming costume ) Initial impressions are critical - try to imagine that you're in a huge celebration with thousands of important people. You should present yourself suitably and interact as much as you are able to gain new supporters, in this example, Fans. You're going to share information with them by uploading pictures, clips, status updates, holding dialogues and showing wall posts. Pages may be able to be seen to everybody online and are usually a lot better for lasting relations with your fans, readers or clients. Facebook Events permit you to connect to your audience and ask them to your competitions and special offers, although your invitees are not yet among your fans.

Feed Me!

Very like a domain it's best to continue to keep adding more engaging articles or material to keep your Fans' attention. It is a wonderful place for folks to ask crucial questions about your goods and share client feedback. You might find that when your site has appeared at a specific quantity of visitors it'll be hard to always keep it controllable. It's good to reply to your fans inquiries in a timely manner, but you will not wish to be on your Facebook page twenty-four / seven, which can simply come to pass as you may have fans from around the globe. Don't delay and look into selling on Facebook before you get left at the back.

About the Author:

Discover the benefits of Marketing on Facebook and see your customer base expand exponentially. Follow a SYSTEM designed to give you an edge when marketing on Facebook.

Fashion meets Technology - Highlights from the Fashion Decoded conference by Alison Lewy

I had the pleasure in attending the first London Fashion Decoded conference on Thursday. The goal of the conferences, which launched in NYC in April, is to promote creative collaborations between the fashion and technology sectors.

The event was even more poignant considering the organiser Liz Bacelar, and chair Dirk Standen from Style.com,  managed to get to London from New York despite all the problems caused by Hurricane Sandy. It was a tribute to Liz and her team that she managed to run such a successful the event even though soem speakers didn't make it and she must have been very concerned about friends and relatives.

The first panel discussion was on the Future of Runway in the digital age with designer Henry Holland, On/Off founder Lee Lapthorn, Erik Torstenson from The Saturday group and Gillian Harding Morre from Fashion GPS.

The question posed by moderator Noelle Reno was - are catwalks relevant in the digital age?

 Key point to come out of the discussion:-

•  For some designers, such as House of Holland, a physical catwalk will always be important as the whole theatre and buzz of an event is key to building the brand.
•   Live streaming of most on schedule catwalk shows means the opportunity is there to reach a wider audience and gives consumers a chance to feel the excitement around the shows
•  Burberry was acknowledged as the game changer by being the first to invest heavily in technology and allowing customers to order at the same time as watching the shows.
•  Lee felt whilst it was undoubtedly necessary for some high end luxury labels, it depends on their brand positioning. The costs are often prohibitive without sponsorship which is becoming harder to attract. There are now viable alternatives to show a collection via digital catwalks with the advances of 360 technology and this method of showcasing will be adopted more and more in the future.
• There is also something to be said for the Tom Ford approach – just inviting the really key buyers and press to a small presentation as in reality probably on 50 people attending shows are important buyers or press.
• Erik suggested that as consumers were able to watch and even order items from catwalks as they are live streamed the next step could be that designers could reserve a number of seats for key buyers/press at their shows, and then charge customers/fans to attend, as a way of financing the shows.

I was so delighted that the fashion tech keynote interview was with Aslaug Magnusdottir from Moda Operandi, as have been interested in their business model since they launched in February 2011. Moda Operandi really did disrupt the fashion industry hierarchy by providing customers immediate access to runway collections. A summary of how they have become so successful:-

• As soon as a designer’s catwalk show has taken place, their team photograph the collection which is then uploaded to the site within 48 hours.
• The beauty of this is that customers pay 50% deposit and the balance on delivery which helps the designer finance the production.
• When they started they were told it would never work but they now have over 350 brands featured on the site.
• The US and UK designers were supportive from the beginning but the French designers were the hardest to convince.
• They have a very clear idea of their target customer – their average customer is a high net worth female age 43.
• The average ticket price is $800 and average customer spend per transaction is £1300
• The high level of customer service is paramount to their success - personal stylists are on hand to advise their customers on making the right purchase and putting ‘looks’ together.
• They use archival packaging so the customer receives their purchase beautifully packed.
• When they first started around 50% of customers used the stylists but now customers are more confident buying from the site its around 20% and tend to be the high spending repeat customers.
• Next stage of their business development is the launch of in season product later this month.
• Although an online business, they do see having a physical presence too is important for brand building – they host trunk shows to promote their designers and customers can get advice from their personal stylists.
• They are also planning to open up a pop up store in Brazil in March which will heavily feature London based designer brands.
• Social media is very important to them, particularly Pinterest which they use to build interest around their designers – it’s a common misconception that high end customers don’t engage with social media.  

This point was reiterated in a later interview with by Tracy Yaverbaun, Facebook’s Director of Fashion and Luxury partnerships. Their research has shown that high net worth consumers spend a disproportionate amounted time on Facebook compared to other traditional media. To prove the point they have run very successful campaigns with both Tiffany and Cartier.

KEY MESSAGE FROM THE CONFERENCE

One message came through loud and clear throughout the whole day – the future is mobile - all the businesses represented on the various panels were heavily investing in their mobile technology and strategies. According to Martijn Bertisen, Head of Google Retail UK/IE, by Christmas 40% of fashion related searches will come from a phone.  

The popularity of our M-commercefor Fashion Retail talk on 14^th November shows that SME fashion businesses are also realising this is something they cannot ignore. If you want to book a place go to our Fashion Angel Events page.

Next week part two of my personal highlights talks about The Fashion Pitch section.

Playing it Close to the Vest

When I set up a Facebook account and started blogging back in fall of 2008, I knew from the  beginning that as an aspiring YA author, I’d have to be careful about what I posted. Swearing, sexual references, and joking about drugs or alcohol could potentially alienate my audience. I also elected not to say anything overtly religious or political. While others staked out their territory on Facebook by filling in the blanks for religion and political party, I left mine blank. A friend of mine did me one better, and her response is the best I’ve seen. For “politics” she put “just as private as my religion,” and for religion she put, “just as private as my politics.”

For a long time I felt a little uncomfortable about my stance of neutrality. After all, if I have a belief, shouldn’t I own it? But I’ve mulled it over a lot lately, and I think my position makes sense. And not just from a business perspective. Don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying people shouldn’t voice their beliefs publicly. That’s their right, and I understand the need to feel like part of a community. I just wonder if they realize the full ramifications of what they’re doing. Do they really want people to make snap judgments about them based solely on who they voted for in the last election or how they choose to worship? Is anyone’s personality really that cut and dried?

Probably every one of us has at least one friend or family member with drastically different religious or political views. And yet we accept them in spite of it. This is because we got to know the whole person, not just a single label. No individual is as simplistic as the stereotype of one group. We’re all a wild and crazy hodgepodge. Even within the walls of a single congregation of a single denomination of a single religion, there will be vastly different takes on dogma. And each member of each splinter group of each political party has her own nuanced take on various policies. I have friends on both sides of the political fence and of various spiritualities. When I think of what I’d have missed out on by jumping to conclusions, I’m so glad I sat back quietly and watched long enough to discover who these folks really are.

It only makes sense that people on social networks want to connect with those who share similar beliefs, and Facebook makes this particularly easy with its groups. But lately I’ve noticed that the names of some of these groups have become increasingly controversial—even insulting. They seem to be titled specifically to get a dig in against the opposing viewpoint. And why? Just so people can feel all buddy-buddy and superior? But at what cost?

I suppose it’s human nature to have an us vs. them mentality. It probably comes from our very early days, when anyone outside our own tribe was a threat to our existence. But just because we’re wired that way doesn’t mean we can’t override the circuitry. And really, why are these subjects so important, anyway? Think about all the TV shows and movies you’ve watched in the past week. Of all the books you’ve read. Chances are, you couldn’t pigeonhole the majority of the characters into any particular religion or political party. And it doesn’t really matter, does it? It doesn’t affect how you care about them.

For a moment, consider Harry Potter. Of all the things we know about him, of all the things that are important to his character, the one thing that makes absolutely no difference is whether his political leanings were liberal or conservative. Just something to think about.

~ Lisa

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NEWSFLASH! Ali Cross reveals the cover for her new book, Desolate, today on her blog. 

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In addition to being a YA author, Lisa is a retired amateur stock car racer, an accomplished cat whisperer, and a professional smartass. She writes coming-of-age books about kids in hard luck situations who learn to appreciate their own value after finding mentors who love them for who they are. You can connect with her though her blog, The Tao or Webfoot, or buy her book, Running Wide Open, (currently FREE) at any major online retailer.