As most of you who follow my blog know, I’m
consistently revealing my journey as a writer to either stop you from making some
of the same mistakes that have plagued me, or to pass on a nugget that has
worked for me.
consistently revealing my journey as a writer to either stop you from making some
of the same mistakes that have plagued me, or to pass on a nugget that has
worked for me.
Today, I’m happy to say that what I’m about to share
is pure gold.
is pure gold.
For years, I’ve been on Twitter, building up my
followers little by little and can brag a bit today that I recently reached the
14k level. (Picture me chortling!!)
followers little by little and can brag a bit today that I recently reached the
14k level. (Picture me chortling!!)
Now all this time, I’ve mostly done it the hard way,
tweet by tweet and very little scheduling. I did try Hootsuite for a while but
it just got too convoluted for me when they added in all the other social media
avenues…. or maybe I should admit that figuring it all out was taking too long
and it all felt too much like work. I’m one of those busy authors who hasn’t a
lot of time or energy to try slogging my way through a dense fog of
instructions that don’t make a lot of sense. I want it to be easy, or at least
to save me time in the end.
tweet by tweet and very little scheduling. I did try Hootsuite for a while but
it just got too convoluted for me when they added in all the other social media
avenues…. or maybe I should admit that figuring it all out was taking too long
and it all felt too much like work. I’m one of those busy authors who hasn’t a
lot of time or energy to try slogging my way through a dense fog of
instructions that don’t make a lot of sense. I want it to be easy, or at least
to save me time in the end.
Then I found a site called Social Oomph and that
worked for a while. I was able to schedule ordinary tweets but there was one
thing missing that really bugged me. I couldn’t add any images to my tweets.
And as we all know, nowadays that’s so important to getting attention.
worked for a while. I was able to schedule ordinary tweets but there was one
thing missing that really bugged me. I couldn’t add any images to my tweets.
And as we all know, nowadays that’s so important to getting attention.
So… I started searching again and I’m happy to tell
you that I did come across a great site and it’s called Twittimer. (I wish I knew who came up with the Twitter title so I could strangle them. I get so many strange looks when I talk about my tweets and retweets to those smart twits with no computers and no stress :-)))
you that I did come across a great site and it’s called Twittimer. (I wish I knew who came up with the Twitter title so I could strangle them. I get so many strange looks when I talk about my tweets and retweets to those smart twits with no computers and no stress :-)))
Back on subject – now, the reason I like this place is
because it’s easy to figure out. I had it beat within the first few minutes of
stumbling onto it. Yeah – I know – I was
shocked too!!!
because it’s easy to figure out. I had it beat within the first few minutes of
stumbling onto it. Yeah – I know – I was
shocked too!!!
So… after playing around on Twittimer, I decided to
go the Pro route for these reasons. One – I wanted to add both my Twitter pages
– Mimi Barbour Author @MimiBarbour and The Author’s Billboard @mimisgang1. And
two – I wanted to set up a sheet of tweets and forget about them. And three – $24.99 for 6 months seemed more
than reasonable.
go the Pro route for these reasons. One – I wanted to add both my Twitter pages
– Mimi Barbour Author @MimiBarbour and The Author’s Billboard @mimisgang1. And
two – I wanted to set up a sheet of tweets and forget about them. And three – $24.99 for 6 months seemed more
than reasonable.
Okay – here is why you might want to use them:
1. Publish
posts at the exact moment of your choosing.
posts at the exact moment of your choosing.
2. Privacy
of personal data.
of personal data.
3. Share
your photos.
your photos.
4. Archive
your messages.
your messages.
5. Statistics.
6. At
the right time…everywhere.
the right time…everywhere.
7. Campaign
Preparation
Preparation
8. Track
links with Bitly.
links with Bitly.
My personal favorite is: Bulk Uploads using a CSV.
This means that I can set up a week or even a month or more of tweets for a
campaign, add them all to an excel spreadsheet following a few simple rules and
forget about them. See those rules:
This means that I can set up a week or even a month or more of tweets for a
campaign, add them all to an excel spreadsheet following a few simple rules and
forget about them. See those rules:
1. You
must save the spreadsheet as a CSV only.
must save the spreadsheet as a CSV only.
2. You
must delete the other sheets on the bottom of the page.
must delete the other sheets on the bottom of the page.
3. Make
sure your dates are changed to future dates
sure your dates are changed to future dates
4. And
no duplicate tweets within a 12 hour span.
no duplicate tweets within a 12 hour span.
Now – the best part is just how simple it is to set
up your ordinary tweet. Once you’ve filled in your account info, the box will
open up that you see here.
up your ordinary tweet. Once you’ve filled in your account info, the box will
open up that you see here.
Copy and paste the tweet inside or a blurb for
Facebook and LinkedIn. It will give you the option of which Twitter stream you
want it sent over or both, plus if you want it on FB and Linkedin also.
(Linkedin will not allow images…………..darn!!)
Facebook and LinkedIn. It will give you the option of which Twitter stream you
want it sent over or both, plus if you want it on FB and Linkedin also.
(Linkedin will not allow images…………..darn!!)
See the little camera, top left, that is where you
go to add in images and once you do, you can reuse that same image over and
over – it even asks you.
go to add in images and once you do, you can reuse that same image over and
over – it even asks you.
You can also create a group so your messages can be saved to certain groups and then re-used. So cool…
What I have benefited from was the fact I can
schedule posts for both my Facebook pages also and with images. That’s a big
help for me each week.
schedule posts for both my Facebook pages also and with images. That’s a big
help for me each week.
Twittimer has been an absolute time saver and it’s
actually fun to use. Check it out if you find you need a tool such as this.
actually fun to use. Check it out if you find you need a tool such as this.
And let me know if you’ve already found something
similar or… if you try Twittimer… do you like it as much as I do?
similar or… if you try Twittimer… do you like it as much as I do?