Building a Social Media Following with Peter Chiykowski
We talked to Peter Chiykowski, award-winning writer, editor and cartoonist behind the popular web comic Rock, Paper, Cynic and got a few of his thoughts on upping your social media game as a writer!
Start the day with the fun stuff!
WRITERS, AM I RIGHT? Aren’t we always trying to come up with the Perfect Daily Writing Routine? Well, Peter had some really simple and straightforward advice. His morning jam is to start with the fun and creative stuff first before he ever gets around to checking e-mail. He’s not wrong; the e-mail will always be there, but perhaps your early bird enthusiasm won’t be.
Invest in smart ad space.
When asked about how to get his work discovered in the vast ocean of the Internet, Peter mentioned purchasing both Facebook ads as well as an ad-buy for a medium-sized indie podcast. Here’s a handy article about buying podcast ad space.
Pick the right tools.
Have you ever heard of Integromat? Me neither! Peter described it as a sort of robot that runs the base of his social media. From the official website: Integromat is a powerful integration platform that allows you to visualize, design and automate your work in minutes. Focus on your business fundamentals, and let automation take care of the rest.
Integromat currently has plans ranging from free to $299/month.
Coattails are for looking fancy, not for riding, or: Listen to Laser.
Peter mentioned this bit of advice he got from a former Laser post: “Don’t hire collaborators thinking they’ll bring their whole audience with them.” Frame the collaborations in a way that the collaborations are artistically interesting in and of themselves; don’t expect to snag followers/customers just based on your successful artist pals.
Give yourself “permission to try and forgiveness when you fail.”
Always good advice for all of us. Thanks, Peter!
Where to find Peter:
https://storyenginedeck.myshopify.com/
Bonus Advice: Make a mailing list. Be Canadian.
