I’ve been rather concerned about my platform as of late. To be quite honest, I wasn’t aware until a couple weeks ago that I even needed one. I’m thankful I was already well on my way to creating one, though, or else I would have been overwhelmed by the insane amounts of information out there about platforms and brands.

A few days ago, I came across www.dirjournal.com while searching for an image on Google. (I needed a Twitter logo to put on my personal blog to announce I had finally joined.) Well, this site I found is rather interesting and informative — it’s called DirJournal Marketing Articles and is all about “Design Trends, Internet Marketing, SEO, [and] Social Media Marketing.” Thankfully, three authors on the site, including Lisa Barone, were kind enough to break it down in about four articles. In turn, I’m going to attempt to make it simple for you all, as well, so you can go about creating your platform or making it even bigger and better than it already is. Here’s hoping I can make it a little less overwhelming for you. I will start this week with Lisa’s article, and then next week, I’ll delve deeper. Initially, I was going to put all the information into one blog, but as I began writing, I quickly realized that this is a serial article. So stay tuned.

First thing’s first. What is a platform? And why do we, as writers, need a platform, or brand?
Well, put simply, it’s how you are represented on the internet, and you need one so that people know who you are. Most likely, no one is going to read books written by an author who hasn’t made what s/he is all about readily available. You want people to know you and your work. And you want to show yourself in the best light possible. It’s also important that the information you put out there is garnering a lot of attention.

So, if you don’t already have a blog or a home page, get one. That should be #1 on your list. I have a WordPress blog and I recently purchased the domain name edentylerwriter.com for only $14.97/yr. Rather affordable, I believe. And well worth the money because when others do a Google search for your name, it will be easier for them to find you this way. Be vain. It’s worth it.
Next step is to set up a Google profile. Every time I do a search for “Eden Tyler,” my Google Profile shows up at the bottom of the first page, without fail. On this profile, you are able to tell potential readers anything and everything you’d like them to know about yourself, and you can also set up links to all of the websites you are involved with, or own. Most of us most likely have one of these already, as even this site has a ‘following’ which you can join through the use of your own Google profile.
After you’ve accomplished the two most important things, you now should join as many social networking sites as you can. These include LinkedIn, Naymz, and Facebook, among others. Make sure you seem as professional as possible when using these sites and join up with others in your chosen career path. Network and learn. Of course you can have fun, too. Twitter is a little less formal and doesn’t have to be used just for writing contacts. Nor does Facebook. But sites such as LinkedIn are a lot more professional. In fact, Lisa set aside an entire section of her article just for LinkedIn. She feels it’s that important to have a profile on the site because it ranks rather highly during Google searches. I have not set up a profile on the site yet, but it’s my next order of business. I believe it’s one of the first two or three results that pop up when searching my name. Unfortunately, there is already a semi-famous Eden Tyler (a male, NYC-based director), so his information shows up rather than mine. This needs to be fixed. Pronto!

One last step, which I will explain in further detail next Friday, is to guest blog as often as the opportunity is made available to you. Don’t be afraid to ask site owners if they need any help. Send in examples of your work and see what the responses are. The worst that can happen is people say, “No.” But it could also be a nice and easy way to get your name out there. Acquire some followers. Usually, these aren’t paying gigs, but we’re not quite to that point yet. Baby steps.

Hope this helps you all arrive a little closer to your writing goals. See you next week for another installment.

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Since winning her first writing competition at a young age, Eden Tyler, has only fallen more in love with the written word. She uses her English, Psychology, and Sociology backgrounds to create depth to her own stories and novels while contributing to and running websites about writing. This is what fulfills her, along with working as Co-Editor for Fuel Your Writing, but she also enjoys the freelance work that puts food on the table (and that ever-essential roof overhead) for her family.

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