Tips for Facebook Take-overs

/

Facebook take-overs are popular online events that authors can do to promote their books. There are many online book groups, many organized by genre, where the administrators will let you visit for a specific timeframe to post games, questions, and give-aways to help you celebrate your book. Most are done on the group’s page and are limited to its members. Though I have seen some do live events via Zoom.

Here are some tips as you plan your marketing events.

How Do I Find These Groups?

  • Search for book groups on Facebook and read their descriptions. Join those that fit your interest and genre.

  • Look at the events that they host. Many will solicit volunteers for author take-overs.

  • It’s a good idea to do your homework and see how large the group is and how active they are. See what types of games are played and what other authors give-away.

  • Reach out and message the group’s administrator to inquire about a take-over. Remember, most of these folks are book lovers who are volunteers. Be patient. It may take a day or two to get a response.

Things to Verify with the Administrator

  • Make sure to confirm the date and time (in your time zone).

  • Confirm when prize winners should be announced. Many would like for you to do it a day or two after the take-over to give more people a chance to play. I usually create a graphic with all the winners’ names and tag them in the post. I usually contact them via Messenger to let them know what information I need from them. Some group administrators want to post the winners. Make sure to ask.

  • Find out if you’ll have administrative rights to the site. I like to create and schedule my posts on the site, so the night of the event, I can answer questions and make comments. It’s important for you to be active during the time that you’re scheduled. When you’re given rights to the site, make sure that you don’t approve new members or posts. It’s just for you to schedule your items.

  • Make sure to ask if there are any special rules they ask their guests to follow. Some sites want you to number your posts, so readers can visit all of them easily.

Things to Always Do

  • During the time of your take-over, make sure to refresh your screen every few minutes to see the latest responses. Sometimes Facebook changes how it filters comments (e.g. most relevant, most recent, etc.). Make sure it’s on the setting you prefer.

  • Always thank your host and the page administrators. Most are volunteers.

  • Be present and interact with the attendees.

  • Post your winners and send the prizes in a reasonable amount of time.

Your Posts

  • Make sure to have bright, interesting graphics that all have the same look and feel (e.g. backgrounds and colors). Put your web address and book cover on the graphic.

  • Facebook truncates content in posts. Put the most important information first. Make sure to include a link to your book and a way that they can sign up for your newsletter.

  • I create a Word document that has the content of each post. That way, when I’m ready to schedule them, I just have to copy and paste into Facebook.

  • Next week, I’ll do a post on what type of activities to include in your take-over.

Your Prizes

  • Always include what the prize is in your post.

  • I make a list of all my give-aways and the prizes. When I pick a winner, I put the name next to it. Usually, you don’t want the same person to win more than one prize.

  • I always try to think of prizes that I can send in a regular envelope to keep postage down.

  • If you need to limit winners by a country, make sure you specify that in the post. It can get expensive to mail a package internationally.