by Edie Melson @EdieMelson

For writers today, an online presence can mean the difference between success and failure. But if we’re not doing it right, we may be our own worst enemy. 

1. You have an inconsistent social media presence—I’m not talking about taking weekends off. I’m referring to the necessity of spending consistent time building your online presence. This includes showing up on Twitter and Facebook with reasonable regularity, and keeping a regular schedule for your blog posts.
2. You over-promote—The promotion I’m talking about is SELF promotion. Use Edie’s 5 to 1 rule—for every 5 social media updates, you’re allowed one additional update about yourself.
3. Your website doesn’t have social share buttons—I don’t know how much time I’ve spent on sites looking for twitter handles or trying to follow them on Facebook. Most people won’t spend more than three seconds. If they can’t find additional information, you’ve lost a connection.
4. You engage in incorrect hashtag usage—Hashtags are great, and using them CORRECTLY can net you a lot of new followers. But correctly means no more than 2 per Twitter update. And between 25 and 30 for Instagram.
5. You use auto-responders—Is there anyone out there who likes to talk to computers? Not me. Beyond that, we’re a pretty savvy group. We can tell an auto-respond message from a real one.
6. You’re obsessed with the numbers—Social Media growth takes time. And the key to growth is AUTHENTIC CONNECTIONS. Shortcuts bring more trouble than help. As long as you’re seeing healthy interaction, you’re doing well.
7. You don’t utilize a scheduling program correctly—Personally I prefer Hootsuite, but Buffer is all an excellent option. However the rules have changed. Using a scheduling program on Facebook will cost you visibility. Use it for Twitter, but avoid scheduling anything for Facebook.
8. You’re guilty of hogging the stream—This means you post three or more updates in a row. You’ll find that behavior will encourage people to unfollow and unfriend you in droves. Spread out your updates and keep your connections happy.
9. You try out every new platform that appears—No one can do everything well. Focus your energy on two or three programs. Have a user name for all the big ones, but concentrate your time on a couple.  Focus, focus, focus.
10. You add people to groups and group messages—This one is personal for me. I get very tired of being added to things without being asked. I’ll give anyone a pass for the first slip, but after that, I will immediately unfollow anyone who does it a second time.

Now it’s your turn, what turns you off when it comes to social media? Is there something that leads you to immediately sever a connection? Share, so we can all see things from a different perspective.

Edie Melson is a woman of faith with ink-stained fingers observing life through the lens of her camera. No matter whether she’s talking to writers, entrepreneurs, or readers, her first advice is always “Find your voice, live your story.” As an author, blogger, and speaker she’s encouraged and challenged audiences across the country and around the world. Her numerous books reflect her passion to help others develop the strength of their God-given gifts and apply them to their lives.Connect with her on her website, through Facebook, Twitter and on Instagram.