Bloggers Discuss discussion

Do you make use of social media? What's your favorite medium--Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, etc., and why? Do you think utilizing social media has been helpful in gaining visitors to your blog?

Twitter is definitely useful for posting links to posts and catching people's attention. I have a board on Pinterest for books I've reviewed but I don't think anyone has gone to my blog from my Pinterest board. I only have a personal facebook account, so it isn't linked to my blog and I don't really see any point of making a facebook page for my blog. I don't have many followers, but that's okay.

Twitter is the most useful (and fun) for me too. It's also great for interacting with other readers and bloggers! I can get sucked in too easily :)

Is anybody using Tumblr? I just started a tumblr account and so far there is not much going on there... Don't really know how to get their attention. XD

I post links on social media if I am actually posting to the blog at the time. When I schedule posts.....it becomes a hassle to go back and post links.....
I do get a lot of traffic from Facebook. I set up a Twitter account, but most of the people who follow me are just follow/like seekers, so not much going on there. Personally, I don't like Twitter's format, so I don't keep up to it as much as I should. (I don't like FB for other reasons, but all my friends are there so.....)

I think social media is really good and does gain a lot of traffic for a blog, but it is more work for a blogger. It really depends on how busy your life/schedule is.

Is anybody using Pinterest for their blog? How does it work exactly? I posted links and pictures from my blog, but so far nothing. How does one get followers there? Any experiences?

I don't use Tumblr, but I do use Pinterest! What's difficult for me, though, is taking the time to create an image. I don't always do that--sometimes I'll just pin a book cover that links to my book review. But what really catches people and causes them to click on your link is the quality of your image. Also, I think it's best to have a title on the image. Most likely, people won't stop to read the description, though that couldn't hurt either!

I don't spend too much time on Pinterest, so I don't have many followers, but I know following a lot of people with similar interests as you should help with gaining followers. You can also ask to join group boards such as https://www.pinterest.com/serenapoetr...

I use Pinterest, but I'm not really sure how helpful it is? And Twitter confuses me, lol So I don't really use a lot of other social media, but I feel like maybe I should.
Does it really make a huge difference?

Social media can make a huge difference if you know how to use it to your advantage. Personally, though, I don't really take the time required to make a huge difference. I'd like to... but I don't :P. But I do know that it's something that can be utilized! There are a lot of posts on the Internet on utilizing social media, too.

Hello! New to the group :)

For Pinterest, joining group boards is a nice-ish way to meet some new pinners and get some attention on your pins. I know people who swear by it.

Tumblr is one of those slippery social media sites. You do need a good number of followers for your posts to be amplified, so spend some time reblogging and getting to know other Tumblrs before posting original content. I don't get a lot of traffic from Tumblr, but the bounce rate and session times of the traffic I do get are lovely.

I highly, highly recommend joining Twitter chats if you're on Twitter. Answering the questions is a super simple way to start tweeting, and you meet LOADS of new people. If you're not sure what to Tweet at other times, just take a look at other bloggers :)

Thank you! ;) All of this was pretty helpful! I guess, it takes some time before you get a feeling for how a social media site works.

What works really good for me is Instagram. Of course, you have to like taking pictures and editing them. You can also post little stories below the images, so it works like a microblogging platform. The bookish community there is pretty huge and engaged.

Does anybody know how hashtags on Pinterest work? There don't seem to be many who use them, like on Instagram or tumblr.

I use Instagram a lot - Bookstagram community is really good and helpful. Today I started a facebook page for my blog and I have a Twitter account.

Yes, I would definitely recommend Twitter chats!

@Veranda: you can directly hashtag things in the description of the pin! I've seen people include long strings of hashtags there, but personally I think more than five feels really off-putting.