Writer’s Confession: I Regret Not Joining Social Media Sooner

I like to think of myself as a pretty aware guy, particularly when it comes to technology. I was an earlier adopter of what we now call “smartphones,” I used to download podcasts via my PC and transfer them to my clunky iPod back in the day, and my hosting account with BlueHost is quickly approaching it’s 10th birthday. I’m an avowed tech fan, but if you take a look at my Twitter account, you’ll see it was created in 2015. Whoa, what’s that about?

Too many independent writers like myself have made the same mistake I made for years, focusing exclusively on private social media accounts, rather than building a business profile. See, the truth is I’m no stranger to Twitter. My personal account was established in 2007, way before many of the movers and shakers of the freelance industry were even thinking about tweets, PMs, and followers. I’ve at one point been a member on countless social networks, and I even joined Facebook before it was open to the general public.

My biggest social media mistake was neglecting my professional profile. I was more than happy to tweet about the last movie I saw at the cinema and share a picture of my dinner via Instagram, but I never really thought twice about creating a social profile where other influencers, potential clients, and writing peers could connect with me. “Oops” doesn’t come close to describing how foolish this move has proven over the course of my career—how many potential clients are you missing out on by not building an expert social media profile?

As I’ve launched WritingfromAtoZ.com, I’ve had the humbling experience of starting over from square one. On the one hand, starting at the beginning does allow me to carefully plod out my steps. Nevertheless, it’s a challenge not to have the tweet count (15.1K on my personal account) and followers to fall back on, even if ultimately those figures serve as little more than vanity numbers.

Starting your career and ready to get started with your social media accounts for freelance writing? I’ve put together the helpful infographic below as a quick cheatsheet for getting your accounts set up.

 What is your single biggest social media regret? Do you maintain separate profiles for your business and your private life? Any tips for getting started?