I'm so excited to present this new feature! Today is finding the fandom community and your own place in it through a method I call #Followception. (Sort of like Inception, but with follows.)
#Followception is like pass the parcel, but with follows. (tweet this)
The entire idea is to find a person whom you follow and admire, then follow some of their followers. It's not a new concept by any means, but #Followception isn't just about clicking a button; it's about getting to know more of the community. So if you love Marvel and you see Marvel Fangirl is followed by DC Fangirl, you might wanna rethink following DC Fangirl in this context.
(*cough* I mean, not that you can't like both Marvel and DC Comics.)
@skyofthetiger I think I was just following people followed by people I follow :) #followception
— Alyssa Carlier (@sisterofsilence) January 31, 2015
Meet new people in the same fandom or industry with #Followception.
I more or less explained this above, but here are some examples of truly marvellous coincidences that #Followception has brought me.
- Sky, from the above Tweet: I follow Christina on Twitter, who follows Sky on myWriteClub. I also follow Cait's blog, who co-hosts Beautiful People with Sky.
- Topaz Winters, my takeout and timezone buddy: I follow Christina who follows AnQi, who joined Christina on The Teacup Trail staff, including Topaz, whose blog I follow.
- Heather, now my CP: I follow AnQi who participated in TCWT hosted by John. Heather participated in TCWT and after mutual comments, I nagged at her until we became CPs.
(Psst, to start #followception right away ... just follow all the people I've linked to. They're awesome.)
#Followception can even help you gain more followers.
I once asked Topaz about her stellar marketing efforts and she kindly blogged about her marketing mindset. The key idea is that marketing is about building relationships. And while I stand behind that 120%, it's sometimes difficult to start when you're just an icon in the interwebs.
#Followception is about reaching out to new people, finding your fellow fangirls. And once you've found them, the fandom love doesn't stop there. Retweet their messages. Spread the word about their fanworks and blog posts. Talk about them.
Everyone loves it when their work is appreciated, and if it happens several times, they might begin to take a look at your online profile and reciprocate. Pass the parcel and the fandom love. Someday, it might be your dream #Followception targets.
How do you show your appreciation in fandoms? Have you tried #Followception? Share your takeout in the comments!
Want to share the fandom love? Start by tweeting this post:
- #Followception is like pass the parcel, but with follows. (Click to tweet)
- A simple way to establish yourself in a community: #Followception! (Click to tweet)
Update: I wrote a follow-up guest post on Heather's blog about recurring readers. If you liked this post, you should check that one out too!