Facebook/Meta has decided to limit organic links in posts or in comments on Pages to two per month. So, if I post on my Facebook AlisonMortonAuthor Page with a link to a new blogpost on either my main blog or here, or if I link to an article from an outside source, I can only do this twice a month. Currently, I post nearly every day on my Page, so potentially 30 links.
Now, I like to post lots of interesting things for my readers about history, Romans, publishing, books, events, authors along with letting them know about my books, so this is a major blow.
Just a quick explainer…
Pages are used by businesses, including authors, who wish to market their goods and services, in my case, books. Profiles are where I put personal stuff – photos, weather, France, travel, opinions and observations. It used to be strictly verboten to use your personal profile for commercial purposes – that was why you had to have a Page. Then FB changed the rules and now allow you to change your personal profile into professional mode. My suspicious self asks if FB would like to flood everywhere with commercial stuff and kill off Pages…
Moving on…
Facebook will let you post links on your Page if you pay. (Quelle surprise!)
Their site states:
To add links in more than 2 posts or comments per month, you can subscribe to a Meta One Advanced, Expert or Max plan.
Meta One plan Posts or comments with links per month
Free (no subscription) 2
Essential plan (USD 14.99/mo) 2 (How is this different from the free account?)
Advanced plan (USD 49.99/mo) 8
Expert plan (USD 149.99/mo) 20
Max plan (USD 499.99/mo) Unlimited
Prices shown in USD. Prices may vary by region.
I love you all, but I can’t afford to pay $149.99 a month which would give me the absolute lowest level my FB page readers are used to.
I’m not going to change the nature of my personal profile and turn it into a commercial one. That would be rude. Many friends there come for the chat, not to be sold to. Many of those friends do read my books, which is very gratifying, but that’s not what a personal profile is for.
Solutions
The Internet is alive with all sorts of ways to resolve this. but many seem like patches designed to cover the cracks. I’ve come up with a neater, smoother one which I think will be easier for my readers and followers.
A few years ago, I experimented with a Facebook group for Roma Nova enthusiasts, but archived it after a while as I didn’t have enough time to devote to the Page and the group and write my books.
Now, I’ve reactivated it and renamed it Alison Morton’s World of Thrillers. And the good news is that in that group I can still link and bring you all the types of posts you’re used to. Hooray!
The other/additional solution is that you could also join my newsletter where you’ll get exclusive content and be the first to hear about things. A bonus is that when you sign up you’ll get a free ebook with excerpts from INCEPTIO (Roma Nova) and Double Identity (the Mélisende thrillers).
So… Now I have the task of inviting my page followers (nearly 2,500 of them) to transfer to the new/refreshed group. Wish me luck!
Alison Morton is the author of Roma Nova thrillers – INCEPTIO, CARINA (novella), PERFIDITAS, SUCCESSIO, AURELIA, NEXUS (novella), INSURRECTIO and RETALIO, and ROMA NOVA EXTRA, a collection of short stories. JULIA PRIMA and EXSILIUM, set in the late 4th century, tell the story of Roma Nova’s foundation. Audiobooks are available for four of the series. Double Identity, Double Pursuit and Double Stakes form a new contemporary thriller series. A new collection of Roma Nova short stories, HEROICA, is now out.
Find out more about Roma Nova, its origins, stories and heroines and taste world the latest contemporary thriller Double Identity… Download ‘Welcome to Alison Morton’s Thriller Worlds’, a FREE eBook, as a thank you gift when you sign up to Alison’s monthly email update. As a result, you’ll be among the first to know about news and book progress before everybody else, and take part in giveaways.
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