Truthfully—the bare minimum. Yep, you read that right.

But what about the hype, the promises, the RESULTS? Don’t the results increase in direct proportion to the effort? No, not so much.

Fairly quickly, the return on investment when, it comes to time and social networking, begins to diminish. I that sounds counter-intuitive, but it’s the absolute truth.

That said, how much time is required?

It depends…on your expertise, your audience and the desired result.

Your Expertise:

With any new skill, including social networking, there is a learning curve. It takes time to come up to speed on how to use Twitter, Facebook and Blogging platforms effectively. But, you don’t need to become an expert. After all, you want to be a writer—not a social media expert! Here are the skills you need to see results with social networking:

Twitter:

• You need to have a Twitter account and know the basics of tweeting.
• How to compose an effective tweet. Not sure how, here’s a post I wrote about tweeting effectively.
• How to use hashtags correctly. Here’s a post on that.
• The difference between a direct message, a reply and a tweet.

Facebook:

• You need to have a Facebook account and know how to navigate Facebook
• How to accept friend requests, as well as send them.
• How to hide unwanted posts.
• How to compose an effect Facebook post.
• How to configure your account privacy settings to protect yourself and your family while still interacting with readers and clients.
• The difference between a regular page and a fan page.

Blogging:

• You should have a blog—to practice writing on a deadline if nothing else.
• You need to know how often to post. Unsure what’s best? Here’s a post to help you decide.
• How to use keywords and labels effectively.
• How to tie your title to your keywords.
• How to use photos and videos to illustrate and partner with your posts.
• How to answer comments effectively.
• Which platform best suits your needs and skill level. Here are some things to think about.

Over the next few weeks I’m going to be explaining these topics more in-depth. But for now here’s my short answer on how much time to spend each day—once you’re familiar with social networking.

No more than 30 to 45 minutes per day, five days a week. After talking with thousands of authors and writers, I’ve found that any more time than that becomes counter-productive and actually interferes with our goals.

If you’re spending more time than that per day, something’s not working.

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Edie Melson is a freelance writer and editor with over 16 years experience in the publishing industry, with her popular writing blog, The Write Conversation. Edie has become known as one of the go-to experts on Twitter, Facebook, and social media for writers wanting to learn how to plug in. Her bestselling e-book, Social Media Marketing for Writers, is available on Kindle and Nook. Edie is also the co-director of the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference and Southwest Christian Writers Studio, as well as a popular faculty member at numerous others. Edie is also the Assistant Acquisitions Editor for www.ChristianDevotions.us. Her devotional book, Fighting Fear, Winning the War at Home, debuts on Veterans Day, 2011. (www.winningthewarathome.com) Contact her at:socialmedia@mybooktherapy.com.