It will help you keep an audience when you’ve got one.
That’s not what this post at Book Designer starts to say, but that’s what they end up concluding. The lede is buried here:
Your key to more followers isn’t posting more frequently or having more conversations. Nor is it constantly checking your feeds to see who said what.
A readership develops because they have something to value and talk about. The best way to accomplish that is to give them more fiction. Writing good stories, as always, should remain your top priority.
Good storytelling will lead to a fan base, and then social media will start returning results. You’ll see more links, retweets, and likes. Your voice will start circulating and your reach will expand.
Joel has even proposed not significantly investing in blogging until you have a readership. I think that makes a lot of sense.
Suggestion: Work on your craft, refine your voice, polish and publish. That’s what matters most. The better your writing, the better social media will work.
I’ve been operating under the If You Build It, They Will Come idea since I started self-publishing. I’m glad to hear that I’m not out of my mind.
Content Blues 
Andrew: Your observation at the beginning of this post was nicely put.
The If You Build It, They Will Come idea can take a very long time, and most people aren’t that patient. There are definitely ways to get traction sooner without selling one’s soul or huge resource investments.
That being said, I also believe that every writer is different, and it’s up to the individual to make the choice that’s right for him/her. Sounds like you’re content with how things are going for you, and I applaud your steadfastness for staying on course.
I wouldn’t say I was content. But I know I’m in a boat with lots of other people and we’re all trying to find our audience. I’ve had the theory that social media has a certain “drinking from a firehose” quality to it; at some point, our eyes are saturated. This sort of confirms my theory.
Thanks for the comment.