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How To Use Twitter For Business - 10 Simple Tips For Peak Performance

Twitter Timeline

Twitter Timeline

Businesses are jumping on the social media marketing bandwagon in a big way, and the trend doesn’t show any signs of slowing down. Major social networks such as Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Google+ are where the people are at and social media marketers have been forced to go among the masses to spread their messages in these growing networks. Despite their enthusiasm for finding new prospects using social media, businesses and organizations have to develop a disciplined approach to their social media communications. Social media marketing is extremely effective, both in a positive and negative way, and companies that plan to succeed follow need to follow a plan to achieve their end result.

As for myself, I’ve been using social media marketing on Twitter to help promote my brand, and I can see why everyone loves the idea so much. Twitter is a website that’s still confusing to many non-tech people, but it is truly a ‘can’t miss‘ website when it comes to spreading the word about your organization, professional services, or business products. Let’s take a look at some principles I’ve been following on Twitter which have been very helpful for spreading the message about my cloud hosting and SaaS business.

Tips For Using Twitter For Business

  • Nobody sells on Twitter anymore. I should say, no “high quality” business tries to sell on Twitter. Many ‘spammy’ lower-echelon businesses do. If you’re offering a high-quality product and care about your corporate reputation, you’ll think twice about relentlessly hammering people’s timelines. There’s nothing wrong with placing your own commercial messages in your stream, but keep it to the suggested rate of 8% of your total content. Anything more and people flee. Of course this idea won’t apply to all businesses. Certain businesses who do it just the right way will make sales directly from Twitter (think eBooks, etc.) But if you have a product that’s relatively complex, use Twitter as a ‘relationship tool’ and build trust with the people that you keep in contact with. This trusted relationship can then help to build a professional relationship.
  • Be nice and friendly. This advice seems simple enough, but manners count. If you don’t respond to people, they’ll view you and your brand as being unresponsive or worse. Take the time to engage with everyone who engages with you. It’s worth the investment of time for the goodwill it creates.
  • Be as clear as possible when you communicate. The 140-character limit on Twitter means you have to be very clear when you communicate. It’s not always easy to understand humor in such a short format. Keep in mind that not everyone on your friend list speaks your language fluently, so they might not understand a turn of phrase or slang comment. Keep your communications simple and to the point. If you have something more to say, link to a blog post where you’ve delved deeper into the subject at hand and really lay things out.
  • Don’t just talk about yourself. If you talk about yourself in every post, you’re that boring guy you wished you’d never become. You know who I’m speaking about? The dude that never stops talking about his new car, his new clothes, or anything else he can think of about himself. Don’t be that guy. Be sure to ask others how they’re doing, listen to what they have to say and don’t be afraid to share the work of others.
  • Share other’s work without question. Share content because you find it interesting and you think your audience will too. Don’t share things with the express intent of expecting a ‘quid pro quo’ relationship with those whose content you distributed. If you get the reputation for being someone who finds great content, your audience will have more respect for your message when you post.
  • Be businesslike. Keep your social media profile on the topic of business if you’re about business. If you feel the need to post personal items, split those posts into a different account. You don’t want to offend potential clients by posting offtopic material that could be just as easily posted from a personal account.
  • Make yourself authoritative by being accessible. Even the busiest social media personalities find time to engage with their audience. They might not be able to speak with everyone every time, but they clearly try. There’s a lesson in that for people who aren’t as popular, and should have plenty of free time on their hands.
  • Be clear in your profile. Not only should you use descriptive terms to describe yourself, your products, and your company, but you should try to be as clear as humanly possible. I have to be honest, I’m amazed at the number of people who call themselves “Ninjas.” If I needed someone to “take care of business” so to speak in feudal Japan, I’d be all over them, but in modern times I’d rather know exactly who you are and what you actually do.
  • March to the beat of your own drum.. Don’t be afraid of being unique. Don’t just blindly follow others and do what they’re doing. Add a bit of originality to your Twitter routine and see where it takes you. You won’t gain much traction being a weak version of people who already exist.
  • Be realistic. Social media marketing is not a miracle cure for a failed business model or a poor marketing plan. You really have to know your stuff to succeed using social media. Be prepared to work hard and consistently.

These are some of the principles I’ve learned doing social media marketing. I’d love to hear what you have to say about the subject. Thanks for stopping by and if you found this post to be valuable, Please Retweet it or share on any of your favorite social networks.

About Darren McLaughlin

I'm the President of MostHost Inc. I'm interested in cloud hosting, email security, social media, cats, business development, and my wife Heather. | |

Comments

  1. Chip Michael says:

    Great article…

    I’m working with local businesses trying to get them to understand how to use social media as a tool to leverage their business. This outlines it in 10 easy points.

    Well done!!!

  2. Thanks Chip!

    I’m glad you found it useful. That sounds like an interesting sideline you’re working on. If I can help at all, don’t hesitate to ask.

    Darren