How to use twitter for business
How to use Twitter For Business - Five Tips For Twitter Newcomers
Twitter is an excellent business tool, most famously because it's free; all it'll cost you is your time (and if that's in short supply, you are able to hire a social media marketer to manage it for you personally).
Used well, Twitter can provide good exposure for your business; but you can also damage your brand with social media marketing if you're not careful, therefore it is worth learning the biggest dos and don'ts before you begin using Twitter.
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Tip 1: be yourself and be human
The beauty of Twitter is that it's a huge global community of people (mostly; there are spammer accounts but they're easy to spot, block and report). So do show your human side, especially when using your business account. Discuss things that matter to you: funny things your children say, recent achievements, your favourite band or Television show, and so on. Join in with conversations that interest you - be friendly, show emotion, and employ smilies if you want to.
On the other hand, don't be too human. Don't share whatever you wouldn't share at a real-world business networking event; keep intimate health issues and controversial or potentially offensive opinions to yourself.
Tip 2: watch how you write
Some people write well, others don't - that's true in all areas of life, not only on Twitter. You don't have to be a bestselling novelist to use Twitter, but it helps for those who have basic literacy skills (and if you use Twitter at the website instead of through a client, your Tweets will be spellchecked as you type anyway - which will help).
However good (or bad) your ability as a copywriter are, with Twitter's 140-character limit you need to be creative with your Tweets. Your Tweets have to be concise yet informative, and frequently you'll be trying to squeeze in a URL too (URL shortening services like bit.ly and tinyurl.com are lifesavers).
One definite don't is using text speak. Text speak is okay if you're 13, but as a professional adult promoting your business you're just going to look silly, and won't communicate your messages efficiently - unless you're targeting 13 year olds.
Tip 3: share and share alike
For those who have some good news - related to your business or your personal life - share it; everybody loves a good news story.
Do share links - to your website, your blog, your local news service, or another type that interests your followers - this is a great way to get conversations going. But do remember to explain what the link's about, or your followers will feel less inclined to click it. And don't Tweet the same link over and over; people will quickly become bored and may stop following you.
Do retweet your friends' links, too; they'll be grateful, and so will your followers when the link is intriguing and relevant. But here's a very big 'do' - Make sure you click the link and read the content before sharing it with your followers, or you could wind up sharing a page that's irrelevant or offensive, or which contradicts your usual position about them.
Tip 4: participate the community
Don't treat Twitter as your personal billboard. It's not: it is a community, millions of members strong, and the community as a whole is not very tolerant of users who constantly advertise. Attempt to stick to the 80-20 rule when you use Twitter for business: a maximum of 20% of your Tweets should advertise or self-promote, and a minimum of 80% should be non-promotional. If you can obtain the ratio down to 90-10 or 95-5, even better.
Listen to what people say, and join in. Twitter is really a network of conversations, therefore it is good practice to listen and react to parts of those conversations that interest you; don't just stand in the middle of the room having a megaphone, shouting "I'm fabulous! I'm selling widgets at 20% off now!" Again - should you wouldn't do it in a business networking event, don't do it on Twitter.
Do retweet your friends' requests for help (for instance, charity appeals and sponsorship requests), and do introduce friends which are new to Twitter and could do with some followers. And again - do retweet useful, interesting links from people you follow, but always check links before sending.
Tip 5: mind a foreign language
Don't use offensive language when representing your company on Twitter; even mild swearwords can put sensitive souls off following you (and besides - cursing in public is hardly professional).
Use Twitter to reply to customer questions and solve their problems, by all means; many organisations use Twitter like a customer services tool effectively. But never, ever use an impolite or impatient tone with a customer. On Twitter, all you say is out there for everybody to see, so leave your followers using the best possible impression of the brand at all times... the Internet has a very long memory!
Finally - think about this a bonus tip, since it's not really connected to the previous ones - try to enjoy yourself when you use Twitter. Attempt to embrace all that's good about Twitter - the new friendships and business contacts you'll make, the fun hashtags and trending topics, the strong community spirit - and in a short time you'll be singing (or is that Tweeting?) Twitter's praises to anyone who'll listen.
facebook networking for business
Twitter is an excellent business tool, most famously because it's free; all it'll cost you is your time (and if that's in short supply, you are able to hire a social media marketer to manage it for you personally).
Used well, Twitter can provide good exposure for your business; but you can also damage your brand with social media marketing if you're not careful, therefore it is worth learning the biggest dos and don'ts before you begin using Twitter.
facebook networking
Tip 1: be yourself and be human
The beauty of Twitter is that it's a huge global community of people (mostly; there are spammer accounts but they're easy to spot, block and report). So do show your human side, especially when using your business account. Discuss things that matter to you: funny things your children say, recent achievements, your favourite band or Television show, and so on. Join in with conversations that interest you - be friendly, show emotion, and employ smilies if you want to.
On the other hand, don't be too human. Don't share whatever you wouldn't share at a real-world business networking event; keep intimate health issues and controversial or potentially offensive opinions to yourself.
Tip 2: watch how you write
Some people write well, others don't - that's true in all areas of life, not only on Twitter. You don't have to be a bestselling novelist to use Twitter, but it helps for those who have basic literacy skills (and if you use Twitter at the website instead of through a client, your Tweets will be spellchecked as you type anyway - which will help).
However good (or bad) your ability as a copywriter are, with Twitter's 140-character limit you need to be creative with your Tweets. Your Tweets have to be concise yet informative, and frequently you'll be trying to squeeze in a URL too (URL shortening services like bit.ly and tinyurl.com are lifesavers).
One definite don't is using text speak. Text speak is okay if you're 13, but as a professional adult promoting your business you're just going to look silly, and won't communicate your messages efficiently - unless you're targeting 13 year olds.
Tip 3: share and share alike
For those who have some good news - related to your business or your personal life - share it; everybody loves a good news story.
Do share links - to your website, your blog, your local news service, or another type that interests your followers - this is a great way to get conversations going. But do remember to explain what the link's about, or your followers will feel less inclined to click it. And don't Tweet the same link over and over; people will quickly become bored and may stop following you.
Do retweet your friends' links, too; they'll be grateful, and so will your followers when the link is intriguing and relevant. But here's a very big 'do' - Make sure you click the link and read the content before sharing it with your followers, or you could wind up sharing a page that's irrelevant or offensive, or which contradicts your usual position about them.
Tip 4: participate the community
Don't treat Twitter as your personal billboard. It's not: it is a community, millions of members strong, and the community as a whole is not very tolerant of users who constantly advertise. Attempt to stick to the 80-20 rule when you use Twitter for business: a maximum of 20% of your Tweets should advertise or self-promote, and a minimum of 80% should be non-promotional. If you can obtain the ratio down to 90-10 or 95-5, even better.
Listen to what people say, and join in. Twitter is really a network of conversations, therefore it is good practice to listen and react to parts of those conversations that interest you; don't just stand in the middle of the room having a megaphone, shouting "I'm fabulous! I'm selling widgets at 20% off now!" Again - should you wouldn't do it in a business networking event, don't do it on Twitter.
Do retweet your friends' requests for help (for instance, charity appeals and sponsorship requests), and do introduce friends which are new to Twitter and could do with some followers. And again - do retweet useful, interesting links from people you follow, but always check links before sending.
Tip 5: mind a foreign language
Don't use offensive language when representing your company on Twitter; even mild swearwords can put sensitive souls off following you (and besides - cursing in public is hardly professional).
Use Twitter to reply to customer questions and solve their problems, by all means; many organisations use Twitter like a customer services tool effectively. But never, ever use an impolite or impatient tone with a customer. On Twitter, all you say is out there for everybody to see, so leave your followers using the best possible impression of the brand at all times... the Internet has a very long memory!
Finally - think about this a bonus tip, since it's not really connected to the previous ones - try to enjoy yourself when you use Twitter. Attempt to embrace all that's good about Twitter - the new friendships and business contacts you'll make, the fun hashtags and trending topics, the strong community spirit - and in a short time you'll be singing (or is that Tweeting?) Twitter's praises to anyone who'll listen.
facebook networking for business
