Social media has become a huge part of every company’s marketing mix, whether you are a local business or a nationwide brand. It is important to have a branded Facebook page and a branded Twitter handle to communicate with your consumers directly. Many companies are utilizing Facebook to its maximum potential, but are you using Twitter to its full potential as well?
According to this article by Mashable, Twitter has over 100 million monthly active users, 50% of whom are signing in every day. That is a HUGE audience. But sometimes just pushing your Facebook posts to your Twitter account doesn’t cut it. So let me share some tips to help you maximize your success in the Twitterverse.
1. Utilize free Twitter tools
There are a lot of free tools that can help you utilize Twitter to its maximum potential. My two favorite are Hootsuite and Tweetdeck. These tools not only provide easy management of multiple accounts or brands, but will also greatly help with the other tips proved below.
2. Set up relevant live searches
When using Hootsuite or Tweetdeck you have the ability to set up live streams of searches using whatever terms you desire. As an example, lets say you are a hotel in the Chicagoland area. You can set up a search for “Chicago Hotels” in your Tweetdeck account. You will then have a live stream of all Twitter users tweeting about Chicago hotels, hotels in Chicago, etc. So if someone tweets, “What is the best hotel to stay at in Chicago?” you can quickly reach out to him or her directly with a response in a matter of seconds.
3. Answer consumer questions
Many times your consumers will have a question about your product or services, and may reach out to you on Twitter. Having a closely monitored Twitter account (using tools like Hootsuite and Tweetdeck) will allow you to reach out to them promptly with the proper answer. Doing this will greatly increase customer satisfaction, which we all know leads to increased business and repeat customers.
4. Tweet relevant content and tweet often to gain followers-
It is important that you continue to utilize your Twitter account on a daily basis, as this will keep your brand fresh in all of your followers’ minds. Keep in mind that Twitter is different than Facebook, and a tweet will only appear on someone’s main feed for a matter of minutes. Also, be sure to tweet relevant content that is cohesive with your brand — maybe a new article was published about your company, or you were featured in a magazine or blog. Share that positive feedback with your audience. Continuing to tweet relatable content about your industry can greatly increase your follower base, not to mention position your brand as a thought leader in the industry.
These four tips are just the tip of the iceberg. But start with these, and start to maximize your Twitter potential.
very informative!
Comment by michelle — October 31, 2011 @ 1:36 am